Bridge Day takes place the third weekend of October in Fayetteville, West Virginia. On this day, the U.S. Highway Administration allows the town to close US Route 19 from 8 am to 4 pm to celebrate the anniversary of the bridge. The New River Gorge Bridge is the third highest vehicular bridge in the United States.
On bridge day 2014, 450 sky divers took a plunge of almost 900 feet from the bridge into the New River Gorge. The view from the bridge is breathtaking, and the show is very much worth the trip. The fall color and the spectacular depth of the gorge offer the most astonishing background any show could ever hope for.
Although knowing that you will be one of 100,000 spectators on the bridge is an intimidating thought, fears are quickly subsided when it becomes clear how well the event is organized.
Because the highway is closed to traffic, spectators only have two ways to get to the bridge, walking or taking bus shuttles. The buses run constantly, therefore, the ride back is guaranteed and covered by the $2 fee paid upfront. Near the bridge, there were plenty of food and other type vendors.
From the bridge, every one gets plenty to see because not everyone is watching at the same time. There's no way to miss the show as diver after diver constantly jump into the gorge, some more than once.
As the divers jump, they try to reach a landing spot on the right side of the river. Many jumpers make it to the spot, others end up in the river where power boats immediately retrieve them from the strong river currents. The worse type of landing, in my opinion, is landing on a tree. We saw this happen twice. Being rescued from a tree takes longer and, while waiting to be rescued, the jumper is left hanging.
When coming to this event, one must dress warm (I was glad I wore lots of layers) and wear comfortable shoes. Attached are some of the awesome pictures I took.