When I woke up, I heard continuous rumbles. There was a docked tour boat at the locks loading up people on a bus to go sight-see the falls of the Columbia gorge.
I walked with small steps to the Columbia Inn and got a mediocre breakfast. I tried to find out if it was possible to hop on a bus back to Portland, but the bus only stops here by request. I got a number at the tourist desk, but on weekends no one answers the phone, so I left a message without much hope since I didn't know where the bus stopped, and its schedule either (but they called back on Monday).
I took down the tent, repacked my pack without the bear canister, and gave away the food I had not used. I was going to put it in the hiker's box, but the four hikers sitting around the picnic table clamored for the free food, and eagerly split it. So the weight of my pack became more reasonable, and I walked to the brewery at the other end of the park where Natalie was going to pick me up around 8 pm. It felt like a long wait. I read half the book Waking up in a tent about empty-nesters section walking the PCT, and had a pineapple cider and lemonade to pass the time. Eventually some Portland soccer fans asked to have the TV turned on to view the big match between Portland and Seattle, and I watched part of that: it ended being a 1-1 tie.
Natalie was right on time, had a bite to eat, then we drove to PDX, and said out goodbyes at the curb. It was a good visit (eclipse and all). I drove a little bit eastward and stopped at a motel for the night and to do laundry tomorrow.