Great Columbia Crossing 10k

Last winter Elise asked me if I wanted to do the "Great Columbia Crossing" with her the next fall. She thought it would be a fun thing to do, and she really wanted the stupid t-shirt. I agreed and we made plans to do so. Over the summer, Aunt Jodie decided she wanted to join us. So, she and her daughter Jordan came with us.

I had never done a walk/run before and was very surprised at how many people were there! I had no idea how many people come from near and far just to walk/run 6 miles across a bridge. Wait....let me rephrase: I had no idea how many people come from near and far just to PAY to walk/run 6 miles across a bridge! We parked at the Port of Astoria and took a shuttle to Dismal Nitch in Washington. Although freezing, we had fun people-watching and visiting with people we knew.

We all complained about having to park so far away from the shuttle, as it was taking away from our energy to do the long walk. We wanted to stay in the truck and keep warm (it was REALLY cold out!), but we heard rumors that the shuttle only ran until 7:30 (run started at 9).

Waiting at Dismal Nitch

Our sweet numbers...I know, I know...you wanna be us.

Jordan noticed this killer manatee backpack...it became the center of our conversation for quite some time. It's now our team mascot. We're already making plans for next year. I would elaborate, but it wouldn't be as funny to you as it is to us.

We were so excited when 9:00 finally came around...not so much to do the walk, but to finally get warm. They let the runners go first and then the walkers (us). There were sooo many people, that it was hard to walk at a good pace. We had to do a lot of maneuvering to make any headway. We weren't trying to race or anything, just trying to walk at a pace faster than a stroll. We were hoping that once we reached the bridge that people would have spread out a bit. It did get easier with every mile, but it was still very crowded the entire way.

Leaving Dismal Nitch

I snapped a shot of the floods of people across the bend...

Once on the bridge, we followed the manatee backpack for quite a while...not on purpose.

Almost to the incline! Lori on the right.

Once off the bridge, my legs were noodles, but we still had about a mile to go. It took us 1 hour and 42 minutes to finish. It would have been better if we didn't have to weave through all the people. Maybe next year? We'll see about that...