The world famous Capilano Suspension Bridge Park in North Vancouver BC is adding an attraction called CLIFFWALK. The exhilarating new attraction will greatly increase the ecotourism value of one of Vancouver's top tourism sites. Morrison Hershfield and their partner McElhanney provided the complex design and survey services. Kent LaRose, the lead design engineer, advises that the result will be a heart-stopping, 215m long, 0.5m wide, pedestrian walkway that takes visitors through a west coast rainforest on a series of cantilevered bridges and stairs protruding from the granite cliff face some 25 storeys above the Capilano River. This type of structure is considered to be the first of its kind in the world, and the fabrication/erection technique developed was said to be ground breaking by the steel fabricator.
This unique and environmentally friendly walkway will allow the park's over 700,000 annual visitors to venture along the face of the granite cliff. In addition to providing a thrilling adventure, CLIFFWALK will provide educational opportunities about the importance of the water cycle in our daily lives. The educational component will be carried out through interpretative exhibits and be a way for visitors to safely experience a part of the rainforest ecosystem typically only accessible by experienced rock climbers.
Some interesting features of CLIFFWALK include a curved cable supported bridge, six viewing platforms (two with glass floors, one with a steel grate), nine flights of stairs, a spiral staircase and eight straight bridges. Construction is anticipated to be finished in December of this year, with the grand opening scheduled for the spring of 2011. The Discovery Channel has been filming the walk's progression and plans to air a one-hour documentary in the Spring.
For more information on the project and the park visit the