Ride Report: PDX to Baker City via the Fun Route

[greggargubby]

hey all,

the VFR and i spent last sunday and monday riding to baker city and back. it was nothing less than fantastic. it was my first time riding in this area, so it was a learning experience, meaning i'm sure i missed plenty of things i should not have missed, but it was still a great little tour.

route:

highlight: 218 from shaniko to fossil. there is a stretch of supposed construction, which is paved with gravel on top, but it looks to be permanent to me. maybe i'm wrong and they'll pave it soon, but i doubt it. anyway, it's only a few miles and other than that, this stretch of road beats 9, as far as i'm concerned. i realize that's heresy, but it's many, many more miles and it's out in the middle of nowhere with very little traffic or police patrol. and it has, way, way, way more visibility. in most places you can look through the next two or three turns. straight up heaven, as far as i'm concerned.

highlight: blue mountains. roads with virtually no traffic and good views. unlike most of oregon, this part of the state offers decent roadside views. for those inexperienced with this neck of the woods, you get to the top of the mountain and can't see a damn thing because the trees block the view.

highlight: highway 20 from south of baker city to highway 395. it's 40 miles and i saw one car and three deer. sorry, no pic.

highlight: 216 and bakeoven road out of maupin. both are amazing uphill stretches of twisties, but i failed to get pics of either road because i was in a hurry. next time i'll get some pixels.

along bakeoven road:

highlight: just about any stretch of 395. not a challenging road unless you ride at warp speed, but absolutely beautiful views. just a gorgeous route.

highlight: lots of central oregon is desert, but unlike the central valley, it's not just endless stretches of orchards and agriculture. it's remote, red, and beautiful. granted, i love being in the middle of nowhere, and maybe others don't, but i love places like this.

lowlight: highway 52 from ukiah (oregon) to granite is pretty ripped up right now. not worth riding at all, sorry to say.

lowlight: dealing with the traffic shackles of 26 until 216, and then on the way back.

i plan to ride part of this again next weekend or shortly thereafter, so if you want to go, please let me know.

 

[veefereefer]

Nice pics. I've ridden a little bit in Oregon. That road between La Grande and Ukiah was run....244 I think it was.

395 Between Ukiah and John Day was also a blast.:thumbup

 

[BLU_G.6K]

Damn, that looks like a nice ride. Think I'm gonna have to check this out.

 

[greggargubby]

update. the stretch of construction between antelope and fossil that i mentioned earlier has been paved. that sounds great, and it is for the most part, but not entirely. the pavement they used is not something i'm familiar with. as near as i can figure, it depends upon vehicle traffic to smooth it out. in short, it's like some sort of oily gravel, but as cars smash it down it becomes smooth. anyway, during construction, i was riding at 20-30, whereas now it's grippy, though debatably not ready for fast riding because there are still some marbles on top, maybe 45-50 or so. still, much better, and i think it will improve with more vehicle travel.

i've done some more riding in this neck of the woods and will post another ride report this week, but, as hard as this is to believe, i think i like riding here more than CA. if nothing else, there's never anybody slowing me down. there's just no such thing as traffic in central OR, and the few times i am behind someone, there's plenty of room to get around them. and there are no cops. just none. the best way to explain how few people there are on these roads is how i turn around. normally, if i find a section of road i want to yo-yo a few times, i'll run it and then ride until i find a safe place to turn around and then run it again.

not here. there's no need to ride until the next turn out, because no cars are going to come. i just stop, do a three-point u-turn, and go at it again. it's like they paved this place just for me.

 

[Rsick]

Added to my must-ride roads for this year. Thanks! :thumbup

 

[Carlo]

From Eugene, all routes to Baker City are the fun route!

We don't have an interstate that goes right there.

Did you stay in the Geiser Grand hotel?

Great place to spend a night.

And I hope you stopped here! Oregon's gold country, Sumpter.