First One Off The List…
Yesterday, I managed to knock one of my life goals off my list: I walked the entire length of the Golden Gate Bridge.
It was probably one of the simplest goals on the list, but it was a good beginning, a symbol of the eventual completion of many more. It is almost incredible that I had not previously walked across the bridge, especially when you consider that I have lived an hour and a half away from it for 26 of the years I’ve been living on this planet. Anytime I wanted to, I could have done it. But this time, given the excuse that I had to be in San Francisco anyway, I told myself that I was finally going to do it.
Eight of us started out, but only three completed the task (I feel like I’m beginning an epic tale of a snow-laden Everest expedition.) It was only the three that really wanted to complete it anyway — me, because it was on my list; and two others who were part of my wife’s family that were visiting from Illinois for the week. Those two were eager to do anything fun and unique in San Francisco, and crossing the bridge on foot sounded perfect to them.
It wasn’t much of a trek, a bit windy and cold at first, parka weather actually. The first leg seemed the longest, mostly psychological I’m sure. With every step, I looked up and the distant bridge approach seemed farther away than before. But it wasn’t long before I was only feet away from the other side. I triumphantly leaped over the final sidewalk crack with a satisfying grunt. We even ended up walking a bit further towards one of those Kodak scenic overlooks that had a terrific view of the entire bridge.
A few minutes later, we turned around and headed back towards the cars. By the end of the return trip, it was warm enough and we were sweaty enough not to need any jackets at all. After checking bridge statistics online, I discovered that the roundtrip was a fraction over 3.4 miles. Looking back, it didn’t seem that long at the time; more like about two miles across during the first leg, and less than a half mile on the way back. Most likely the seemingly short return was due to some kind of adrenaline rush received for having completed the goal. I frequently had to turn around and wait for the others because my feet were just flying on the way back.
Nothing spectacular. Nothing momentous. Just a checkmark in a box.
I wonder what number two will be…
(Can’t comment directly on the goals page, so I put it here instead.) You’ve already got a map image, but here’s another which might list additional countries.