Hood Canal Floating Bridge (William A. Bugge Bridge)

The western pontoons sank in a February 1979 windstorm — sustained winds of 85 mph, gusts estimated at 120 mph — and the bridge didn't reopen until 1982. That fact tells you everything about what this crossing demands. At 7,869 feet total, it is the longest floating bridge in the world in a saltwater tidal basin, carrying roughly 19,000 vehicles a day between the Kitsap and Olympic Peninsulas. When a Navy submarine needs through, traffic stops — federal maritime law, no exceptions.