McKenzie Pass

Sorry for the delay in getting this post finished up, video takes a lot of time to process.

 Dave, Joe, and I took advantage of the weather forecast (possible rain showers on Saturday but sunny and dry today) and favorable work schedules (It's Friday, some are stuck at work) and one lane plowed through the 20ft drifts to ride McKenzie Pass today.

 We started at 6AM today for our 144 mile automobile commute to the Blue River Ranger Station where we parked Joe's van and hopped on the bikes.

We had a few miles of relatively flat riding before beginning the climb up "Dead Horse Grade", a sinuous roadway that climbs over 1200 ft in less than 4 miles.

 

    

As we made our way up the hill we chatted about how nice it was to have no cars and the road to ourselves.  We wondered if the recent designation as a scenic bikeway had anything to do with the early opening only for bikes and pedestrians the last few years. Whatever the reason, it sure made for a nice day.

  

 Once we passed the snow gate we had the road to ourselves.

We continued to climb after the snow gate. As we climbed high enough to have snow covering the ground we'd note cold rivers of air flowing down the side canyons.  The ambient air was so mild that this cold air was quite noticeable, and was even visible at times.

It was a nice day for pedaling up a hill, and the company made it seem easy.  We would be climbing almost 4000 ft to reach the summit, and we were reminded of our vertical progress from time to time. We saw signs for 2000, 3000, 4000, and 5000 ft.

It flattens out a bit near the top and we eventually crossed the Cascade Crest at over 5300ft elevation.

The road has been open to bikes and pedestrians since May 1st but there is less snow this year than I've seen in any of the last 5 years in May. It looks like ODOT could open the  road with very little work if they so choose.

We rolled down the eastern slope and rode into Sisters where there was a nice view of the Three Sisters.

We took the opportunity while there to refill water bottles and grab a bite to eat.

We didn't dally long, as I have a long drive yet today. (It will be a 500 mile automobile day plus a 78 mile biking day for me!)


Following our lunch stop we made our way up the 2000 ft in elevation back toward the summit.

At the summit we stopped briefly to put some warmer clothes on for the descent.

We dropped just a bit in elevation then rode along a  relatively flat section before dropping over the edge of Dead Horse Grade.

Here's Joe pedaling westward


Here's Dave pedaling along




It is a fun run down Dead Horse Grade. There was just a bit of winter debris still on the road so judicious use of brakes was wise. We regrouped at the western snow gate.



Below the snow gate there is still plenty of fun descending. The only difference is now we share the road with a few cars.


It was a fun ride!

We rolled back into the Blue River Ranger Station and loaded up the bikes. It had been a great day on the bikes.

What better way to wrap it up than with a stop for burgers and beer!

It was a perfect day.

With the two mile commute to meet Joe, it ended up being 80 glorious miles.

And as added bonus, here's what it looks like when ODOT plows the road:



..............road bike.......rollers.........mtb.....lifecycle.....total Today...............80.............0..............0..........0..............80 Jan..................93..............0...............0.........0..............93 Feb................411..............0..............0.........0............411 March.............653.............0..............0.........0............653 April..............696..............0...............0.........0............696 May...............357...............0...............0.........0.............357 Total...........2213.............0...............0..........0.............2213