While house-sitting this week in Hood River, OR, I took the bus to Cascade Locks to check out transit hiking conditions at the southernmost Washington trailhead of the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT). My assessment? Mixed. And in some cases — decidedly not great. And a lot of that is because you have to cross the Bridge of the Gods over the Columbia River to continue on the PCT, whether you are traveling northbound or southbound.

I did some preliminary digging to see if I could understand why authorities have not done the most minimal separation — simple concrete curbs and a few flex posts? — to afford pedestrians real space while crossing the bridge. I didn’t find the fulll answer to that question, but did find that there is local support for a pedestrian bridge, some preliminary funding and studies were secured, but due to some byzantine federal rules about toll bridges (vehicle drivers pay tolls) the pedestrian bridge addition is on indefinite hold. As I said in my Twitter thread, I don’t know numbers for locals who cross the bridge on foot, but I do know that in 2023 people should not have to walk in a lane of traffic to cross a major river.

Just a couple weeks ago, the Pacific Crest Trail Association published a Call to Action to urge legislators in both Oregon and Washington to fund the bridge. It’s a short read and easy to sign on. Please sign and share.