These 15 bridges are just a few of the very finest that America has to offer.
Rising above valleys and rivers, they are all towering examples of man’s ability to overcome nature's obstacles.
You’ve undoubtedly heard of most of them, but consider the sheer amount of human will power that went into building them and the historical impact they've had, and you’ll see why driving over each and every one, at some point in your life, deserves a spot on your bucket list.
SEE ALSO: The world's longest glass bottom bridge just opened in China — and it looks terrifying
London Bridge (Lake Havasu, Arizona)
London Bridge is simultaneously one of the most impressive and most confusing bridges anywhere in the world. Here's the deal: the London Bridge from the nursery rhyme, located on the River Thames, fell down (obviously). In 1831, a new London Bridge was built to replace it. Then, 130 years later, it was bought by an American oil tycoon, dismantled brick-by-brick, and relocated to Lake Havasu...thereby lending its historical presence to spring brake revelers.
Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel (Chesapeake Bay, Virginia)
If necessity is the mother of invention, then she's certainly proud of this one. To devise the best bridge for traffic heading out of Virginia Beach, engineers in the 1950s had to get creative so as not to disrupt shipping traffic. High bridges were ruled out, ostensibly due to concerns from the US Navy about a major base being blocked in the event of a bridge collapse. The solution? A series of low-profile bridges with tunnels that dive under the bay. The end result is 23 miles of American engineering excellence born from a bit of Cold War paranoia...and lots and lots of beauty.
Royal Gorge Bridge (Near Canon City, Colorado)
Built over 900 feet above the Arkansas River, the Royal Gorge Bridge isn't the highest vehicular bridge in the world...sadly, it lost that title in the early 2000s after holding it since 1929. The spectacular views are as beautiful as they are deadly, and have been the backdrop of several high-profile stunts.
Fun side note: if your vision's good enough, you can see a railroad at the bottom of the gorge that was built during a silver rush. The right to build it was so sought after, rival railroad companies actually formed small armies of outlaws like Doc Holliday, sabotaging each other's efforts with dynamite in what became known as the Colorado Railroad War.
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