Lady McCutcheon of Lakewood feels like a five-year-old every Memorial Day weekend, when she takes her grandkids on the Veterans Memorial Bridge & Subway Tour.
Since 2001, the Cuyahoga County Engineer's Office has opened the bridge's lower deck, spanning the Cuyahoga River, for self-guided tours of the tracks, where four trolleys operated between 1917 and 1954. Sometimes, McCutcheon bumps into a retired streetcar driver she knew back in the day, when her mom would take her shopping downtown. "They'll tell stories about how the teenagers would stand on the back of the trolleys and rock them back and forth," she says.
In the past, the tour only covered the western half of the bridge. Saturday marks the first time that the entire length of the 3,112-foot-long bridge will be open to the public. "People kept saying it would be neat if we could walk the entire bridge," says spokeswoman Kathleen Needham. "Our concern was that people would be leery about walking 100 feet above the river." Tours run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 2433 Superior Viaduct, on the northeast corner of West 25th Street and Detroit Avenue. Admission is free, but reservations are required; call 216-348-3824. -- Cris Glaser
Park Life . . . and Death
Enjoy the ride. It might be your last.
5/27-9/4
What's not to love about amusement parks? How about being hurled to your death because of a malfunctioning harness? Or falling out of a coaster car, mid-loop? In anticipation of Cedar Point's summer hours, beginning Friday, we offer a few really bad days at the park.
· In 1984, eight teens died in a New Jersey Six Flags' Haunted Castle, where the walls were set on fire by a lighter-wielding kid, who was looking for a way out of a dark room.
· A boy was killed in New York in 1991 when his seat on the Ferris wheel came loose 60 feet above the ground.
· Two coasters collided at an Oklahoma park in 1997, after one rolled down a hill backward and slammed into one coming up, killing one person.
(Cedar Point -- One Cedar Point Drive in Sandusky -- is open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. Admission is $44.95, $24.95 for kids; call 419-627-2350.) -- Michael Gallucci
Bugged Out
Big-ass insects invade the area.
5/26-8/16
You think you've got pest problems? New York artist David Rogers' Big Bugs weigh up to 1,200 pounds, stand 10 feet high, and flaunt 18-foot wingspans. Thankfully, they're fashioned out of trees, branches, and other organic materials. They're on display at Holden Arboretum, which is hosting a bunch of insect-related events over the next few months, including a Wine-Tasting Among the Bugs, a Spider Weekend, and A Hard Day's Night, a Beatles tribute band. The bugs are on view at Holden Arboretum (9500 Sperry Road in Kirtland) through August 16. Hours are 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday to Saturday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday to Wednesday. Admission is $6, $3 for kids. Call 440-946-4400 for more info. -- Lucy McKernan
Animal House
SAT 5/28
The Akron Zoo is unveiling Legends of the Wild -- a new area featuring 16 new exhibits and more than 375 animals -- on Saturday. Included in the zoo's biggest project ever are snow leopards, lemurs, flamingos, four different kinds of bats, and a 30-foot waterfall. The zoo (500 Edgewood Avenue in Akron) is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Admission is $8, $5 for kids; call 330-375-2550. -- Michael Gallucci
