After getting caught up with Jaime, Lec and Vinnie this morning on our super duper wi-fi we headed north into Redding to check out the Sundial Bridge. We drove to Turtle Bay Park, parked and walked to the bridge and over it. It’s a glass decked pedestrian bridge over the Sacramento River, and the largest working sundial in the world. It’s really cool and really huge, the pylon is 210 feet tall. The bridge was designed by Santiago Calatrava; the design allows people to enjoy the Sacramento River but at the same time it does not damage the salmon spawning habitat – who knew the Chinook salmon make four spawning runs along the Sacramento River each year!

Mike: Cool bridge! Can't tell time, but still a cool bridge! Becc, what a gnomon?

The pylon acts as a giant gnomon of a sundial and at the north end of the bridge is a dial plate where it casts its shadow. While we were visiting it seemed to be running about 15 minutes fast, or maybe it was us that were slow.

Is it 12.15 or 12.30?

Sacramento River from the Sundial Bridge

This afternoon we did a little shopping (I had to buy some shorts for this super hot weather) but before that we had a beautiful lunch at a little Thai restaurant in Redding, it was delicious.