Gateway to the City of Culture 2017 Virtual Cache
Gateway to the City of Culture 2017
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The Humber Bridge
**READ THE ACCEPTED LOGGING DETAILS AT THE BOTTOM**
The Humber Bridge is a suspension bridge with the north tower sited on the high water line and the south tower founded in shallow water 500m from the shore.
Designed to cross the last major unbridged estuary in Britain, the bridge comprises reinforced concrete towers aerial-spun catenary cables and a continuously-welded, closed box road deck supported by inclined hanger cables. For a long time the Humber Estuary was a barrier to trade and development between the two banks and local interests campaigned for over 100 years for the construction of a bridge or tunnel across the estuary.
The first major crossing proposal was a tunnel scheme in 1872. This scheme was promoted by Hull merchants and businesses dissatisfied with the service provided by the New Holland ferry crossing. Over the next 100 years, a variety of proposals were put forward in an effort to bridge the Humber.
In 1928, a plan was drawn up by Hull City Council to build a multi-span truss bridge four miles west of Hull between Hessle on the north side and Barton-upon-Humber on the south. However, the scheme sank without a trace after being hit by the financial woes of the great depression of the late 1920's and early 1930's.
Approval for the construction of a suspension bridge was granted in 1959 with the passing of the Humber Bridge Act and the creation of the Humber Bridge Board, although it was not until 1973 that work finally began.
The reasons why a suspension bridge was chosen were twofold. Firstly the Humber has a shifting bed and navigable channel along which a craft can travel is always changing; a suspension bridge with no support piers in mid-stream would not obstruct the estuary. Secondly, because of the geology and topography of the area, the cost of constructing a tunnel would have been excessive.
Work on the construction proceeded for eight years, during which time many thousands of tonnes of steel and concrete were used and upwards of one thousand workers and staff were employed at times of peak activity.
When traffic first crossed the bridge on 24th June 1981 many local dreams were fulfilled and similarly many people will have happy memories of the Bridge's official opening on 17th July 1981 when H.M. the Queen performed the formal opening ceremony.
The Bridge "opened up" both socially and economically, two previously remote and insular areas of England, improving communication enabling the area to realise its potential in commercial, industrial and tourist development.
The Bridge has saved many millions of vehicle miles and many valuable hours of drivers' and passengers' time - an important factor not only for the drivers and operators of commercial vehicles but also for tourists and holidaymakers who would have had to travel around the estuary to reach destinations in the region.
Construction
On the north bank, a hard well-jointed bed of chalk comes close to the surface and is covered by a tough layer of glacially deposited chalky boulder clay. The chalk has provided good foundations for both the anchorage and tower on this bank, on the south side, soft alluvium is underlain by beds of boulder clay, sand and gravel. Below these beds, at a depth of 30m, there is a deep bed of stiff, heavily fissured kimmeridge clay, on which the tower and anchorage have been founded.
The bridge is a masterpiece of civil engineering and was developed out of a design used initially for the Severn bridge near Bristol, England. Its design lifespan is 120 years.
**NOTE**
GZ is on the west pavement next to northbound traffic. DO NOT CROSS THE CARRIAGEWAY OR PARK ON THE BRIDGE to get this!!!Occasionally the bridge is closed for safety. I suggest if you are coming from a way off to get this, you telephone the Humber Bridge Board on 01482 647161 to check that the west side pavement is open. They don't need to know why you are asking!!
I am getting many many requests for, "please can I log this as Im 50ft away on the East pavement". I'm not a mean person, SO, if you upload a selfie next to the SOS boxes OPPOSITE GZ on the East pavement, I will accept it. I will not however accept selfies taken over a mile away, with a bridge in the vague background :roll_eyes:
To claim the Virtual
***To claim this Virtual Cache****: Please take a photo of yourself in front of 5N or please tell me, on stanchion number 458 what is the rest of the number that starts B92 9* **. If you're clever you can do both, but one will do.
DO NOT post your answers or spoilers on here, but message me them. You may claim the cache pending your answers being checked. If its wrong I'll let you know.
Virtual Reward - 2017/2018This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between August 24, 2017 and August 24, 2018. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards on the Geocaching Blog.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Sbe gur fgnapuvba: Hcfvqr qbja ng svefg