Goteik Viaduct

Shan State, Myanmar

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The Goteik Viaduct in Shan State, Myanmar, is a striking steel railway trestle spanning the Goteik Gorge of the Myitnge River, constructed between 1899 and 1900 by the Pennsylvania Steel Company under British colonial oversight to extend the Mandalay-Lashio rail line and bolster imperial reach into northern Shan territory.

Measuring 689 meters long with 15 towers rising up to 102 meters above the ground—once the world's largest and highest railway trestle—it features 10 deck truss spans of 37 meters and six plate girder spans of 18 meters, shipped in pieces from the United States for rapid assembly at a cost of £111,200. 

Renowned for its vertigo-inducing engineering amid rugged jungle cliffs, it carried daily trains until recent damage in Myanmar's civil war, symbolizing colonial ambition while offering thrilling crossings with panoramic gorge views.