Three (OK, two) Australian icons!

50,000 rainbow-clad participants walking across the Sydney Harbour Bridge from North Sydney to Circular Quay and the Domain - now that's something you don't see everyday! 

After three weeks of  Sydney World Pride 2023 events starting on 17 February the big finale finally arrived on Sunday 5 March - The Pride March across the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

Closing the Sydney Harbour Bridge to traffic is a pretty rare event. I believe this was only the sixth time since the  Bridge opened in 1932 that the roadway has been closed to all traffic to allow members of the public onto the roadway. The others closures were the  50th anniversary (1982), Walk for Reconciliation (2000), 75th anniversary (2007), and Breakfast on the Bridge (2009 and 2010).*

Changing fashions over the years. I still have my original 75th anniversary commemorative hat which was given to every participant back in 2007. 16 years later I ditched the fluoro green and went for 6 inch patent leather heels and latex.

The Pride March was free but everyone had to apply in a ballot to limit numbers to 50,000. Each successful applicant had to choose a 10 minute timeslot to manage the crowds, although on the day there didn't seem to be too much checking of such details.

I met my walking companion and fabulous fellow fetishist Pippa from  Hell for Leather at North Sydney Station around ten past nine, clad in her feather skirt, corset, flowing mesh cape and horns! Being the conservative dresser that I am I went for the classic latex French maid look, complete with 6" heels. 

Happy snaps with fellow Pride marchers. And how cool are those wheel nuts!

After posing for a few photos with fellow marchers and passers-by we ended up being amongst the last 50 or so participants to start the walk at 9:40am. Because we were right near the end of the march we had a wall of volunteers looming down upon us from behind to make sure there were no stragglers who could delay the Bridge from reopening to traffic.

A quick pause for some bridge facts... At 1149m long and 503m between the pylons the Sydney Harbour bridge is nowhere near the longest bridge in the world, but amongst long span bridges it is the widest bridge in the world. Its 49 metre width is enough for eight lanes of traffic, two train lines, a bike path and a pedestrian walkway. (When it was built it had six lanes of traffic and four train lines.) Like many large bridges it is also not flat. It slopes up to the middle from each side at a gradient of about 2.5%. This may not sound like much but on foot you definitely notice it. Now back to the story...

We've made it to halfway, it's all downhill from here!

What can I say? - The Pride March was a truly amazing experience. The colour, the spectacle, the sheer joy of being around so many people having such a wonderful time. Yes it was hard on the feet doing such a long walk in 6 inch heels but who cares, it was absolutely worth doing it in 6 inch heels, and a latex dress on a hot day for good measure!

The walk actually ended up being about 3km in heels as the relentless march of the volunteer wall became ever harder to outpace in my heels the longer the walk went on. As we approached the Cahill Expressway we made a quick pit stop for a shoe change into flats which saw an instant improvement to our lap time!

 
Who doesn't love a cockatoo

The most impressive costume we came across on the day was this cockatoo dress worn by a delightful individual who patiently posed for photos with seemingly every other person on the bridge. And yes, many completely predictable 1980s Austen Tayshaus style  cockatoo jokes were made.

This was the the fourth occasion I have partipated in one of these very special Sydney Harbour Bridge walks and it was by far the most memorable. It may be another nine years before the Bridge closes again for a supersized celebration on its hundredth anniversary. At least I've got plenty of time to plan my outfit to make sure it's another memorable occasion :)

*The Sydney Harbour Bridge has also been closed to traffic for brief periods for maintenance and for commercial events such as Mark Webber driving a Formula 1 car across it in 2005.

Cover photo courtesy of Sydney World Pride 2023 (sydneyworldpride.com)