One Liner Twofer – #1LinerWeds

Family, History, New England Life, One Line Wed, Travel 75 comments

Today’s one liners both have a “Best Read By” date of 12/5/2018. One because the story ties in with Monday’s post and one because we’re coming to the end of college football season. Since I know some of you are not sports fans, I’ll keep the latter one short.

Yes, I understand that the whole post is supposed to be short, but you know me better than that.

When I was driving down to Manhattan to meet my friend at the Cloisters, I followed Greta’s (my GPS) advice to take the Merritt Parkway. I did that because it was a Saturday. The Merritt is a beautifully scenic four-lane parkway, but it is narrow and if anything goes wrong with anything, traffic can be snarled forever. For the benefit of those of you not from this part of the country, a ‘parkway’ in Connecticut and New York, is a limited access highway that is open to passenger vehicles only – no trucks and no commercial vehicles. It’s a peaceful ride compared to Interstate 95, which is eight lanes of anything with wheels, that runs parallel to the Merritt.

“Yo Greta – Save video.”

That’s the wake-up phrase and instruction for Great to save the last two minutes of video from her dashcam. I did this every time I passed under one of the bridges on the parkway. These bridges are a signature feature of the Merritt Parkway. I could explain, but I’ll borrow some text from the website:

“The bridges along the Merritt Parkway and the Wilbur Cross Parkway are a fine example of one man’s imagination, George Dunkleberger, chief designer with the Connecticut Department of Highways at the time, drew inspiration both from history and the spirit of the times. Each bridge is treated as a separate unit or horizontal building, if you will, resembling anything from medieval bridges to stage sets, or futuristic gates to other-worldly cities and kingdoms…

It is also interesting to note that as the Parkways were built, proceeding from Greenwich to Meridan and the Second World War commenced, the designs became exceedingly less elaborate, with cleaner lines and the absence of many materials caused by wartime shortages are evident, such as reflector materials and steel for ornamentation.”

Note: I extracted 51 images from almost 40 minutes of video from the 60 or so miles of highway, so there are more pictures than normal, but there are way fewer than there could be.

Now, as to that football one-liner. Saturday night, after returning from New York, I watched some football, including the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Championship game between my alma mater, The University of Pittsburgh and ACC powerhouse, Clemson University. In less than six minutes and after only four offensive plays by Clemson, Pitt was down 14 – 0. I texted my brother, saying that I might not stay up for the whole game. He replied:

“Not likely to be a nail biter.”

This post is part of Linda G. Hill’s fun weekly series One-Liner Wednesday. If you have a one-liner, I’d encourage you to join in on the fun. You can follow this link to participate and to see the one-liners from the other participants.

Many of the bridges are cast concrete.
Nice clean lines.
I like how the bridges conform to the landscape.
Hard not to like the stone (faced, I’m guessing) bridges.
Some are rather plain.
I tried to include one showing the depth of the walls.
This is one of my favorites.
Interesting when the chose to cover the distance in a single span/
Simple steel structure, decorated with stone.
Cast concrete but nice decorative features.
I think the bridge is cast concrete the walls give an appearance of mass that isn’t really there.
If not for the decorations on the abutments, this could pass for a more modern bridge.
A similar look to some others, but more interesting details.
It’s the little details.
Cast concrete, but very pretty.
The kind of bridge you want to drive under :-)
These bridges are practical structures made to appear a little interesting.
Simple design, steel bridge, iron work railings.
A few lines in the concrete, a little ornamental iron work and the ordinary becomes interesting.
Different treatment to the cast concrete and we have a massive look.
More of an entrance appearance.
All it takes is a few decorations to transform the ordinary into the special.
It’s hard to see the winged statue on the center support.
Relatively basic appearance. Near the eastern end.
Isn’t that fun looking?
I can’t tell if this is worn, or if the random pattern is by design.
I think this is actually a steel bridge with concrete decorations on the span.
This appears to be stone, but I think it might be cast concrete.

75 comments

  2. Love the pictures today, Don. They remind me, and make me homesick for the North. Funny, I lived up there for 20 years and here in Florida for 48, but when I see it, it still feels like home.

    Liked by 2 people

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    1. Thanks GP – I now that feeling. When I see pictures from western PA, I feel the same way. I was thinking that I’d like to stop and take pictures of these bridges, and then I realized Greta was already doing that. I’m glad you enjoyed the trip.

      Liked by 1 person

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  4. That must be a beautiful ride during peak fall leaf season. Wow, so many bridges and all so different. It’s a very cool highway, and it brought me back to summer – thinking of bridges to cross on the bike.

    Yeah, football. Not a great season for our college teams, not a great season for my pro team. I’m still rooting for the Steelers, Dan, because that’s all I have left!

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. Thanks Mary. When the trees are full, the Merritt is a magical road. When they are showing fall colors, the distraction might be dangerous. It goes back to a time when we cared about form and function. They tried to create a beautiful ride.

      Both Pitt and WVU will head to a bowl game, but both came up short of expectations. The Steelers are trying to break my heart.I had high hopes for them and the Pack. Now, I wonder is we’ll be playing in January.

      Liked by 1 person

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  6. Beautiful pictures of the Merritt Parkway. I can remember riding on that road when we took my sister back and forth to college in Maine each year (I live in PA). That was before 95 was built!

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. Thanks! Did you follow the Wilbur Cross all the way to Union, MA? That turns into I-84 outside of Hartford these days, but I don’t know when that was completed.

      I always enjoy this road, but the Hutchinson River and Cross Country parkways in New York can be harrowing rides. Those lanes are so narrow. I-95 is just a nightmare.

      Liked by 1 person

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      1. Dan, I just don’t remember. I was just a kid and didn’t drive. I remember my parents talking about the Garden State Parkway, the Merritt Parkway, and others, but the Wilbur Cross doesn’t sound familiar, nor does the Cross Country Parkway.

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  7. An entire post filled with photos of bridges! {Swoon} There is just something about a bridge that makes the heart beat a little faster and this parkway is full of them!

    However, you piqued my attention with the comment about Greta saving the last 2 minutes of video from her dashcam. Do all GPS have a dashcam? Is this a feature I’ve been missing all these years???

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. Thanks Joanne – we are in total agreement about bridges. I don’t know how many GPSs have dashcams. I lost my GPS a couple of years ago. I replaced it with what I thought was the same model but they had added a dashcam to it. It drives a bunch of features (lane assist, collision avoidance and an annoying “traffic is moving” when I’m late to leave a traffic light) so I think you would know.

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            1. I really enjoy having a stand-alone gps. I like it being up, not down where the radio (showing my age) is and I like the fact that new features are added with each update and I can do them in the comfort of my home.

              Liked by 1 person

  8. We’ll be headed down the parkway in a few weeks. But, now I need to know how Greta captured those photos. If I remember correctly, Greta is a Garmin, and I have a Garmin, Sally, but didn’t know she could capture photos. I need more info because you have my imagination at full alert. :-) Happy Wednesday, Dan.

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. Thanks Judy. I don’t think all Garmins have dashcams. My previous ones did not. It drives some useful features, but I’ve mostly used the “save video” for blog-support. But hey, Christmas is coming and there’s still time to upgrade :-)

      Liked by 1 person

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  11. I was born and raised in Westchester County, NY, and lived for many years in Port Chester, just across the border from Greenwich, CT. The Merritt Parkway was a beautiful ride then with those majestic bridges and breathtaking scenery. It’s a wonder we all didn’t drive right off the road sightseeing!! Wonderful trip down memory lane Dan. Thanks so much. And thank you too Greta!!
    🔹 Ginger 🔹

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    1. I’m glad you enjoyed this, Ginger. I first saw the Merritt in 1977, and I was overwhelmed by the fact that a highway that beautiful was sitting in CT. I also drove the Taconic often, between NYC and Kingston – another beautiful ride. Although, as I mentioned above, the Hutchinson River Parkway can be a scary ride,e specially these days. Those lanes seem so small.

      It is a wonder there aren’t more accidents on the Merritt, especially during the fall.

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    1. Thanks Deborah. I laugh every time you refer to Stephanie. The work on these bridges started in the art deco period. Can you imagine proposing such a project today within a Dept of Transportation? It was a lovely day for a scenic ride.

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  15. Give me the Merritt over 95 every time. Except in the fog.

    I remember returning from a local-theater audition in Stamford when I lived in Fairfield, and the fog was so dense it was like being inside a marshmallow. Very cool, but spooky! (Note: I didn’t get the part.)

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    1. Aww, sorry. I didn’t know you had a theatrical background. That must explain why you’re so good at the front of a classroom. Yes, the Merritt in the fog is awful, especially if you’re trying to enter from one of those miniature on-ramps or re-enter from one of the service areas.

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    1. Thanks Norm – it worked out much better than I planned, except for having to review the video. I thought I could fast forward, but that was a little hard to watch without tossing dinner.

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    1. I have mentioned it. You may remember some video taken while going through a long narrow tunnel (or perhaps you blocked that from your mind). It is a cool feature. I’ve saved a few scary-almost-accidents, including one on the way home from NYC last week.

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  25. I absolutely love the bridges along the Merritt Parkway. I remember the day I realized each was different and had a name and number. I think my favorite is the one with a winged victory in the middle. Now, how you did the techy thingy with posting the photos is amazing.

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. I’m glad you liked these Jennie. That is one of my favorite bridges. As for the techie thing, let’s just say this post took more prep-time than any other post ever. Greta takes and saves the video, but Microsoft’s Media Player doesn’t have any way of exporting stills from a video. I had to watch the video, pause at a frame, capture part of the screen with the Snipping too and then cop those in Lightroom. I tried fast forwarding through the videos, but that wasn’t making me feel very good :-)

      At least it’s a beautiful ride

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  27. That’s a nice collection! I always appreciate a good bridge, especially a railroad trestle :) I have to say, we don’t have many interesting bridges here, so when I see them, I admire them. On The Fort, they do have a newish bridge for driving. It has good lamps all in a row, looks European.

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. Thanks. I tried to get a good image of the lamps on one long bridge that I crossed, but Greats never got a good the video from a good perspective – I guess I should have swerved a little, but…

      Most bridges to day are just utilitarian in design. This was a Depression era project so that (WPA) probably helped.

      I would love to do a tour of railroad trestles 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

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  29. Wow! That’s many bridges for 40 minutes. I should study a bit more about it. Were they built just for fun? Is there any proper function to them other than decorative? Not that I mind them in the least, it’s just a bit….. quirky.

    Liked by 1 person

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