The weather pattern for the last few days has been low cloud in the early morning that burns off to provide brilliant sunshine, today was no exception as we stepped out for breakfast in Morton.
Our route down Highway 25 is through the Gifford Pinchot forest with Mount St Helens in the background, this forest at over 1.3 million acres is huge.
Mount St Helens is now a National Volcanic Monument & although the eruption took place in 1980 the changes to the landscape are still very evident, Spirit Lake rose 200ft due to the resultant landslides with the trunks of trees washed into the lake still evident 34 years later.
At Windy Ridge viewpoint it's possible to see the point of the eruption & the lava flow route denuded of trees.
To reach this point it's 430 steps but as you can see John & I made it without breaking into a sweat!
The forest provides some great roads which continue to the border with Oregon.
Just before the state line John gets a flat front tire & does well to stay upright, we change the tube by the side of the road & there appears to be a small strand of metal inside the tyre as it is too thin to have penetrated the tyre itself.
The crossing into Oregon is at the Hood River Bridge one of our favourite metal deck designs, It's a toll bridge & John asks the booth attendant to pay him rather than the other way round.
The bridge crosses the Columbia River which is like a wind tunnel from the Pacific Ocean, the wind & kite surfers love it.
We stop to decide how much further to go before stopping for the night when Vernon pulls up on his Triumph Scrambler outfit, he offers us a Teepee in his garden & a cold beer, how can we refuse.
Vernon used to run sidecar tours here with KLR outfits & his wife Amy is used to strangers being brought home, we have a great evening.
We all go out for a Pizza & on the way back it's a great sunset, unfortunately my camera was back at the teepee but John gets a shot of Mount Adams.
Vernon works out a route for us to the coast & we leave on another glorious day, Mount Adams is now clear in the distance.
This area of Oregon around Hood River is fruit growing country, these cherries look fantastic.
The farm houses also look like classic USA, 'Dutch Barn' style with rolling hills, meadows, fruit trees & grape vines.
Today the route is through Mount Hood National Forest another 1.07 million acres, Vernon's route is great & we virtually have it to ourselves, one off-road section turns out to be a dead end, it was probably a mistake on the GPS but it gave us a picture opportunity with Mount Hood in the background.
We stop for something to eat at Detroit Lake which just happens to be the most visited lake in Oregon, it was pretty quiet when we were there but we are told it's rammed at the weekends.
We try to bypass Salem but get a little lost, after a quick re-route we still catch the tiny Wheatland ferry which was on our original route.
Arrival in Lincoln City on the Pacific coast is around 6.30pm & after something to eat the sun is going down, some children play in the twilight around a camp-fire on the beach with the normal Pacific breakers.
The sunset is not a touch on the previous night but we manage to get a couple of shots, there is a cool wind hear which is refreshing after the inland heat.
Our route down Highway 25 is through the Gifford Pinchot forest with Mount St Helens in the background, this forest at over 1.3 million acres is huge.
Mount St Helens is now a National Volcanic Monument & although the eruption took place in 1980 the changes to the landscape are still very evident, Spirit Lake rose 200ft due to the resultant landslides with the trunks of trees washed into the lake still evident 34 years later.
At Windy Ridge viewpoint it's possible to see the point of the eruption & the lava flow route denuded of trees.
To reach this point it's 430 steps but as you can see John & I made it without breaking into a sweat!
The forest provides some great roads which continue to the border with Oregon.
Just before the state line John gets a flat front tire & does well to stay upright, we change the tube by the side of the road & there appears to be a small strand of metal inside the tyre as it is too thin to have penetrated the tyre itself.
The crossing into Oregon is at the Hood River Bridge one of our favourite metal deck designs, It's a toll bridge & John asks the booth attendant to pay him rather than the other way round.
The bridge crosses the Columbia River which is like a wind tunnel from the Pacific Ocean, the wind & kite surfers love it.
We stop to decide how much further to go before stopping for the night when Vernon pulls up on his Triumph Scrambler outfit, he offers us a Teepee in his garden & a cold beer, how can we refuse.
Vernon used to run sidecar tours here with KLR outfits & his wife Amy is used to strangers being brought home, we have a great evening.
We all go out for a Pizza & on the way back it's a great sunset, unfortunately my camera was back at the teepee but John gets a shot of Mount Adams.
Vernon works out a route for us to the coast & we leave on another glorious day, Mount Adams is now clear in the distance.
This area of Oregon around Hood River is fruit growing country, these cherries look fantastic.
The farm houses also look like classic USA, 'Dutch Barn' style with rolling hills, meadows, fruit trees & grape vines.
Today the route is through Mount Hood National Forest another 1.07 million acres, Vernon's route is great & we virtually have it to ourselves, one off-road section turns out to be a dead end, it was probably a mistake on the GPS but it gave us a picture opportunity with Mount Hood in the background.
We stop for something to eat at Detroit Lake which just happens to be the most visited lake in Oregon, it was pretty quiet when we were there but we are told it's rammed at the weekends.
We try to bypass Salem but get a little lost, after a quick re-route we still catch the tiny Wheatland ferry which was on our original route.
Arrival in Lincoln City on the Pacific coast is around 6.30pm & after something to eat the sun is going down, some children play in the twilight around a camp-fire on the beach with the normal Pacific breakers.
The sunset is not a touch on the previous night but we manage to get a couple of shots, there is a cool wind hear which is refreshing after the inland heat.
Luck ol'John to get the first puncture, and also not raining when you had to fix it. Let's hope it's the only one you get.
ReplyDeleteA man told me the best Cherries ever are a white variety from Washington, look out for them.
Keep the photo's coming.
Bob
Doubt you'll see this some 2 years later, but I'll try anyway! It was with great delight that my husband and I read your post. We live in Longview, WA, just down the road from Mt. St. Helens. My husband also rides a bike while I ride along, camera at the ready. Intrigued, we are going to check out a trip along Route 25 for late Spring, as the Rainy season has just set in - the price for all the glorious green here year round.
ReplyDeleteAs is so often the case in life, in our hurry to "hit the highwa", we so often forget what beauty is to behold in our own backyard. That is not to say that we haven't done our share of trips locally. However, we tend to go on the same jaunts, using different routes, as well as the Favs of friends. Variations on a theme, as it were.
Would love to know the specifics of the "unplanned" route your friend, Vernon, laid out for you! As I have previously been happy to just "be along for the ride", I am now convinced that putting my 2 cents in would not be without merit! While our trips are planned with a destination in mind, as "bikers" we all know that it's the journey, and the sites along the way, that provide the real high! We truly live in God's country up here, and it's always a blessing when we have an opportunity to explore!
Thanks again for your post. If you receive this we would love to have links to any other trips you have made. My email is: polarizedfemme@gmail.com or my husband dvaldezlv1@yahoo.com.
Doubt you'll see this some 2 years later, but I'll try anyway! It was with great delight that my husband and I read your post. We live in Longview, WA, just down the road from Mt. St. Helens. My husband also rides a bike while I ride along, camera at the ready. Intrigued, we are going to check out a trip along Route 25 for late Spring, as the Rainy season has just set in - the price for all the glorious green here year round.
ReplyDeleteAs is so often the case in life, in our hurry to "hit the highwa", we so often forget what beauty is to behold in our own backyard. That is not to say that we haven't done our share of trips locally. However, we tend to go on the same jaunts, using different routes, as well as the Favs of friends. Variations on a theme, as it were.
Would love to know the specifics of the "unplanned" route your friend, Vernon, laid out for you! As I have previously been happy to just "be along for the ride", I am now convinced that putting my 2 cents in would not be without merit! While our trips are planned with a destination in mind, as "bikers" we all know that it's the journey, and the sites along the way, that provide the real high! We truly live in God's country up here, and it's always a blessing when we have an opportunity to explore!
Thanks again for your post. If you receive this we would love to have links to any other trips you have made. My email is: polarizedfemme@gmail.com or my husband dvaldezlv1@yahoo.com.