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Blog > The Many Colors of the 35W Bridge in Minneapolis
The Many Colors of the 35W Bridge in Minneapolis
Aug 11, 2019
On August 1st, 2007, the I-35W Mississippi River bridge that spans the Mississippi River in Minneapolis collapsed during rush hour traffic. On that day I was driving around the Twin Cities visiting the 6 different restaurants that I was overseeing. However, while at the 5th I decided that heading to the 6th restaurant during rush hour would have not been worth the extra time it would have involved. Had I gone, I may have been on, or very near, the bridge when it collapsed. It was obviously quite a horrific day here in Minneapolis.
Around 13 months later, the new I-35W Saint Anthony Falls bridge was completed as the replacement for the collapsed bridge. This new bridge lit up in colors and has greatly enhanced the beauty in Minneapolis. On most days, this bridge is lit up in blue. I am not sure why blue was the chosen color but as you can see in the above photo, it really makes for an eye-catching scene.
Nearly all of the photos displayed in this blog were taken from another bridge, which is simply called Bridge No. 9. It is an old railroad bridge that has been converted to a pedestrian and bicycle bridge. It connects two of the most used bike paths in the city, the Bluff Street Bikeway and the Dinkytown Greenway. The arched bridge that is scene just before the 35W bridge is the 10th Avenue Bridge.
The rest of this blog will be photos of many of the various colors the 35W bridge lights up in. There are many different color schemes that I have missed over the years, but the ones that I have caught have all been absolutely beautiful.
This first photo was taken with a very heavy heart. It is when the city of Minneapolis (ok, the entire world) lit up in Purple the day that Prince died.
This next photo was shot during the Independence Day's Red, White and Boom fireworks. The 35W bridge was lit in red, white and blue, but the colors were moving, and in this long exposure photo only the red and blue showed up in the final result.
During the home opener for the bigger Minnesota Sports teams (Vikings, Twins, Timberwolves, Wild, Lynx, and Gophers), the bridge will light up in the home teams colors. Surprisingly, the only one that I have ever captured is this one from a Minnesota Twins home opener.
Of course, on Saint Patricks Day, the bridge will light up in green.
And on Valentines Day it lights up in red.
The final color scheme that I'm going to show you will come in two different photos. This first one was shot from under the 10th Avenue bridge during Pride weekend. The 35W bridge lights up in rainbow colors which look spectacular. Unfortunately, the colors move pretty rapidly. So, this next photo was a quick exposure.
This next photo was shot on the same day as the rainbow one above, but I used a long exposure. The long exposure turned the rainbow colors into pink. I have never seen the bridge lit in pink so this totally works for me.
Thank you for reading along, and let me know what you think in the comments below!
