I got out of the tent by 8 am. I believe there was only one other camper. I refilled the bladder with filtered water (much better tasting than what I got in Cascade Locks). But I had done the math: I had walked less than 5 miles, and the next resupply point assumed that I would do between 10-15 miles a day, so in spite of all the food I was carrying, it was not enough. My legs still felt shaky and wobbly with aching hips to boot, so I decided to turn back. Just putting the pack on was a challenge.
I was as ready as I was going to be by 9 am, walking in little spurts and stopping every 100 feet, very happy to have walking sticks for balance. Thank goodness it was mostly downhill. I met about 5 hikers per hour going the other way. I rejoiced when I finally heard the traffic, the trains, saw the Columbia River, and at last the bridge.
Once across the river, I stopped at the place I had breakfast yesterday, and ordered from their outside window a large diet coke and a vanilla shake, no sense stinking the place up. Then after resting an hour on a bench with the pack off, I hobbled the last little bit to the Marine Park campsite, set up my tent, took a shower, and went to the brewery for dinner. I let Natalie know about the change in plans.
It felt good to stop moving and lie down. Overnight and for the first time, I had some condensation inside the tent, and tried not to rub against it when I woke up. It disappeared pretty quickly when I opened the tent flap up and let the breeze through.