Strapped across the back of the serpentine Tamar River at the Whirlpool Reach bridge site is the Batman River. The name has little to do with the caped crusader of Gotham, but was anointed in honor of John Batman, one of the founders of Melbourne. At its point of construction in 1966, the bridge was a massive architectural undertaking seeing as to how it was one of the world’s first cable-stayed truss bridges.

From the banks of the Tamar River, one can easily spot the triangular steel framework holding up the steel deck covered in gritty tarmac for the automobiles. A steep, slanting alabaster A-frame tower lifts the weight of the main 206m of bridge hovering above the river, planted in a heavy base of dolerite sourced from the local regions. Thick columns driven into the soft clay base of the eastern bank prevent the bridge from sinking against the slippery purchase. A small turnoff from the main bridge leads you to the river bank to admire these views amidst the dry bush and shade of the trees by the river. Biking or walking along this path is a common option and gives you a complete picture of the stark modern edges of the bridge against the dusty, dry shrubbery of the surrounding regions. Be it to appreciate the engineering feat of the Batman Bridge or the scenic Tamar rushing beneath its solid supports, the Batman Bridge is a unique sight along the untamed wilderness in the region.