Discover the 9 Highest Bridges in Canada

There are well over 50,000 bridges in Canada, and those are just the public-use ones. There are all sorts of bridges in the country, including highway bridges and suspension bridges to test your comfort with heights.

The highest bridges in Canada make up quite a mix. Some of them stretch well over 400 feet above the ground, and some only a mere 200 to 300. Their uses are all different as well. You’ll see bridges made for mining, logging, trains, and even highways. Some of the tallest bridges on this list are used every day by thousands of people while others have been forgotten as the wilderness takes back over.

Bridges are a natural attraction. They are made to help cross uneven parts of the ground, such as rivers, canyons, or just slopes on the side of the hill. But there’s something about them that catches the eye of everyone who sees a bridge. Whether it’s their impressive stance against the natural formations of the earth or the amazing engineering that keeps them going for hundreds of years is unclear. But no one can deny that standing at the bottom or the top of a bridge sends a wave of awe through you.

While all bridges are pretty neat, even the small ones, the highest bridges in Canada are another feat altogether. Here is a list of the 9 highest bridges throughout the country, and some interesting information about each of them.

Key Points

• The highest bridges in Canada are a mix of old, still-standing bridges and brand-new bridges.
• Some are used solely for walking, some railroads, and others for old mining waste.
• Number one of the highest bridges in Canada is an ore conveyor bridge located in Princeton, BC.
• You may be surprised to find bridges that people cross every day end up on this list, such as highway bridges.

1. Similkameen Ore Conveyor Bridge

The Similkameen Ore Conveyor Bridge is one of two suspension bridges made for the Similco copper mining complex. The complex is located 10 miles south of Princeton, British Columbia, Canada.

This one was opened in 1980 and was used to carry copper ore over the river. Due to the size and structure, over 1600 tons of ore can cross the bridge per hour.

The conveyor bridge sits over Similkameen Canyon. Though it isn’t used much anymore, it is still in good condition. It’s made from steel wires and has enough support structures that it will likely stay there for a while.

The bridge is 689 feet (210 meters) above the canyon. This definitely makes it the tallest bridge in all of Canada. Unfortunately, it isn’t made to be walked or driven across, but it’s still an impressive sight.

The Similkameen Ore Conveyor Bridge is pretty long as well. It measures over 1325 feet (404 meters) long. When you think about the length, weight limit, and height together, it’s quite an engineering feat.

Buckland & Taylor as well as Robert McLellan & Co designed the bridge together. It has two large wind-stay trusses on the west side of the bridge tower. The west side is taller as well compared to the east. The conveyor is partially covered with enclosures that have windows on the sides.

If you’re in the area, don’t forget to check out the local wildlife. The nearby Similkameen River and the canyon are perfect places to find some animals. If you’re lucky (or unlucky), you may come cross a moose, black bear, or even a Canada lynx.

2. Upper Golden Skybridge

The Golden Skybridge is worlds different from the Similkameen Ore Conveyor Bridge above. This bridge is new, and opened in May 2021. Additionally, its main purpose is to be used by the average person as a wonderful outdoor activity.

The Golden Skybridge is located in Golden, British Columbia, Canada. It’s a suspension bridge that sits 426 feet (130 meters) above the Columbia Valley. From the bridge, you also have the opportunity to see the Purcell and Rocky mountain ranges.

While it’s only the second-highest bridge in Canada, it is the highest one you can walk across, so that has to count for something.

Technically, there are two bridges. The one that is 426 feet is known as the Upper Golden Skybridge. From the skybridge, you can see rivers and waterfalls. The horizon is visible for miles. As long as you don’t have a fear of heights, you can walk across it over and over again, seeing all new scenery each time.

This bridge is part of a whole attraction. In addition to the bridge, there are zip-lining tours, a mountain coaster, ax throwing, swings, rock climbing, and high ropes courses. If you’re an outdoor person who wants to enjoy some adrenaline-inducing activities, the Golden Skybridge is the way to go.

In the park itself, you likely won’t encounter wildlife, but you may be able to see some from the bridges if you keep an eye out. It’ll be easier to see the bigger wildlife or ones that travel in a herd like bighorn mountain sheep, deer, and grizzly bears. You get plenty of time to search for these animals, as the bridge measures 492 feet (150 meters) long.

3. Similkameen Pipeline Bridge

The Similkameen Pipeline Bridge is the older sibling to the Similkameen Ore Conveyor Bridge from above. While it is still incredibly tall at 420 feet (128 meters), it’s only off the ground enough to rank third.

The bridge itself stretches over 950 feet (290 meters) long. It’s about half a mile (0.8 km) north of the conveyor bridge. The two have a very similar design as well. This bridge is only eight years older than the ore conveyor bridge from above. It was opened in 1972.

It cost only a million dollars to make at the time. Canadian Betchel designed the bridge while the Dominion Bridge Company of Vancouver did the construction.

This pipeline bridge was primarily used for tailings, slurry, and water from mining practices. It’s an enclosed tube that is suspended by the bridge to prevent any of the slurry or water from spilling over into the canyon.

Since it’s located rather close to the Similkameen Ore Conveyor Bridge, you can expect similar animals near the Similkameen Pipeline Bridge. You may also see animals like wolverine, beaver, and elk.

4. Lewiston-Queenston Bridge

The Lewiston-Queenston Bridge is also sometimes known as the Queenston-Lewiston Bridge. This is an interesting bridge because not only is it one of the four highest bridges in Canada, but it’s also the highest bridge in New York City.

This bridge crosses the border between the United States and Canada. It measures 370 feet (113 meters) above the ground and stretches 1,594 feet (486 meters) across the canyon. This bridge is drivable and is actually made for cars. It has a total of five lanes and security on either side for people looking to cross into the US or Canada.

It’s an active bridge, with an estimated 10,406 vehicles crossing a day. It opened in 1962 and continued to see visitors every year. The bridge connects Interstate 190 in Lewiston, New York to Highway 405 in Queenston, Ontario.

This bridge is said to be a twin of the Rainbow Bridge, also at Niagara Falls. The bridge was designed by Richard Lee. While it’s a gorgeous bridge, it’s not always the best one to use to cross the boarder. It’s considered the fourth busiest crossing on the border, despite having only four lanes. Delays of up to two hours are common.

That might change in the future at some point, as construction is actively being planned to improve wait times and make for faster processing. Still, if you’re looking for a quick drive through the border, you may want to pick somewhere else.

The worst part is that when you’re on the bridge, no foot traffic is allowed. You can’t even take the time to look for fish or birds in the water while you’re waiting.

5. Pashleth Creek Bridge

The Pashleth Creek Bridge has a rather unique history. It was created in 1981 over the Machmel River. It’s just a little ways east of Owekeeno Lake in British Columbia, Canada. This is a narrow metal bridge made for walking across. The flooring is made of metal hexagons that allow you to see the trees below.

That’s not what makes this bridge so interesting though. This bridge is now nicknamed “The Bridge to Nowhere”. It simply leads from one stretch of forest to the other. At this point, it’s estimated that more animals have used this bridge to cross than people.

So why has it earned the nickname “Bridge to Nowhere” and why was it built in the first place? The bridge was originally made to access woods for logging. The trees on the other side of the river were thought to be prime logging.

However, shortly after accessing the strip of forest on the other side of the river, the project was shut down. The wood was actually very poor quality and wasn’t worth cutting down. Environmental pressures were also pushing in on the logging business. In the end, the whole company was dismantled and their bridges were left abandoned.

So the bridge was abandoned. This happened around 2005. Since then, the bridge has been sitting abandoned except by the occasional visitor. It sits 335 feet (102 meters) above the creek gorge. It stretches as long as it is high above the ground, 335 feet (102) meters.

Despite its lack of use, it’s a sturdy bridge. Buckland & Taylor designed and created the bridge. In 2003, the bridge was inspected and found to still be in good condition.

6. Lethbridge Viaduct

The Lethbridge Viaduct Bridge is one of the oldest bridges on this list. The building started in August of 1908 and it finished in June of 1909. It didn’t officially open until November of 1909, though. It cost over a million dollars at the time to build.

The Lethbridge Viaduct was used as a way to help expand Lethbridge. At the time, the area was quickly growing due to the coal mining industry. This rail line allowed access to the mines. Specifically, this is a CPR (Canadian Pacific Railway) rail line.

The bridge is considered both the longest and the highest rail line in the world. It measures 314 feet (96 meters) high and 5,328 feet (1.6 kilometers) long.

Lethbridge still thrives. The rail line also still runs, despite having been built over 100 years ago. Several trains cross the bridge every day. There’s even access to the rail line at the west end of 3rd Avenue South and Scenic Drive.

There are tours of the bridge too, which allow you to learn more about the history and take great pictures. The design of the bridge played such a large role in the growth of Lethbridge that it’s considered a National Historic Event according to the Government of Canada.

Unfortunately, Lethbridge in Alberta doesn’t have the greatest reputation, as it is the 6th most dangerous city in Canada.

7. Park Bridge

Park Bridge is a highway bridge that is still used today. It’s part of the Trans-Canada Highway. This bridge in particular traverses the Kicking Horse River and is located between Yoho National Park and Golden, British Columbia. If you live in the area or have ever visited this part of the country, you may have crossed the seventh-highest bridge in Canada without ever realizing it.

Park Bridge is rather new, designed in 2004. It didn’t open until three years later in 2007. While finishing the bridge took a long time, it actually got done 21 months ahead of schedule. Over 10,000 people use this bridge every day, likely not ever realizing how impressive it is.

The bridge measures 300 feet (90 meters) above the ground below. It also stretches over 1,329 feet (405 meters) across for its total length. The Park Bridge sees a lot of heavy traffic, with 24% of all the vehicles crossing being some sort of large truck. This means the bridge needed a lot of support, which was part of the reason the bridge cost $130 million to build.

8. Stoney Creek Bridge

Stoney Creek Bridge is a bridge built for the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR). This bridge was built for hauling timber and is in fact the highest timber bridge ever built. At the time of building it was the second-highest bridge in North America. It didn’t stay that way for long, however.

The bridge was built in 1894. It measures 270 feet (82 meters) tall and 486 feet (148 meters) long. The designers were the Hamilton Bridge Co. and the Canadian Bridge Co.

This bridge met with a lot of problems during construction. The gulch was narrow and the foundation unstable. This slowed down the construction and made it dangerous for the workers. A flash flood cost two days of work when the foundation was buried. Then, there was a forest fire that burned down 14 cars worth of lumber for the bridge.

The total construction ended up taking seven weeks with 10 of those days being stopped by deaths, flooding, and fire. Most of the bridges in this area faced difficulties, but this one was by far the worst.

Unfortunately, this train faced another problem in 2015. A train meant to go through Mount Macdonald Tunnel was diverted due to tunnel venting. However, the train wasn’t able to handle the steep grade of the Stony Creek Bridge and the train stopped. When they got the train to go again, the curve it was on caused the middle cars to lift from the track.

Though there was a lot of fear as the cars dangled over Stoney Creek, thankfully no one was hurt. The CPR also did an investigation into the problem to ensure the issue never happened again.

9. Lower Golden Skybridge

The Lower Golden Skybridge isn’t nearly as impressive as the upper one. However, it’s a good bridge for those who are a little afraid of heights but still want to try walking across a canyon.

The Lower Golden Skybridge sits above Hospital Creek. It’s 260 feet (80 meters) over the bottom of the valley. While this doesn’t measure up to the Upper Golden Skybridge, or many of the other bridges on this list, it still deserves a place on the highest bridges in Canada.

In fact, it managed to make it to ninth place. While it isn’t as high as the Upper Golden Skybridge, it does measure up almost as long at 459 feet (140 meters) long. This gives you plenty of time to get over your fear and explore the area.

Since it’s not as high above the ground, you don’t get as good of a view of the horizon. If you look up, most of your view is of trees. However, once you get to the middle of the bridge, you do get some stunning, wide-open views of the mountain ranges.

If you can, take the time to look down as you walk. You should be able to easily see the bottom of the canyon. You may be able to see some cool plants and animals to detract you from the height.

It’s a little easier to see small animals from this height. While you probably won’t be able to see a mouse, you may catch sight of a lumbering badger, or some birds like a bald eagle.

Table of the 12 Highest Bridges in Canada