Dangerous High Bridge

Public Service Announcement

Refreshing air fills your lungs, 420 feet above the river. Inhale the sweet aroma of evergreen trees, and experience scents the wind brings to you. The cascading, rushing river renews life. Ravens and eagles soar, calling in joyous freedom, catching updrafts. Giant evergreen trees stack the hillsides or create river turns with their fallen branches. Some days, clouds of cumulus, stratus, or cirrus float above, shifting into animal shapes. Vaping or smoking sullies the clean air. Forbidden. Campfires, loud music, and alcohol drinking and partying destroy the serenity. Forbidden.

Roam the bridge deck of graffiti as you are considering a bungee jump or paragliding from here. Forbidden.

Drones soaring over the canyon disturb the peace and create danger. Forbidden.

Fireworks, the many colors exploding in loud bursts and dropping sparks over the canyon - forbidden.

Hiking -forbidden. The ghosts of the dead haunt the valley and the forest. Shhh, be still, and you feel them.

Dogs - forbidden. Howls may be ghosts of dogs who fell.

Hopscotch games on the graffiti bridge - forbidden.

Speeding - forbidden. Mind the 20 mph speed. Advisory: It is a Forest Service road, so it's easy to get lost after crossing the bridge. Hunters and off-road vehicles may be a danger to your driving.

Copyright © 1/15/2026 by Andrea O. Corwin

I am grateful you read my work! 😃 If you liked it, please like it ♡, drop a comment, and subscribe for free. - - Andi

Built in 1929, this bridge originally carried a rail line that enabled logging operations in new areas of the Olympic Peninsula. It is a favorite spot for us to visit, except in winter. Signs are posted, but people ignore them. Five to seven people fall off the bridge every year, and the majority die, even though the area has scattered warning signs, including one describing how steep, slippery, and unsafe the bridge is. Rescuers said the area is known for its deceptively steep terrain and the number of lives it takes each year. A fire department official said the ratio is about 20 dead to every one person they find alive at the bottom. In 2024, a teen fell 400 feet and had to be rescued. Recently, an escaped felon was talked down from the bridge and stopped from committing suicide.