Photographer scales Ambassador, other landmarks, for bird's-eye photos

An explorer and photographer who takes huge risks to get the photo just released some from his climb up the Ambassador Bridge in Detroit.

His Twitter account features "all the places my vans have gone," and shows aerial scenes including from Chicago, lower Manhattan and Dallas.

"No helicopter! Sitting 1300 feet above NYC watching over the famous Chrysler building," he wrote in January.

His latest trek was 152 feet up to the top of the Ambassador Bridge, which spans the Detroit River and connects Michigan to Windsor, Ontario, in Canada. For an idea of how high: picture him in front of the massive letters that spell out the name of the bridge — the ones that glow against the sky at night.

The photographer, who goes by "Drift," says the climb to the tip of the bridge was wonderful, albeit illegal, and he says the risks are worth getting caught, he told Fox 2 Detroit.

The photographer did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday night.

A website where he posts his photos describes him as "an artist specializing in capturing the essence of exploration. He is an Army special operations veteran and a Muslim revert."

It's not clear if he will face any consequences for the stunt.

Kris Grogan, a spokesman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection, said the agency is aware of the photos and is working with American and Canadian authorities to investigate the incident. 

"As the Ambassador Bridge is privately owned, CBP is cooperating with the Bridge Company, who has security oversight of the bridge for anything outside of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Federal Inspection Station (FIS) and is investigating the incident," he said in an email.

Grogan referred further questions to the bridge's managers.

The bridge is operated by the Detroit International Bridge Co. Officials there could not be reached for comment Tuesday night.