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Age, unstable rock formations, and harsh weather exposure have compromised a bridge from 1908 in New York’s Watkins Glen State Park. Now, Snøhetta and schlaich bergermann partner (sbp) are designing a replacement structure, Sentry Bridge, that will soon connects visitors to Gorge Trail, a picturesque hiking path that leads to numerous waterfalls.
Sentry Bridge was commissioned by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.
“Watkins Glen is a place for the senses,” Alan Gordon, Snøhetta’s partner-in-charge of the project, said in a statement. “Its storied paths welcome adventurers of all ages to move through woodland stillness and into the roar of rushing water.”
Gordon continued: “The new Sentry Bridge will bring these experiences into focus. Careful material transitions will emphasize temperature, texture, and touch at the detail level, and visitors can look forward to stepping from a lofty cantilever to ancient bedrock, beginning their journey up the historic Gorge Trail.”
Architects took the bridge’s age, landscape conditions, and weather exposure into account. In the case of failure at the bridge’s southern abutment, where the rock is less reliable, Sentry Bridge can act as a cantilever, and essentially stay up thanks to its stainless-steel connection to the north abutment, where the gorge is stronger.
In total, Sentry Bridge will be 46 feet long. Renderings show a lightweight half-arch structure in place of the old arch bridge, creating a new identifiable symbol for the park. To connect with the context, designers specified materials that can endure the bridge’s climate; opting for stainless-steel, bronze detailing, board-form concrete, wood railings, and local stones.
Sentry Bridge’s remote location complicates the construction process, presenting a difficult place to wheel materials to and from. In response to this constraint, the entire structure will be assembled off-site and lifted into place in one piece. This will also shorten the construction timeline, and the amount of time Gorge Trail will be closed to the public.
Construction will begin in summer 2025, and end in summer 2026. Sentry Bridge will arrive on the heels of another high profile project underway nearby at Niagara Falls Heritage Gateway by PAU and Hargreave Jones.
The replacement project in Watkins Glen will also entail improvements at two tunnels that feed into the bridge. The bridge’s southern landing will also be upgraded.