Mile 505 (15 today)

Cascade Locks. Good bye Washington – hello Oregon 

Today’s important. My last day walking in Washington. I’ll cross the 500 mile mark. And I’ll stay in a motel for 2 days. 

All the things. 

And so I rise at 5 and by 6 I’m walking. 

The last 5 miles feel like a life time. I can hear the cars and trains at Cascade Locks. I can see the water and the buildings. Is that pancakes I can smell?!!

But my body is moving so slowly. 

And then I arrive. 

Bridge of the Gods. 

If you’ve seen ‘Wild’, it’s the iconic bridge where she finishes her trek. 
It’s a stunning structure – but how the heck do I walk across it when there’s no walk way? 

I walk into the traffic and am not sure which is the most frightening: walking straight into traffic, feeling the wind push me or the sheer view of the drop exposed beneath my feet. 

Vaguely traumatised, elated and exhausted I walk off the bridge and onto the Main Street in Cascade Locks. 

I walk past a fish stall and then hear a voice shouting from the fruit stall: “Excuse me, excuse me”. I’m a bit spaced out so it takes me a moment to realise an older dark haired woman is addressing me. 

Impatiently she pushes a peach into my hand. 

I thank her with surprise. And walk on. 

I’m starving and bite into the peach. 

My hands are dirty and there’s juice everywhere. Past caring about the dirt I lick the juice of my fingers. The sunlight is beaming in my face. And I know this is a moment I’ll never forget.