Welcome to Big Sur’s version of the Golden Gate—a stunning road trip spot for many along the Highway 1 coastline. And rightly so. Today—as always—the bridge is known for being one of the more dramatic sights along one of the most beautiful stretches of asphalt in the country. As of September 2024, parking is no longer allowed along Coast Road in order to improve traffic safety, but visitors are allowed to stop in designated areas along Highway 1. (See this page for dos and don’ts for traveling on Bixby Bridge.)
Completed in 1932 for just over $200,000, the concrete span, one of the highest bridges of its kind in the world, soars 260 feet above the bottom of a steep canyon carved by Bixby Creek. One look at the canyon’s steep and crumbling cliffs, and it’s obvious that building the bridge wasn’t exactly a cakewalk. First, a massive wooden framework had to be built, with materials brought by truck on what was then a narrow, one-way road riddled with hairpin turns. A staggering 45,000 individual sacks of cement had to be hauled up the framework—and this is before advanced heavy machinery could help do the lifting. Each bag was transported via a system of platforms and slings suspended by cables 300 feet above the creek. Curiously, the span was completed before the road, and it would be five more years before the route linking Carmel (about 15 miles to the north) to San Luis Obispo would even be opened.