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Memories of devastating fire fade as hundreds visit newly renovated Royal Gorge

The Royal Gorge Bridge and Park is one of America’s scenic wonders.

Saturday, for the first time in 14 months, the dazzling vistas near Canon City were open to the public.

Hundreds of visitors walked on the highest suspension bridge in the United States for the first time since a devastating wildfire ravaged parts of the park in June 2013.

Tom Brownell and his wife, Mary, took a selfie at the Royal Gorge to mark the couple’s first return visit in more than 30 years.

“It was awesome,” Brownell said. “Our friend still talks about the cracks in the bridge looking through the slants.”

“It’s a beautiful park. The Royal Gorge is gorgeous.”

The fire last summer destroyed 48 of the attraction’s 52 building. There is now a 14,000 square-foot Visitor’s Center that greets patrons.

Staff members say more than 300,000 people walk on the bridge every year.

“Everybody comes back at least every three to four years,” the park’s general manager Mike Bandera said. “Everybody brings their kids back, their grandkids back. It is a tradition. It’s the number one paid attraction in the region.”

The Royal Gorge has been a Colorado landmark for 85 years, attracting more than 26 million visitors in that time.

The park will reopen seven days a week beginning next Saturday.

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