Parker-Mayberry Bridge

The Parker-Mayberry Bridge is a small, graceful bridge under the colossal, graceful and more famous Colorado Street Bridge. The Parker-Mayberry doesn't have a Wikipedia page, nor do many links point in its direction. Scroll down to the second photo in this post by Pasadena Public Information Officer Ann Erdman to see how the two bridges compare in size.

The Parker-Mayberry Bridge was built in 1916, three years after the Colorado Street Bridge. I had thought it was the older of the two, but no. The earlier structures on this spot in the Arroyo Seco were the Scoville Dam and Bridge. "Remnants of the early construction can still be found there," according to the Arroyo Seco Foundation.

The Parker-Mayberry is closed to automobile traffic, but you can approach it on foot. While walking in the Lower Arroyo Park, continue north on the west side of the the wash past the footbridge and cross under the Parker-Mayberry and Colorado Street Bridges. Soon you'll be above the water where I took this picture early in my blogging career. From here you can walk onto the Parker-Mayberry Bridge. Behind you there's stonework; likely the remnants the Arroyo Seco Foundation refers to.

Dogs on leash. Look out for poison oak. Let me know what you find.

Wonder

I attended a civic function today on the Parker-Mayberry Bridge, under the Colorado Street Bridge. I had never been there before.

We were there for a groundbreaking ceremony to celebrate the Central Arroyo Stream Restoration. To quote the press release, "Stream habitat enhancements, runoff treatment and devices that prevent trash from polluting streams are among the components of this exciting $2.5 million project that will turn [the] Central Arroyo into a model of what can be done in urban areas to help clean up waterways." The City of Pasadena loves to partner with organizations like the Arroyo Seco Foundation to do good stuff like this.

After the speeches, the mayor and other dignitaries planted a native oak and posed for photos while everyone cheered. In all the hubbub, I noticed this father and son across the Arroyo, standing under the Colorado Street Bridge and wondering what the heck was going on.