3rd Time Bicycling Oregon's "Old West" Route

The weather forecast kept getting worse, but Sean, Carol, and Christy were ready to go and last minute attempts to switch dates which would have let Amy and Paul join us didn't work. Christy had reminded me that the weather won't always be great on the Northern Tier either, and the purpose of this ride is to test our preparation for that.

This forecast for Bates made me want to stay home but not my fellow riders!

By the time I reached Meridian, ID I had to turn the windshield wipers on high where they stayed for an hour until Ontario, OR.  I was mentally preparing myself for a layover day on day 1.  By the time I got to Vale, OR the rain stopped, and it didn't look like they had had the heavy rain southern ID was enjoying. In John Day where Sean, Carol, Christy and I met, it was dry and the clouds were breaking up, but windy. 

Day 1 John Day to Austin House 29.6 miles  2:57 riding time  2,313 elevation gain
The wind was fairly strong, but it would be a tail wind, so we set off for Bates State Park enjoying the wind blowing us up to Prairie City.  Winds up the grade were a side wind which didn't push us up the grade like they did into Prairie City. Last fall the ride up to Dixie summit had mentally defeated Carol, so this was an important test for her and the group before the x-country ride, but one she easily passed this year making us all happy! 

Carol, Sean, Christy, and Steve about 1/3 up to Dixie Summit

Sean, Christy, and Carol at Dixie Pass summit

We sailed down from the summit to the Austin House where we learned that Bates State Park won't open until May, so we made arrangement to camp there where we ate dinner.  A Trans Am rider rode by, seemed to look at our bikes but continued on to Bates SP.  Alan Potter was his name, and he was back to the Austin House about the time we finished dinner, and he verified for us that the park was closed.  He set up tent with us, and we enjoyed him and his tales of adventure.

Day 2  Austin House to Long Creek  55.1 miles  5:03 riding time 2,044 elevation gain
Rain fell most of the night giving the new tents everyone has their first mild test for water-tightness.  The proprietress had agreed to open an hour early, so we had breakfast at 0800 in the Austin House while drizzle continued, and she took a couple group photos as we left..  

time to break camp behind the Austin House

Prepared for rain as we leave the Austin house  Sean, Carol, Christy, Steve, and Alan - photo by Christy, the proprietress

 

We ride away in the rain- Carol, Christy, Sean, Alan, and Steve -  photo by Christy, the proprietress

Alan Potter leaves the group near Bates SP to continue on the Trans Am

We enjoyed Alan and would have liked to have had him along for the entire trip, but we said our goodbyes and continued on down the Middle Fork of the John Day River in occasional drizzle and some headwind.  The descent is beautiful, but with with cold, drizzle, headwinds, and heavy gloves no one took photos on this otherwise sweet descent. The drizzle ended by noon, but the headwinds continued as we turned to go up to Long Creek. 

Sean climbing the grade to Long Creek

Carol climbing the grade up to Long Creek

Christy spotted a "view point" above the road's high point, so she, Sean, and I started riding up to it, but stopped when it became a Jeep trail where this photo was taken - Christy and Sean

 
Reasonable opinions may differ, but I continue to think this is the toughest day of the ride with all those draws to go thru before reaching Long Creek, but there was no heat fatigue today.  It was cold with more rain forecast, so we decided to check out the motel.  $60 (with taxes, fees, & hidden charges) for the 4 of us instead of $40 for the RV park, so we parted with the extra $20 and enjoyed heated accommodations, microwave, mini refrig, and beds. (I also hadn't forgotten that snow was in that initial forecast for that evening).  Carol and Sean cooked outside on picnic tables an excellent chicken curry dish (light on curry as Christy and I prefer) as the store which calls itself a  "general store" is more of a convenience store was closed on Sunday afternoon. Its hours will seem all too short to bicyclists headings this way.

Day 3 Long Creek to Dayville 60.3 miles  5:17 riding time 2,697 elevation gain
After a warm night in the motel no one was interested in going outside to cook, and I suspect we'd have skipped breakfast had it not been for my resistance to that idea (skipping breakfast on tour is always a bad idea).  We used the microwave to reheat the left over chicken curry and headed out.  Again, cold with resulting heavy gloves seemed to eliminate most photos.  

Sean and Carol near the top of the ridge after Long Creek

We had a 2nd breakfast (if the first light one can be called a breakfast) at the store in Monument.  We were turning to a south southwest direction and hoped to lose the West headwinds in Monument, but the canyon kept the winds straight in our faces. In the wind, this was a tough section this year.  Finally, at Kimberly store where we had lunch, we turned to an almost true west direction, and picked up the strong tailwind.  Right where the Old West  meets the Trans Am,  Chris, another tourist came around the corner.  Chris rode east to west last year, wintered with friends in Eugene, and is headed home to New York on a combination of the Trans Am and Northern Tier routes, but isn't following A/C maps.

Chris, from upstate New York.   Chris carries a lot of stuff with him and noted this photo make him look like he was behind 3 stacks of garbage - photo by Christy

Chris is travelling on a severe budget, and has paid camping fees only once or twice, so that was the final info causing us to stay in the Dayville Church instead of the campground.  It was still a bit nippy, so I don't know what decision we'd have reached without Chris who rode on down to the fossil bed monument before rejoining us at the Dayville Community Church where he joined us for Christy's dinner of sloppy joes and later serenaded us with his Ukulele before we hit the sack at 9:00 p.m. Chris slept in his usual hammock hung between two of the church's trees rather than joining us inside.

Day 4 Dayville to John Day 31.0 miles 2:36 riding time 1,037 elevation gain
After a breakfast of pancakes and bacon, we said our goodbyes to Chris who wasn't ready to leave.  The strong winds of the last few days were gone, and the air finally quiet, but as we cycled, a weak west breeze slowly grew.  

Before leaving the Dayville Community Church Sean attempts to reinflate Carol's tire, but it's had a presta value failure, so a new tube is required

  

Carol, Christy, and Sean between Dayville and John Day

Carol, Christy, and Sean riding off on the last leg of the trip

We celebrated Carol's birthday in John Day with a nice lunch and said our goodbyes.  Great ride everyone, and thanks for not letting the weather make you back out!  Makes me look forward all the more to the Northern Tier with you all!

Happy cycling for fun, fitness, and transportation,


Steve 

2015 Old West Ride 
2012 Old West Ride

Return to Oregon's Old West Scenic Bikeway

18-21 Sep 2015

All the fun we'd had on this year's Grande Tour made Christy, Sean, Carol, Amy, Paul, and I want to do it again with a little tougher route before the cold weather hit.  Unfortunately, other commitments kept Amy and Paul away.  The weather was ideal unlike Doug's and my 2012 October experience in the cold on this route.  A pleasant rain ended early Friday morning before our start, so we began just as the clouds and smoke were gone.  We were more fortunate than the nearby Cycle Oregon's riders who were diverted off their planned route by the Richland, OR fire making them do some day rides out of Baker disappointing those we met on their ways home.

Day 1:  John Day to Bates State Park  31.4 miles  Riding time 3:16 Elevation Gain: 2,297 ft

We planned a half day cycling after our drives to John Day, but  our start was about an hour late at 1:00 PDT, but with the short day planned that created no real problems.  From the official start in John Day it's about 15 miles to Prairie City where begins the climb up the Dixie Pass, elevation 5,277. We stopped for photos about 1/3rd the way up at the oversized prairie schooner where I realized why my camera had been beeping at me; my memory card was still in my computer at home.  I'd have been more than willing to ride back to Prairie City for a new SD card, but would they have one?  John Day was a little too far away and would put me out of sync with the group, so I decided to rely on the cell phone photos of the others.

Sean, Carol, Christy, and Steve at the prairie schooner about 1/3 up the Dixie Pass- photo by Christy

The climb is mostly under 6% which I suppose makes it a little easier than the Old Lewiston or Old Winchester grades.  Christy and I took a break near the top where we waited for Sean and Carol and where we were surprised to see Carol show up 15 minutes later without Sean or panniers.  Sean was riding back to John Day to get the car.  Now, we dropped down to Austin Junction for 6 miles which were steep enough Carol was soon missing her panniers which contained her wind breaker. At Austin Junction, I realized, maybe Sean can get me a SD memory card in John Day, so Carol sent him a text msg.

Camping and showers are available at the Austin Inn, but the camping is superior at Bates State Park (but no showers), so Christy and I headed down the road the 1.5 miles to the park where we set up camp and met Wayne and Ken, two cyclists on the same route (though they'd started in Mitchell, OR a day earlier).  We didn't wait long for Carol and Sean to arrive - with my new 16GB SD card; thanks, Sean!  We had a good dinner at the Austin Inn.

A Ukiah Moment for Some
It was cool enough at bedtime that I left my sweat shirt on for sleeping, and cold enough I awoke in the night to curl up in a ball thinking "it isn't worth the trouble of putting my sweat pants on" as I fell back asleep.  I was protected by my Ukiah moment which happened during the1999 Cycle Oregon when I lay curled up in my sleeping bag wearing as many clothes as possible and stacking stuff on top of the sleeping bag as I lay wishing I could sleep or stop shivering while my TRC friends simply awoke, put on more clothes, and fell back asleep.  Immediately on completion of that Cycle Oregon I bought a warmer sleeping bag which has only been tested by the coldness of Bates- and it twice passed!  Christy and perhaps Ken had their Ukiah moment this night- lying in their sleeping bags shivering, wishing they had more clothes to put on and wishing they could fall asleep.  It was 24° when the park ranger arrived the next morning.  With some questioning we learned Bates is in a bowl; the cold air flows down into it each evening off the surrounding mountains.  The ranger said it had been 50° as he drove across Dixie Pass on his way to work this morning and the temps fell to 24° as he descended to Bates.  So, if you plan on camping here anytime of the year, be prepared for cold nights!

Christy's frozen bike in Bates SP - photo by Christy

Day 2: Bates State Park to Long Creek, OR  53.7 miles 3:57 Riding Time  Elevation Gain:  1,824 ft
We hung around camp until the sun was up and the tents mostly dry.  We were enjoying Wayne & Ken and they us, so we decided to ride together. The best section of The Old West Scenic Bikeway  is Bates down to the junction with Hwy 395.

The combined group: Wayne, Carol, Sean, Ken, Steve, and Christy- photo by Christy

Between Christy and Sean is a color or geometric shape missing?

Ken, Sean, Christy, and Ken enjoying the downhill to Hwy 395

Christy, Sean, Wayne, and  Ken still enjoying the downhill

Wayne and Ken are from the Willamette Valley where they live in blissful ignorance of puncture weed (goat heads), but between Mitchell and Dayville they met with some puncture weed issues leaving Ken particularly paranoid about puncture weed.  That paranoia may have been the reason he skipped our lunch spot just before the junction of Hwy 395 where the climbing begins again, and where there was some puncture weed.

Sean and Christy begin the climb up 395, the photographer has the wrong angle, so Sean is mostly hidden by Christy

Christy nearing the top of the main climb up 395

We'd had some discussion on what the toughest day would be.  Experience told me it was day two, climbing up Hwy 395 and then through many ravines before reaching Long Creek, but the knowledge of feet climbed still made an impression for everyone else. After reaching Long Creek, I think we generally agreed day two was tougher.

Ken fixes a flat at the top of 395 while Wayne supervises and while Sean and Christy take a break in the nearby shade!

 Once reaching the top, it seems like it should be smooth sailing into Long Creek, but there seems to always be another ravine to cross before reaching town.  Crossing those ravines makes this the toughest day- in my opinion.  (They can't be called rollers; there's no way to get the momentum of the down to push you up the next hill).  Some thought they'd ridden enough on reaching Long Creek, and others wanted to ride on the 20 miles of "mostly downhill"  to Monument which is also a cleaner nicer town much lower in elevation where nights wouldn't be so cold, but we were all enjoying each other, and we all ended up spending the night in Long Creek.

Long Creek lies in the high desert just before the trees start.  It's not a particularly attractive town with many abandoned houses and dead overgrown grass everywhere, but the "convenience store", must be under new management since 2012.  Unlike 3 years ago, it has hours posted and enough groceries for a touring cyclist.  It also has a grill and tables where we had our post ride snacks and where we remained for at least an hour as we escaped the afternoon heat..

Our camp in Long Creek's RV Park

On the positive side the RV park's bathrooms were very clean, and they provide towels for each of us for $10 per tent. On the negative side, there is no shade (the trees you see in the above photo are in the adjoining trailer park and didn't cast their shadows our way) and no picnic tables. We escaped most of hottest part of the afternoon sitting in the convenience store. There was an old crusty bench which we used to hold our cooking stoves, and the camp had about 3 plastic chase lounges we used. Some found the night still a bit too cold, but having my post Ukiah sleeping bag, I was just fine!

Day 3:  Long Creek to Dayville 62.3 miles, 4:37 riding time   Elevation Gain: 2,677
If the morning was a bit cool, the ridge we had to cross before dropping into Monument gave everyone ample time to warm up. The ridge was a little more significant than I remembered, and I think everyone was glad we had stayed in Long Creek.

Sean, Wayne, Ken, and Christy nearing the top of the ridge out of Long Creek

Wayne on the ridge between Long Creek and Monument

Ken, Wayne, Sean, and Christy enjoy the downhill to Monument

Ken, Wayne, Christy, and Sean still enjoying the downhill outside of Monument

The downhill to Monument is great on a loaded touring bike with banked corners and open vistas, but not so steep that we were forced to brake more than a couple times briefly.  Ken had a 2nd breakfast in Monument at a small stand opened just for him.  The Monument grocery store is closed on Sundays. Ken had a sinus infection that hadn't told on his riding until about this point where he fell behind the group, and that's my belief as to why. He's a strong rider. We followed the John Day River and just before Kimberly where we met 3 credit card tourists from the suburbs of Portland while one was changing a flat. (They had driven to Dayville, rode to Prairie City, Long Creek and were almost back to their cars at the 1st nights motel that makes a tough day 2 but doable without gear to carry).  Since 2012 the Kimberly Store has been reopened.  We had lunch there and enjoyed their outside benches and talked to the credit card tourists who later joined us for a brief time on the ride to Dayville.  Kimberly is a convenience store only, but in a good location for lunch for those starting in Long Creek.  It also sells prepackaged sandwiches should future tourists need them.

Ken, Wayne, Steve, Christy, and Sean enjoy lunch outside the reopened and remodeled Kimberly Store - photo by Christy

 When we stopped at the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, Ken caught us and rode on without us since he wasn't feeling good and probably didn't want to be dropped again!  We regrouped at Dayville's interesting general store. Afternoon temps were high enough to let us really enjoy their ice cream!

Sean, Steve, Wayne, and Christy leaving the Fossil Beds National Monument - photo by Christy

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument has the best bike rack for cycling tourists I've ever seen. The bottom cross bars keep the wheels from rolling and the spacing allows for loaded bikes!

Where to stay in Dayville, the Community Church (formerly the Presbyterian Church) or the RV park?  My memory of the church was pretty good, but I didn't want to dominate the group's decisions.  The church gave a feeling of connection to other cycle tourists (it's on AC's Trans Am route and has been providing a place for us to sleep since '76).  It lets you escape the tent for a night, and with the growing length of nights lets you stay up a little later with electric lights though we still went to bed about 8:00.  The church treats catering to cycle tourists as a ministry, and they made us all feel welcome  The woman who is the designated host came down, greeted us, showed us the facilities which included a shower and kitchen, and since I was there in 2012, they've added a washer (with detergent provided), a dryer, and a computer as well as internet for cycle tourists' use.

Carol and Sean preparing dinner in the church's kitchen- Christy in the background

Sitting around the church's tables enjoying the coolness after a post ride snack- Wayne, Christy, Sean, and Carol

Day 4 Dayville to John Day 31.8 miles  Riding time 2:35  Elevation gain: 997 ft
We were sorry to say farewell to Wayne & Ken that morning as they headed back to their car in Mitchell, but we were glad to have Carol rejoin the riding group.

Wayne and Ken say "goodbye"!  It was great touring with you two!

Carol and Sean depart the Dayville Community Church

We weren't 150 feet down the road when Christy suffered her first flat of the day (and of the trip)

Sean changes Christy's first flat of the day while Carol supervises- about 150 ft from the church

Carol, Sean, and Christy on the road from Dayville to John Day

Christy suffered her 2nd flat outside Mt. Vernon and now plans on bringing a patch kit in addition to two tubes on the cross country ride.

Hot link to:  All my photos

This is a great loop that we did in two half days and two full days which allowed for our motorized transport to and from John Day.