Stewart Fishing Bridge

Hi, I'm Dylan. I'm an 18-year-old high school Junior/Senior. I spend most of my time fishing or working. I work as an electrician's apprentice while going to school. I signed up for an engineering class at my high school and wanted to enter the physical model contest for Make It Bridge.

I enjoy fishing a lot so I wanted to make a design that was built around my interests.

The goal of my bridge is to bring people closer to nature. Spending time near the water is relaxing and calming. When I designed this bridge I wanted to create a spot where I could fish off of and look at the water. People don't spend enough time in nature. I'm hoping that my bridge can bring people closer to nature. I hope people might find time to learn about fish, birds, bugs, and trees at this location.

• Balsa wood (for physical model)
• Hot glue cartridge
• Glue gun
• Acrylic hobby paint
• Sandpaper - rough and fine grit'
• Small hacksaw
• Pen
• Measuring Tape
• Ruler
• Computer - chromebook with TinkerCAD

The site I chose is at a nature preserve in Kingston called Stewart-Person Preserve. This location is near my school. There is a real need for a bridge here. There is a nature trail that goes around a small pond. The trail comes to a dangerous stop at a herring run and a water spillway. A person like me would have no difficulty crossing. But, you need to be stable and balanced -- it's like walking on a balance beam. The elderly, small children, or people with limited mobility would have difficulty crossing. My goal is to build a bridge that has two purposes:

1. Provide safe crossing

2. Provide a resting area where people can enjoy nature and fish.

I wanted to design a bridge that sits on the original structure -- the fish ladder and spillway concrete -- because the fish ladder and spillway are necessary, though dangerous. I also wanted to create a section that extends from the main bridge and goes out over the water. The section that goes out over the water has fishing pole holders and a guard rail. I chose pressure treated wood for my design because it can hold up to the elements, it is very easy to work with, and it is a natural material that fits in with the woodland environment.

I decided to make a physical model out of balsa wood and hot glue. Here are the steps I completed:

1. I measured the span that would be needed at the Stewart-Person Preserve fish ladder. The distance needed to cross the existing structure is 25 feet. I decided on a scale of 2.5 feet per inch on my model.
2. I measured the pieces of balsa wood to make the pieces I needed for my model.
3. I cut the pieces of balsa wood with a hacksaw. As I continued I found out that scoring the wood with a pen and a ruler produced the best cut.
4. I glued everything into place.
5. I sanded everything down to make it nice and smooth. First I used rough grit sand paper then I used fine grit.
6. I experimented with different paint colors by mixing multiple shades of brown with water because I wanted it to blend in with the surroundings.
7. At the end of the project I decided to add in chairs/benches and rod holders for the part of the bridge that extends out over the water.

I find it easier to work with my hands. It is easier for my brain to process. I started thinking about two pieces of wood and how to get something out over the water. I needed to visualize my solution by manipulating materials over each other. I started by overlapping two boards and then saw my design come together. The way my brain works, I needed to physically put it together and build it.

I don't have a lot of experience with Tinkercad. I have a friend who is good at it. He showed me how to build in Tinkercad. I learned how to use the copy and paste feature and the grouping feature to make my design. Most of the shapes I used were made from the rectangle tool. The copy and paste tool saves a lot of time.

Most people start with Tinkercad to create their design, but I worked backwards because I need to use my hands and real materials to visualize my design.

Doing things with my hands makes a lot of sense to me and is easier to process. School has never really made sense to me, but this project matches more with my interests (construction, fishing), my skills, and my future career goals.

I learned how to work with different materials. I found out I'm pretty good with wood. The balsa wood was a soft and malleable material. I was able to create a well-built physical model that achieved my goals of creating a safe crossing and a place where people can enjoy nature and fish over the water.