ANyone know about dispersed camping on Hills Creek Lake near Oakridge? Is there plenty of random spots around it and also is the water too cold to swim in early June?
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ANyone know about dispersed camping on Hills Creek Lake near Oakridge? Is there plenty of random spots around it and also is the water too cold to swim in early June?
Coastal perspective - I drove down the entire west coast in Feb/Mar and did a few rides in OR. It seemed a bit hard to find dispersed camping in some areas being close to the coast with lots of private property. I was generally able to find logging roads to drive up and camp. Though I'm sure some spots weren't legal I had no issues given time of year and was in after dark, out soon after sunrise.Quote:
Originally Posted by ticketchecker
Syncline in WA - agree this is worth a stop if you have time. Lots of poison oak. I'd ride this before i'd ride Sandy Ridge.
Cape Mtn Trails - Florence, OR. There was a small, nice campground at the top. Not free but like $12/night. Trails are horse trails and seemed pretty raw/unused, I imagine there will be more horse traffic in summer. Not many downed trees, just covered in litter.
Whiskey Run Trails - Coos Bay. Very fun MTB specific trail system. Tons of loop options and some decent DH runs.
Lower Rogue River Tr - did an out and back but it can be a 12 mile point to point. Very raw and covered in heavy litter with a few downed trees, but a cool trail. No legal camping on roads nearby. Lots of private campgrounds along the river though. Can't really recommend this one due to conditions unless you want to explore something pretty wild. Looks like a bunch of trails have appeared on TF on the opposite side of the river.
If you find yourself this far south along the OR coast, definitely drive south to NorCal redwoods. There are a couple really cool rides there and the coast highway from Gold Beach to Brookings is crazy scenic - better than the Big Sur coast IMO and had the best scenery in OR by far. Then take Hwy 199 back to Grants Pass.
- Last Chance Section of Coastal Trail - the original highway gone back to singletrack/doubletrack through some Redwood groves. Steep climb to begin with then very mellow, shaded and scenic. Better TH at the north end but at the south end if highway construction is finished you can skip the climb at the north end. Pretty fast ride.
- Little Bald Hills - climbs up through Redwood park to an open ridgline, Out and back or P2P. I climbed up past the high point and then down. Cool trail with decent views.
- Ossagon Loop - legal riding in Redwoods NP/State Park. Drop down to the beach and then ride below the cliffs. There is a resident herd of elk on the beach. Connect around back to the south trailhead, pick up Streetlow Creek and finish by pedaling a few miles through the Redwood park. Worthwhile loop.
There is no dispersed camping right by the Redwoods. I found a designated dispersed camping site half hour east on 199 at Patrick Creek. I imagine it would be busy on the long weekend. I think everything along the coast would be difficult then. Best to hit that stretch up before or after the long weekend if you can.
If you do this route and end up back at Grant's Pass, Ashland Mtn is definitely the primo ride if you can get a shuttle. 5k descent in 12mi of buff singletrack. In Grant's Pass the Mountain of the Rogue trail system is purpose built MTB trail and pretty fun. Taylor/Briggs is supposed to be fun as well.
As for bike, the Ranger will be fine on almost everything. I was on my Spur for this trip. I'd probably pass on stuff like Black Rock and jumps at Hood River but it will be fine on almost everything else.
Thanks Evdog, moved up our dates and will be missing the holiday shit show. Leaving Thursday!
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All I have to add is that I wouldn't ride syncline now. That is unless you like loose gravely trails, ticks, and a ridiculous amount of poison oak. Place is great in the fall/winter/spring, but not so much this time of year. If you find yourself in the Hood River area let me know, would be happy to give some beta and/or get out on a ride.
I got my worst ever case of poison oak at Syncline one year over New years riding in the snow. At least you can see the PO leaves this time of year. I had no idea. I think I crash landed in a big PO bush....didn't find out what that was til a day or two later. Had to bail on the rest of my trip it was so bad.
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We have sick ticks here in NE so I’m good with them and the PO.Quote:
Originally Posted by s_squatch
I think our float plan is trending towards hitting NoCal and we weren’t really thinking about that in the early planning. The redwood thing is hard to deny, we love bold coastline and riding bikes, so we’ll adjust accordingly.
I’m guessing good beer is easy to find
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As far as I know there’s not many great spots around the “lake” it’s a reservoir so the banks aren’t easy to access the water and watch out for lots of poison oak.Quote:
Originally Posted by muted reborn
You won’t be disappointed by driving 30-60min south along the middle fork, plenty of secret(pun) campgrounds. One of the favorite trails, moon point is out there too.
Long shot here but any Portland mags know any shops that rent decent hitch mount bike racks?
Just got to our rental van and the rack they rented us is a piece of shit.
Edit: we bought a rack at REI, thanks to Thefortrrees for the loaner offer!
Rode Klootchy yesterday, fun network.
Cruising south on the coast today in the rain. Seemed like the thing to do
ATCA stoke
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Gonna be in Government Camp for a week in late july for my SIL's wedding. My wife will be 8months prego at that point and no one else in the wedding party does mtn related things, so ill be riding solo but my prego wife is fine driving shuttles for me. Ill probably ride a day at the skibowl bike park, but i wasnt super stoked on it when i raced a NW cup there a few years back. how are the Timberline trails? Especially the one all the way down to govy? Or is Sandy Ridge a better bet than the T-line trails?
I wont be riding jump trails or anything rowdy due to the timing of the wedding and impending child, so longer backcountry rides could be an option too if they are worth it.
Ill also be in the Eugene area in early july- same situation with prego wife shuttle. Is there a good 2-3 hour oakridge ride that folks can recommend?
See the recent bump in the Hood River thread. Not the best trails in Oregon, but since you're there, the Timberline to Govy to Rhododendron trail is a good shuttle to do. Surveyors ridge can also be shuttled. Sandy Ridge is worth a look too IMO if you still have time to drive out there. Only takes about ~45 minutes to plod your way to the top of the system via a gated paved road. The lift served trails at T-Line are not worth it IMO and i'm not even sure when they open that.
The ATCA pictured above is a great ride. Commercial shuttles available as well if you don't want to beat up your rig and wife.Quote:
Originally Posted by californiagrown
Lawler is one of the closer trails to Eugene, mostly direct shuttle and has a nice creek to hang out at the bottom of the trail. Eula is good too but requires high clearance to reach the trailhead.Quote:
Originally Posted by californiagrown
Larrison Rock is a quick shuttle and faster ride.
Alpine and ACTA is a longer ride and not an easy shuttle. Fun for a half/full day ride if you have time.
Dead Mountain shuttle is easy and the wife can hang in town instead of a side of a highway like Lawler. Loops back to town via bike easy. Trail is great.
I like Larison Rock but that’s not the trail you ride if you can only do one In Oakridge. But it’s a super quick bonus shuttle if you can pull it off.
I think you’re thinking of Hardesty or Eula. Lawler exits at this enjoyable spot.Quote:
Originally Posted by muted reborn
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Ha, yes you are right. I'm thinking of Hardesty on the highway. Lawler ends in a nice place with a stream as you said, some active Barred Owls communicating very loudly (as of last week), and an end section worth hiking/riding back up to session a few times.Quote:
Originally Posted by benk
So, what's your opinion on Hardesty to Eula? Or just Eula in general?
I haven’t ridden Hardesty in years but I remember it being mostly a hikers trail. Eula is very steep in sections and has a fun lower section where you can let off the brakes.Quote:
Originally Posted by muted reborn
You’re right though, the pickups for those shuttles are not ideal
Will be meeting some friends in Oakridge from 8/31- 9/4. Planning as many shuttle laps as we can fit in three full days, and maybe some shorter outings on arrival and departure. Seems like pretty easy logistics all around
But, curious if there’s any noteworthy beta from this current season and this specific time of year? Any trails riding particularly good or bad right now? Anything the shuttle outfits wouldn’t bother to share? Bike related or otherwise…
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I live 45 mins from there. Most noteworthy things happening this year (and generally every August through mid September) are fire related:
-Bedrock Fire has closed the upper portion of Alpine trail, and it’s still possible to do a reduced Alpine shuttle or partial ATCA loop but right now smoke is a persistent issue in Oakridge proper. That may change at the end of August but it’s still too early to predict at this point. There are other trails that you can ride to get away from smoke, it depends on the winds but under prevailing conditions the trails at Hardesty Portal and Moon Point / Upper Middle Fork Timpanogas area could be much better. Smoke may affect McKenzie River area (MRT, Ollalie OLeary, Kings Castle) as well, depends on winds.
-Waldo Lake loop and Bunchgrass are closed for possibly the next 2 years due to Cedar Creek fire damage. There is still riding in that area (Fuji, Twins), but again the warning about smoke applies. Use AirNow, Purple Air, and windy.com to predict how smoke will be blown from Bedrock and any new starts from recent lightning (I’m not aware of any but it’s too early to tell).
-I’m happy to share more beta offline or here as the time gets closer. We usually don’t get our first smoke quashing rain until mid September. It’s impossible to predict this time of year if cool moist marine onshore flow comes in (generally good for clean air) or if the westerlies break down and inversions set up which choke the region (and my house).
-Coastal riding (Whiskey Run, Alsea Falls) is generally a great backup plan if your lodging is flexible. Carpenter Bypass is reasonably close to Oakridge and can offer shorter, but entertaining options if Oakridge is smoky.
Awesome Schralph — super helpful! Will start watching the smoke reports and definitely shoot you a dm closer to trip time if things are looking iffy
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