The Capilano Suspension Bridge is a simple suspension bridge crossing the Capilano River in
the District of North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The current bridge is 140 meters
(460 ft) long and 70 meters (230 ft) above the river. It is part
of a private facility with an admission fee, and draws over 800,000 visitors a
year.
History
The bridge was originally built in 1889
by George Grant Mackay, a Scottish civil engineer and park commissioner
for Vancouver. It was originally made of hemp ropes with a deck of cedar
planks, and was replaced with a wire cable bridge in 1903. In 1910 Edward
Mahonpurchased the
Capilano Suspension Bridge. "Mac" MacEachran purchased the Bridge
from Mahon in 1935 and invited local natives to place their totem
poles in the park,
adding a native theme. In 1945, he sold the bridge to Henri Aubeneau.
The bridge was completely rebuilt in 1956.
The park was sold to Nancy Stibbard, the current
owner, in 1983. Annual attendance has since increased, and in May 2004,
Treetops Adventures was opened. This new attraction consists of seven
footbridges suspended between old-growth Douglas Fir trees on the west side of
the canyon, forming a walkway up to 30 meters (98 ft) above the forest
floor.
As well as the bridge and Treetops Adventure, the
first venue of its kind in North America, the park also features rain forest
ecotours, award-winning gardens, nature trails, North America's largest private
collection of First Nations totem poles, period decor and costumes, and
exhibits highlighting the park's history and the surrounding temperate rain
forest. Guests can also witness a First Nations performance, featuring their
traditional Regalia (ceremonial dress), masks, dancing and storytelling.
In June 2011, a new attraction called Cliff Walk was
added to the park. This adventure is included with the entrance fee.
Incidents
In 1999, a woman dropped her 18-months-old, disabled
child off the bridge. She claimed she stumbled accidentally and the child
slipped from her grasp. The child was not seriously injured. The woman
lost legal custody of her child as a result of the incident. The woman took
legal action against the owner of the bridge, alleging negligence by the owner.
The case was settled out of court.
In 2006, a 300-year-old, 46-tonne Douglas fir tree
toppled during a heavy snowstorm. The tree fell across the western end of
the bridge. Park officials closed the bridge temporarily while repairs were
performed.
On June 6, 2010, a teenage tourist on a
class trip from California climbed over a railing and fell more than 30 metres
(98 ft) from a fenced off viewing platform near the bridge. By the time
rescue workers came to his aid, the victim was dead. The official RCMP finding was that the teen was under the influence of LSD at the
time of the incident.
On June 2, 2012 a 30-year-old tourist
from Ontario died after falling near the bridge. Police say the
victim was hiking through trails near the popular attraction when he climbed
over a railing and fell to the riverbed below.
Popular culture
The bridge has been featured as a
setting in episodes of several television series, including MacGyver, Sliders, The Crow: Stairway to Heaven, and Psych.
In 1974, social psychologists Donald
Dutton and Arthur Aron conducted a well-known experiment on the bridge. Men
approached by a female researcher on the bridge were more likely to call her
later than men approached on a more solid bridge across the river. Dutton and
Aron argued that this supported the theory that the men were mis-attributing the arousal caused by fear to sexual
attraction toward the woman. This research supported Stanley Schachter's two-factor theory of emotion.