London Bridge

Last week we finally took our boys to Disneyland. It was a trip we had saved for for two years and I will write more about it later, but I wanted to post first about a little side trip we took on the way.

 Before I was a resident of Arizona I had no idea that the London Bridge was located in Lake Havasu City.  Not just a replica, but the actual historic London Bridge - from London, England.  Ever since I found out about it, I have wanted to see it, but it is about 4 1/2 hours away, so that doesn't make for a very easy day trip.  As I was planning our trip to California, I discovered that if we took I-40, rather than going through Phoenix, the difference in time was only about 30 minutes, but it would allow us to take a little side trip to Lake Havasu City to see the London Bridge.  Decision Made!!

I am so glad we took the time out to see this bridge and learn a little more about it and how it ended up in Arizona.

This is the actual bridge that spanned the Thames River.  It was built in the early 1800's, replacing the rickety old wood bridge that had been there since the 1300's.  The bridge was so busy that in the early 1900's it was widened to accommodate the heavy London traffic.  Unfortunately, this caused the bridge to start sinking.  In the 1960's it was decided that the bridge would need to be replaced by a new modern bridge and the old bridge was sold at a silent auction.

The winner was American oilman Robert P. McCulloch, who founded Lake Havasu City.  In 1967 the London Bridge was dismantled and each piece was carefully labeled and numbered and shipped to Arizona.  The reconstruction of the bridge was completed in 1971 and successfully turned Lake Havasu City from a spot in the road in the middle of nowhere into a successful tourist attraction and retirement destination.

The stonework on the bridge is really beautiful, so I took a bunch of pictures to really appreciate it.

Jeremy and the boys on top of the bridge.

The boys in front of the bridge.

The whole family at the fountain in the English Village at the bridge.

We also took a short side trip to see the Parker dam.  Who knows if we will get out that way again, so we decided to take a look.  Pretty interesting.

The Colorado River at the Parker Dam.

This was a fun side trip that broke up our long drive.  It is something definitely worth a few minutes drive out of your way if you are ever in the vicinity. and if you decide you would like to stay awhile, Lake Havasu has beaches to play on and small working lighthouses that are fun to see, plus lots of shopping and restaurants.  It would probably make a good vacation destination.  We enjoyed our time there.