Day 138 : The bridge of the gods

4th September 2013
Mile 2155  to mile 2178 : Cascade Locks to a trailside camp
Mileage : 23

I was up early today and escaped the cascade locks vortex before i met anyone who could entice me to stay. The day started with a crossing of the Bridge of the Gods, a fairly ugly trust bridge which someone told me proudly was the third oldest bridge across the Columbia river. The grandiose names refers to a more ancient bridge. Native American legends tell of a cataclysmic landslide eons ago that dammed the river creating a huge lake. The pent up.water eventually burst through leaving behind the Bridge of the Gods. The current bridge is built at the site where the original is supposed to have been. After several inadequate photos taken in between annoyed passing motorists i crossed over and entered Washington. After more photos this time of the 'You are entering Washington, the Evergreen State' sign, i started the long, long climb back into the mountains. The Columbia river that i just crossed is only a couple hundred feet above sea level, meaning there would be  a lot of elevation gain over the next couple days to take me back into the Cascades. The effects of 3 days of RnR made the climb more difficult than a normal climb would be 3 or 4 days into a stretch. The effect of even 1 or 2 beers the night before is noticeable, as is the lack of caffeine on that first day out of town. But mostly it is the rest that takes the biggest toll. A break of 1 or 2 days is welcome, but i find that any more than that, even just 1 more day, tends to have a detrimental rather than restorative effect on my body as more body stiffens up considerably, and it takes a while to get back into the groove. Many hours later, as.the light was fading, called it day at a one person sized cowboy camping spot right next to the trail. As i set about my evening routine i realised i had left a crucial bit of.kit in Cascade Locks : my headtorch. I was too tired to be angry at myself, and sat in the darkening forest trying not to feel.too down about this. One of the key things i have learned on the trail is that have only myself to blame when things go wrong : Only PCT myself in danger through my actions twice so far on the trail, once coming out of Tehachapi when i ran out of water, and once when i climbed mt Whitney and came close to getting hypothermia. A lack of a headtorch wasn't about to put me in any danger, but it was a major inconvenience. It would mean stopping well before nightfall from now on in order to set up camp while the light lasts, this would take up to an hour off my evening hike depending on late evening light conditions. Annoyed and depressed at the same time i finished my routine as quickly as i could and tried to get.some sleep.