Bridge of the Gods: WWE

The Bridge of the Gods spans the Columbia River between Oregon and Washington state. We had never driven over the bridge before and decided to check it out on a trip last year. About 1.6 million people cross this bridge every year.

The south end of the 1,858-foot long bridge is located at Cascade Locks in Oregon. In 2024, the toll for a passenger car to drive over the bridge was $3. A list of tolls for vehicles of other sizes is on this page.

Traveling across the bridge

I thought the structure over the toll booth had a simple yet elegant design.

The bridge is 35 feet wide with two 12 foot wide lanes.

In 1920, the U.S. War Department issued the initial construction permit for this bridge. Construction stalled. In 1926, the Wauna Toll Bridge Company bought an interest in the bridge for about $600,000. It was originally 92 feet above the river, but had to be raised 44 feet due to rising waters related to the Bonneville Dam construction in 1938. Ownership of the bridge passed to the Columbia River Bridge Company and then to the current owner, the Port of Cascades Locks, in 1961.

The grid construction style has an industrial feel to it. This is a steel truss cantilever bridge.

You may be wondering why this structure is called the “Bridge of the Gods.” Around 1450, a massive landslide blocked the Columbia River near where the bridge is presently located. Eventually, the river breached the dam. At that time, it was 200 feet high by 3.5 miles long.

Here is a view of the Columbia River to the east. The bridge sits 140 feet above the water.

Native Americans may have regularly crossed over the temporary land bridge before it washed away. Cascade Rapids formed when it was breached, but disappeared once the Bonneville Dam was constructed.

Bridge of the Gods Legend

There is a Native American legend about this site. It says Manito, the Great Spirit, created a bridge to cross the river. She appointed a guardian, Loo-Wit, to watch over the bridge. The grateful people named it the Bridge of the Gods.

Manito sent his three snow mountain sons to Earth. Multnomah, the warrior (Mt. Rainier), Klickitat, the totem maker (Mt. Adams), and Wy’east, the singer (Mt. Hood) got along well until Squaw Mountain moved between two of them.

Squaw Mountain loved Wy’east, but flirted with Klickitat and eventually a rivalry arose between the brothers. In their anger, they shook the earth, spat ash, and belched clouds of black smoke. The hot rocks they hurled at each other caused forest fires. The rocks piled up on the bridge and the earth shook, causing the bridge to collapse.

Their angry father, Manito, punished them by creating huge rapids in the river.

Read a more complete version of the story, and the conclusion, here.

When you travel about halfway across the current bridge, you’ll see the “Welcome to Washington” sign.

Here’s the view of the river to the West.

When you get close to the north end of the bridge, you’ll see why Washington is called the “Evergreen State.”

Fun Fact: In 1927, aviator Charles Lindbergh flew his plane low over the newly constructed Bridge of the Gods then turned around and flew underneath it.

Water Water Everywhere (WWE)

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