Historic Bibb Graves Bridge

Bibb Graves Bridge carries Bridge Street across the Coosa River in the middle of Wetumpka, and uniquely it's the fourth crossing to stand on this spot (the earlier ones lost to floods or worn out by traffic). State bridge engineer Edward Houk designed the one standing now, finished in 1931. Five main spans hang the roadway from pairs of concrete arches that rise clear above the deck. It's the only bridge of its kind left in Alabama. Getting down near the water level on either riverbank lets the arches line up into a long repeating curve running across the river. Lock 31 sits just below the bridge off Bibb Graves Drive, which is the easiest way to get down onto the bank, and parking is right there. Still water gives you the chance to experiment with reflection photography and highlight arches doubled in the water below. Downtown sits right at one end if you want to experiment with adding the riverfront in the frame. Traffic still crosses the bridge but though there are also walkways on both sides, so you can shoot from the deck as well. (Wetumpka, Alabama, USA)