Bridge of the Gods

The Bridge of the Gods is a steel cantilever toll bridge spanning the Columbia River between Cascade Locks, Oregon and Stevenson, Washington, opened in 1926. Its name comes from a legend of the Columbia Plateau's Indigenous peoples, who described a great natural rock arch once bridging the river here — a sacred crossing between worlds. Construction of the Bonneville Dam in the 1930s raised the river level enough that the original bridge deck had to be lifted several feet. Today the bridge is a landmark crossing on the Pacific Crest Trail, where long-distance hikers on foot cross the Oregon–Washington state line with open views across the Columbia River Gorge.