sydney harbor bridge climb

today i did the sydney harbor bridge climb.  i had it all figured out how to sneak my camera under my jumpsuit but in the end we had to go through 2 metal detectors and i got a smack down.

sure, no cameras are allowed for safety reasons but there are so many great pictures to be taken from that view, 134 meters above water.  and i failed.

the climb itself wasn't very challenging, there are 2 sets of steps on the way up then mostly just walking plank walkways or gradual stairs.  at one point you pop up between lanes of traffic and that was pretty neat, on the way down i was between 2 trains on the other side.

the entire time you have a safety leash attached to a steel cord that runs the entire length of the trip. you hook on at the very beginning and there's no way to unattach (i tried that too).  the safety cord has anchors into the bridge steel every few feet and the leash has a big ball with teeth where it attaches so its able to go past each anchor without disengaging.  i've never seen anything like that and it was sorta fascinating how it worked.

the climb starts slightly above ground level and you walk the first planks right above the cars on the highway.  a set of stairs takes you to the upper level planks and you're at the height of the opera house and some of the taller buildings.  the second set of stairs takes you to the very top arch of the bridge and then you walk along the top, level with almost all of the highest buildings in the city.  except for the wind blowing a gazillion miles an hour it always felt safe.

our guide stopped us every few feet to talk about bridge construction, people that died, pointing out landmarks, etc.  at one point we saw a giant yellow rubber duck in the harbor the even she hadn't seen before, it must have been 2 stories tall.

our guide took alot of pictures at the top and i bought a couple, i'll get them posted at some point.  then we crossed the top of the arch and walked back down the other side for the other views.

the bridge climb itself was interesting but what really amazed me was the assembly line efficiency of this company.  there are groups of 14 that start every 5 minutes, all day long.  there are sunrise climbs, sunset climbs and nite climbs.  thousands of people per day.

each group gets called and there is a form to fill out and you blow a breathalyzer test.  the next room gets you a jump suit.  next stop is a belt and leash, then a quick set of demonstration stairs to see what its like and try out your safety leash.  next stop is supplies (hats, croakies, handkerchiefs), jackets for the cold top, then finally radios so you can hear your guide throughout the trip.  everything gets safety clipped to rings on your suit or your belt.

every station has all of the supplies in the exact order you need them, all the equipment is perfectly maintained, and each group files through each section 5 minutes apart and gets fitted.  the reverse is done when you return.  it was a great setup.

it did cost a little more than i would have liked, around $250, but i had to do it.  in total it was 3.5 hours and well over half of that was on the bridge.  there are something like 1400 steps round trip.

i'm leaving for cairns tomorrow, so ready to get out of the city.  time to start diving the reef.

its pretty damn high