What a Fantastic Bridge… The Duluth Bridge is operated 24 hours a day, with skilled people at the helm. The bridge is raised and lowered for iron ore and cement ships, sailboats, and excursion tour boats. In the busy seasons of spring and summer, the bridge averages 26 lifts a day. Decades ago, pedestrians were able to ride on the bridge when it was raised. But, this was outlawed in the early 1980s after a horrible accident that claimed the life of a woman when she was crushed by the steel bridge. The bridge operation is primarily through electric power derived from storage batteries that are charged by generators. If power lines fail, the generators can be operated by a diesel engine. There are two 450 ton concrete block weights on each end, lifted by electronic pulleys to raise and lower the bridge. It is an incredible feat, and a very good reason in itself to come to Duluth to watch the whole operating process.

How can you NOT give this iconic bridge 5 stars. Awesome sight to see thanks to local recommendation. We are from Iowa and rode the "Hogs" up to rip around.

All I can say is WOW!!!! This was the coolest thing to watch! The schedule is located on a board outside the visitor center. If you get a chance to catch a ship going through, definitely take it!!! We went over to Leif Erickson Park to watch the ship go through so we could find the statue of Leif Erickson, so we missed the platform going up but got to watch the ship pass, and the bridge come back down.

I strolled along the Lakewalk about 1 hour before sunset and stayed for another 1 hr after sunset. It was a great view of Duluth, especially the aerial bridge. I took several photos before and after sunset. Enjoy -- and please visit the Lakewalk in the evening. It's magical.

The main harbor entrance to Duluth Harbor. All types of water traffic here, from big ocean going freighters to pleasure craft, and anything else tall enough to need the bridge raised. Shipping season usually opens in late March. People line the North and South Piers to watch the action. When the bridge is in the down position, it has a sidewalk on which one can across to the other side. it's a bit windy but wide enough to safely cross. Great for views of the harbor and of the bridge structure. There is no charge to do this. Parking is in the Canal Park lot, and restrooms are in the US Corp of Engineering building.

What a fun spot in Duluth! We watched several ships come and go through the bridge. The kids loved it! There's a harbor schedule and an app you can check and everything! We watched several leave and a salty come in!!

Iconic bridge in Duluth. The promenade on the lake front is very beautiful and relaxing.

Beautiful walk, on bridge, under bridge, piers next to bridge, & further walk along water with a city view & sunset showing up just for you. Many sites & landmarks within view/walking distance.

This a spiritual event, Every. Single. Time. From anticipating the arrival of the distant vessel and listening to the Captain's Salute and bridge response - to watching the majestic boat sail off into the sunset, it's all awe inspiring. As the words came over the speaker... "The American Century is loaded with 70,930 tons of coal," my mind was trying to fathom what that pile must look like. The speaker continued, "The American Century is powered by four 3,500 horsepower General Motors 20 cylinder engines." Mind blown here. My prayers go out to those on this mighty ship today!

Very neat to see this bridge in operation. It’s beautiful. It’s a fun time! We saw a ship from Netherlands come through.

Always enjoy watching the boats! The whole canal park area has grown and has a wonderful vibe and atmosphere. What a great summertime place to visit!

This is a personal favorite place to go. It’s not that it is the most state of the art bridge out there, but it is neat and always fun to visit and watch the ships go through. The new north walkway remodel is nice. I never get tired of this place.

I don’t understand how anyone rates this less than a five star. It’s just a bridge doing its job of being a bridge; you could actually say it works extra hard because it also lifts up and down which is not an unheard of characteristic for bridges but it is an unusual one. You’re doing a good job Aerial Lift Bridge and you’ll never be less than 5 stars in my book

Definitely one of the must visit sights of Duluth. The bridge gets lifted at least once every 30 -45 minutes , and it is a nice sight. The ship captains give an extra honk to please the visitors. The view of Downtown Duluth is spectacular.

I had never seen anything like this before so it was a real treat for me. We watched a 700' barge being pushed thru by a tug boat and it was very cool. There is an Army Corps of Engineers museum that is interesting. We drove about 45 minutes and it was worth the drive.

I would say this iconic bridge is not only a marvel of engineering but also a symbol of Duluth's rich maritime history. As the tallest vertical lift bridge in the area, it's a sight to behold, especially when it rises to allow large ships to pass underneath. The bridge provides access to the Park Point sandbar and is a popular tourist attraction in the area

A ridiculous solution to the problem of letting boats under a bridge: lift the entire bridge platform straight into the air. Apparently the designers considered it critical that the entire channel be usable by ships passing under the bridge, and it's too wide for a two sided drawbridge. But a two sided drawbridge would have been much cheaper and easier to maintain than this contraption.

Fun, large sight to see when visiting Duluth! If you're lucky, you can see a large barge passing through.

Very picturesque area. I highly recommend viewing fro a water perspective and going under the bridge at sunrise...viws are spectacular.

This bridge was so cool to see in person. Me and my girlfriend took a river cruise tour and the lady giving the tour mentioned it was the tallest vertical lift bridge in the US, so we decided to check it out on our way back through Duluth. We got lucky and ended up seeing the biggest ship on the Great Lakes pass through!! It was super cool to watch I’d definitely recommend taking a peak if you’re in the area.

Great place to come and enjoy a part of MN. Wonderful bridge, and it is fun to see it in action. If you are in the area, it is a must-see! Plenty of things to do in the area.

It's a nice bridge, but honestly I think they're missing a real opportunity to charge people for rides to the top.

Giving it high stars for its uniqueness and design. Driving over it is spectacular. I suggest driving out to the tip of Minnesota Point. Lots of houses with gorgeous lake views and beaches. On the drive back toward Duluth, don't be surprised if traffic is backed up and stopped for 20-40 minutes. That means the bridge was raised, and you have to wait for it to lower. Locals call this "getting bridged."

It was so interesting getting to watch the bridge go up so a huge ship could pass through. This is a good area to walk out to the light houses and take in the beautiful views.

Check the link above to see when the next ship comes in and check it out, definitely worth the visit.

Duluth MN is a great place to be around this year before it gets too hot.

Hard to beat the iconic 1905 Aerial Lift Bridge in Duluth, whose deck can be lifted 135 ft. to allow for the passage of large ships. The aerial lift bridge connects Canal Park to Park Point. Beautiful in any season and any time of day, the lift bridge is nestled in Canal Park along the Duluth Lake Walk, Lake Superior Maritime Museum, North Pier Lighthouse and Grandma's Saloon & Grill and Ice Cream Box Car, and is visible from many sections of Duluth. Not to be missed. Check it out!

Beautiful place to visit, especially at night. In the winter/fall it gets pretty windy so if you’re planning to visit it at this time of the year, make sure you have enough layers to keep you warm and comfortable. It also offers a great view of the lake superior.

A classic area to stop by on every trip and nostalgic for me in the sense that Superior reminds me of the North East coast from my child hood (Absolutely beautiful lake). I think the only thing I can complain about is that people have felt the need to graffiti the Lighthouse and surrounding areas which is super disappointing that people would do this to the beauty of their own city.