Popular skywalk at Pa.'s Kinzua Bridge State Park will undergo long-term maintenance work

Erie Times-News
·2 min read

Pennsylvania's popular Kinzua Bridge State Park Skywalk is expected to be temporarily closed for parts of September and October and then in November for a rehabilitation project that could take more than two years to complete.

Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn recently said in a news release the skywalk is expected to close Nov. 19 and a maintenance project to start in early 2025 and last into fall 2027. The skywalk and Kinzua Creek Trail will be closed.

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The skywalk underwent inspection in June after high winds hit the Pennsylvania Wilds area in Mount Jewett, McKean County. The DCNR reported engineering inspectors found no structural damage and the site was quickly reopened. The DCNR noted at that time that structural and rehabilitation work had already been scheduled to start in 2024.

The Kinzua Bridge State Park Visitor Center will remain open during the work period, as will picnic tables and the pavilion, playground and observation deck, the DCNR said.

The DCNR said the skywalk is safe to walk on and that it will be open for fall foliage viewing this year. However, temporary closures are likely this coming September and October for setup and surveying.

The DCNR said the skywalk will open up for around two months each year during the work period to permit to views of fall foliage. Work will halt for winter weather.

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The Times-News previously reported that the 339-acre state park is focused around the skywalk, which rises 301 feet above the valley floor. The viaduct on which it is built once was the longest and tallest railroad structure in the world. A tornado partially demolished the structure in 2003, and the skywalk was opened in 2011.

Kinzua Bridge in McKean County once functioned as a railroad viaduct at 2,053 feet long and 301 feet high. When a tornado destroyed a majority of the bridge in 2003, together with statewide and local efforts, it was reinvented into a pedestrian walkway in 2011. People now travel from around the nation to take a walk along the bridge, which stretches 600 feet out and overlooks the state park.

Bids were accepted starting Wednesday for work that will include

  • removal of decking and railroad ties to access the towers;

  • the addition and replacement of steel "where thinning has occurred;"

  • reinstallation of railroad ties and decking;

  • installation of new plexiglass at the viewing area;

  • handrail replacement; and

  • blast-cleaning and paint of all steel.

The skywalk and Kinzua Creek Trail can close unexpectedly because of inclement weather or the forecast for bad weather. Before visiting, check the Kinzua Bridge State Park website for closure updates or call the park office at 814-778-5467. The park is open daily from sunrise to sunset, though day-use areas close at dusk. Visitor center days and hours change seasonally, but it is open daily from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m. from mid-March through early November.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Skywalk at Kinzua Bridge State Park PA to close for maintenance