Greetings from Pendleton, Oregon

I arrived in Pendleton around noon today, capping off a truly fantastic week of bicycling, first in and around the Columbia River Gorge area with my friend Carrie and then, back on my own, I took a five-day journey looping through the John Day River area in north central Oregon. The riding conditions were outstanding if you, like me, enjoy climbing and can put up with some tough, gusty winds. And the weather finally cooperated: the weather story of my solo journey has been a little like "Goldilocks and the Three Bears": first for days it was too hot, then it was cloudy and rainy, climaxing with an all-day downpour, and now for the past week the weather has been just right - cool mornings and bright, sunny days, the temperature peaking in the 80's. And the John Day area is maybe the best kept secret in the country. In all of my travels I have never been an area so scenic with so little traffic. I've virtually had the roads to myself. As an example, over the course of three days, I rode down six major descents - that is, a downhill of at least several miles where I reached speeds over 30 mph. The longest was an 8 miler with a six percent grade that took me 18 or so minutes to descend. And yet, never once in all six did a car pass me from behind, or even show up in my helmet mirror.

Here's a recap since my last post:

Day 13 - Thursday, 8/21 - an off-day in Corbett, OR, with no riding at all. I took my bike to a bike shop for repairs, dried out all my gear after the soaking it all took the day before, worked on my blog at the public library in Gresham, etc.

Day 14 - Friday, 8/22 - a semi-off-day: more work on the blog and then an afternoon 30-mile ride in the Columbia Gorge from Corbett to Multnomah Falls and back via the Historic Columbia River Highway (U.S. 30), the first planned scenic roadway in the U.S., build between 1913 and 1922. The views of the gorge were wonderful, and the road deeply shaded as we descended from the top to nearly the bottom. The return trip was tough, though: uphill against a a stiff westerly headwind.


Along the Historic Columbia River Highway


The Columbia River Gorge


Multnomah Falls

Day 15 - Saturday, 8/23 - Carrie and I drove east to the town of Hood River, a major recreation spot within the gorge, world famous for windsurfing, parasailing, etc. - because of the strong, near-constant wind. We rode for two days here, on this first day taking another 30-miler inland from Hood River, following the "Fruit Loop," a suggested tour of the Hood River Valley's local orchards and fruit stands. We were a week too early for the beginning of apple and pear season, but we could see all the ripe fruit on the trees, and we passed by a llama farm, where the llamas were in good form, every season being llama season!



Llamas!

All in all, it was a lovely ride; the roads were quiet, and as wee rode south to Parkdale, we had great views of Mt. Hood towering over the valley.


Mt. Hood, with young fruit trees in foreground (apple and pear trees with ripe fruit were elsewhere)

Day 16 - Sunday, 8/24 - A longer, 80-mile loop ride on the Washington side of the gorge from Lyle to Goldendale. The highlight was the first 20 miles as we followed the Klickitat River upstream through a canyon, the road shaded both by pines and the tall cliffs. Then after a steep three-mile climb that brought us out of the canyon, we rode through high, treeless prairie, with views of Mt. Adams to the north, enjoying a stiff tailwind all the way east to Goldendale. The bad news was that we then had to turn around, and the 25-mile return against the wind was a hard slog, riding through the prairie with not another soul around except one small rattlesnake and, once we reached the treeline, a rafter of turkeys.

Day 17 - Monday, 8/25: 67 miles from Hood River to Maupin, OR. Carrie got me started, riding the first ten miles or so with me east from Hood River, back on the Historic Columbia River Highway (the first miles of which was a section where cars are prohibited); and after saying goodbye at an overlook, I was back on my own, sailing along with the usual westerly tailwind eastward to The Dalles. From there I headed south on Route 197, and a hard ride it was, first climbing out of the gorge and then riding through very lumpy prairie land, where nothing was flat, either climbing or descending amid gusting, ferocious wind. At times the wind was aiding me, but most of the the time it was was westerly, billowing over the Cascades, which were visible as a blue wall off to my right, and the crosswind was so strong that I had to work hard to keep my bike from swerving into the road.


Mt. Hood from the high plains south of The Dalles

The day ended really well, however, as I descended to the town of Maupin, which has a lovely town park on the Deschutes River. I arrived late - 6:00 p.m. - but had time to soak in the Deschutes before dinner; and that night was the first of several where I spent time gazing at the stars, as all the past week the night sky has been moonless.

Day 18 - Tuesday, 8/26: 81 miles from Maupin to Fossil. A rugged day of biking in an extremely remote region, as for the entire 80 miles there wasn't a single open store: the store in Antelope, OR (pop. 37) was closed, and the only other dot on the map I passed through - Clarno - wasn't a town at all. The day began with an arduous 11-mile climb that took me two hours up and away from the Deschutes and back into high prairie, as I continued south on Rt. 197. The wind was already a factor - again mostly a slowing crosswind - and after a little bit of rolling, I was climbing again. In all it took three hours to cover the first 20 miles to Criterion Summit, elevation 3360. At the top, though, there was a real treat: an overlook featured a "mountain identifier," pointing out the names of all the Cascade peaks visible in the distance; and from that spot you can see them all for at least 150 miles, from Broken Top, south of the Three Sisters, to Mt. Adams in Washington. An hour later I was riding on one of the most beautiful roads I've ever encountered, east on Rt. 218 toward Antelope, OR - beautifully paved and completely empty of traffic, winding through a canyon of picturesque mountains, the colorful outcrops surrounded by grasses and pines. I was entering the John Day River area, noted for the tremendous fossil record embedded in its eroded cliffs. It's a rough landscape, however. As my route had been ever since The Dalles, none of it was flat; and after a relatively mild climb and descent to reach Antelope - where luckily I found a water pump across from the closed store - I faced a steep six-mile climb and then an eight-mile descent to Clarno, where I crossed the John Day River for the first time, and then a tortuous 14-mile climb before a final six-mile descent into Fossil. By then it was nearly 6:00p.m.; I'd averaged a mere 8 mph all day. I camped in the town RV park next to the fairgounds, again saw a sky full of stars, and heard coyotes howling in the distance.

Day 19 - Wednesday, 8/27: 100 miles from Fossil to Mt. Vernon. It was payback for all the harsh wind and the climbing: a day of relatively flat riding, aided by a strong tailwind. After an initial six-mile climb out of town amid a cold, gray sky, I had a chilling 14-mile descent to Service Creek, a small outpost alongside the John Day River. From there the sky cleared, becoming blue and cloudless, and the route followed the river upstream. It was wonderfully scenic, rich in color - the blue water framed by bright green banks, with the eroded cliffs creating a dramatic, ever-changing background.


The John Day River between Service Creek and Spray, Oregon

I simply sailed along, taking it all in, riding east on Rt. 19 through the towns of Spray and Kimberly (the latter consisting of a single general store and post office, but surrounded by fruit orchards), then south, stopping at the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument headquarters, and then east again to Mt. Vernon, the wind following me all the way. From Dayville to Mt. Vernon the road is less scenic and the river disappears from view within a broader valley, but it was a fast, flat ride, and Mt. Vernon was worth reaching: the biker-hiker campsite at Clyde Holliday State Park is a thick patch of grass (good for sleeping) and only $4.00. And once again that night I was treated to a black sky filled with stars and serenaded by coyotes - this time much nearer by.

Day 20 Thursday, 8/28: 83 miles (including 9 miles of shuttling between town and campground) from Mt. Vernon to Ukiah. A harder day featuring four summits to traverse, but overall another wonderful day: warm and sunny, on quiet, well-paved road, traveling north on U.S. 395. None of the climbs were particularly tough, but the cumulative effect wore me down by the end. The longest was the first - a 16-miler from Mt. Vernon to Beech Creek Summit, elevation 4708, that took me two hours. Then after a short decent through Fox - another town without a store - there was a steep, three-mile climb to Long Creek Mountain Summit, taking me above 5,000 feet for the first time since Crater Lake. I took a break at the one store in Long Creek and another in Dale, and then once again there was a lovely stretch of riding along the John Day River - this time its north fork - before reaching Ukiah.


North Fork of the John Day River

In Ukiah I hoped to find a motel in order to watch Obama's convention speech. No luck. There were two "motels" and one hotel in Ukiah, none of them offering a room with a television. The one place I was told that I might watch it was at The Thicket, the only place that served dinner, but it really was just a bar that also happened to serve food. I ate amid the locals and a group of motorcyclists from Idaho. The jukebox was blaring a lot of country-rock songs, and I didn't dare ask to turn on the convention. After dinner I retreated to the state campground outside of town. No coyotes this time, but it the morning I heard the plaintive cry of an elk, which sounds like a cross between a cat's meow and a trumpet.

Day 21 - Friday, 8/29 (today): 53 miles from Ukiah to Pendleton. Needing a rest, I made it a short one today, and it was exceedingly easy, as after an initial 11-mile climb to Battle Mountain Summit (elevation 4270), I left the trees behind and started descending 3,000 through prairie to reach Pendleton (elevation 1,200), passing through one town - Pilot Rock - along the way. The most amazing part of the day - beside the elk calls (I heard another on Battle Mountain) - was the rapid shift in temperature: it was 38 degrees when I woke up at 6:30 a.m., 77 degrees by 10:00 in Pilot Rock, and 83 degrees by 11:30, when I arrived in Pendleton. From here I'll be continuing north into Washington State, passing through Walla Walla, and then start angling west (against the wind, I'm afraid) to reach Seattle in approximately 10 days.