How to Build a Japanese Garden Bridge

As you may have probably read in my previous article “Japanese Garden Designs”, part of the charm and design of a Japanese garden is its bridge. In fact, it is an integral part of it. The bridge may be built to cross over a stream or pool, or it may be built over a depression in the landscape. Whatever its use maybe, a bridge in your garden can surely add beauty to your creation.

Building a Japanese garden bridge is not an impossible task. In fact, with the proper tools and materials, it can be done within a day or two. You can find plenty of materials for your bridge in the internet or in your local hardware stores. Japanese bridges come in different designs like the covered, moon or drum, strolling pond bridges, log, stone slab, and the most elaborate of them all, the eight fold bridge. You can find prefabricated materials for these bridges in the web. The important thing to remember though is that the bridge should follow the philosophy of Zen Buddhism, that is, it should always be in harmony with nature, or in this case, with your garden.

A common theme among the Japanese garden bridges is the presence of a curvature running along the whole length of the bridge. For the purpose of discussion, I will show you here the steps on building a simple bridge.

1. Decide first where the bridge will be put on. This will be important so you can measure the exact length of your garden bridge. If you want to put the bridge over a stream, measure the distance from one bank to another. You can use this measurement to gauge the length of the support beams to be able to span the crevice.
2. Next, place the two curved beams (4-8 in squared) on the ground with the arching side pointed on the air next to each other. Cut this to desired length. You can determine the width of the bridge by placing the beams as far apart or as near to each other as you like. This will be your support beams.
3. Cut cross planks (2x4 in or 2x6 in) to its desired length to span your support beams. Place the first plank in your support beams. Make sure the ends of each plank are exactly placed in relation to the outer edge of the support beams. Screw the planks in place. Repeat process until you complete flooring the entire length of the bridge.
4. Build handrails for each side of the garden bridge. Determine the height of your handrails from the deck. You can then cut 6 or more upright posts for the handrails. Use 4 inches by 4 inches wood for these. Place these posts at the outermost edge of the support beam.
5. Drill holes (1/2 inches in diameter) in the base of the posts inward to the support beam. Use an electric drill for this work. Hammer long bolts (1/2 inch diameter) into the holes you drilled into the post and through the beam. The bolts should be at least 12 inches long. Do this from the outside of the post through the beam. Using a wrench, place washer and nut until tight.
6. Next, screw handrails (2x6 in) to the top of the posts with two screws (2 ½ diameter) per post. Clean off stain from your bridge and now you’re ready to paint it.