article_snippet.sent: Craft: The ropes for the bridge are made from the 'ichu' grass, which is braided by the local villagers .
article_snippet.sent: It spans 90ft over the Apurimac River some 100ft below, and villagers claim It has been there for 500 years.
article_snippet.sent: The raw material is 'ichu', a type of grass common on the sparse mountainsides of the Andes, which is braided into rope for the bridge.
article_snippet.sent: Each household in the four nearby villages is responsible for bringing 90 feet of braided grass rope, Slate reports.
article_snippet.sent: the bridge consists of five parallel 'ichu' ropes, which are braided to be about four inches thick, fastened at stone platforms on each side of the gorge.
article_snippet.sent: The floor or walkway is of small sticks and canes, fastened transversely with raw-hide strings, and two thick ropes are tied between the platforms as armrails.
highlights_snippet.sent: Locals use the same techniques to make the rope as Locals Inca ancestors .