Originally shared on Instagram on November 16, 2025. Photography and story by Mark Middleton.
The Sunshine Skyway Bridge has always been more than a landmark to me — it’s a symbol of Tampa Bay, a reminder of the place that shaped my entire life.
I’ve lived here since 1984, long before the skyline grew, before all the traffic, before some of the neighborhoods transformed into what they are now. Some of our highways were still dirt roads when I moved here. My memories of high school and college all live here. My closest friendships were born here. My sense of home was built here.
And still, after all these years, every time I drive across one of our 4 bridges that span Tampa Bay, it feels like I’m on vacation. The water, the light, the sky, the way the bridges stretch across the bay — it reminds me how lucky I am to call this place home.
Tampa Bay is part of me. And while born in Detroit, I’m grateful every day that this is where my story really began, and where so much of it still continues.
This photograph is framed and hangs in my office. I shot this on a very foggy morning as the sun came up, which is why the bridge is so golden. It is 27 images stitched together to create an 8′ wide high resolution pano of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge, my favorite bridge photo!
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