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A selfie from the SkyPod level of Toronto's CN Tower, looking west along the Gardiner Expressway toward the bright lights of the Canadian National Exhibition, and the darkness of Humber Bay on Lake Ontario
A selfie from the SkyPod level of Toronto's CN Tower, looking west along the Gardiner Expressway toward the bright lights of the Canadian National Exhibition, and the darkness of Humber Bay on Lake Ontario

CN Tower

If you choose to go up the CN Tower on a Saturday evening on the Labour Day weekend, after a Blue Jays game at the Rogers Centre next door, you shouldn’t be surprised that the wait time will be given as 95 minutes (yikes). That’s okay. Time to observe the multi-national crowd of visitors was part of the experience.

When’s the last time I visited the CN Tower? I can hardly recall. Maybe 15 years ago? I decided the tower experience would qualify under my loose definition of a “museum” for this project, so off I went.

I grew up knowing the CN Tower, opened in 1976, as the world’s tallest free-standing structure. However, I learned last night that since 2007 this is no longer true (it’s now the ninth tallest). Nevertheless, it’s Toronto’s iconic building and has a fascinating engineering story. And it’s very fun to look out over the twinkly city from 147 stories up, goodness.

It was neat to observe the changing colours of the CN Tower's LED exterior lighting from the SkyPod level, right above the lights. The view here is looking east over Union Station and Front Street.
It was neat to observe the changing colours of the CN Tower’s LED exterior lighting from the SkyPod level, right above the lights. The view here is looking east over Union Station and Front Street.
The building has a plumb-line on display, which was very reassuringly still on this calm evening. The structure can, and was designed to, sway in heavy winds: the antenna (at 1,815 ft) up to 6 ft off centre, the Skypod 3 ft 4 in, and the main lookout visitor area 1 ft 7 in. You've been warned.
The building has a plumb-line on display, which was very reassuringly still on this calm evening. The structure can, and was designed to, sway in heavy winds: the antenna (at 1,815 ft) up to 6 ft off centre, the Skypod 3 ft 4 in, and the main lookout visitor area 1 ft 7 in. You’ve been warned.
People who are not me enjoying the EdgeWalk experience, about to dive off the CN Tower into the Roger Centre
People who are not me enjoying the EdgeWalk experience, about to dive off the CN Tower into the Roger Centre
The glass floor is cool, if maybe slightly less terrifying at night.
The glass floor is cool, if maybe slightly less terrifying at night.

Back to the museum-y bit, don’t miss the exhibits near the beginning about the innovative design and building procedures, including the topping off of the tower with a 335 ft 44 piece steel broadcasting antenna, by a 10 ton Sikorsky helicopter.

Here’s the wonderful construction documentary film CN Tower – To the Top (from c. 1976?), featuring a seriously rockin’ and jubilant soundtrack. I’ll never look at the Tower the same way again. (Side note: look at all those downtown Toronto surface parking lots – no more!)

P.S. Considering the construction from a project management perspective, with the challenges of coordinating labour, communication, materials, safety, etc. etc., makes my head spin. Wow.

CN Tower is museum no. 35 in my #100museums challenge (see 100 Museums Challenge).