Squiddly Van Dickweed

I get very antsy this time of year. The impending doom of winter and the wet season sends me in to a frenzy of outdoor activity. Like a vacuum, I try to suck up every last ray of sunshine and every opportunity to straddle a motorcycle before the rain and cold exile me from my bikes.


Sunday, October 19th. It’s cold and foggy in the morning, but by 11:00am, the sun is out and my GSXR’s calling. I scan the web looking for a group ride…Lee650 posts up, looks like an Eastside ride. I meet at Starbucks…the pre-ride BS-ing in sues. Finally we’re off. I split From Lee and Grant when we reach Corbett; they wanted to stay west of the Cascades, while I wanted to ride out east of the mountains. I had no plan…I’d just make it up as I went along. As soon as I hit I-84 east, I hooked up with an innocent looking minivan and we proceed to gobble up the miles to Hood River. The fall colors are coming in and the air is crisp. By the time I hit Hood River I started to form a rough draft of my route…I peel off the freeway at Mosier. I decided to head up and over Seven Mile Hill, the back way in to The Dalles.

The Dalles below…looking east.


I grab some fuel and some old school fast food at Taco Time (guilty pleasure).



The Gixxer waits patiently…


There is a maze of roads just east of Hwy 197 (197 south, out of The Dalles) that I plan to explore…Eight Mile Creek and Fifteen Mile Creek roads take me past the village of Fairbanks and deep in to wheat country. The road follows the canyons south until you pop back out on 197. Fifteen Mile Creek would make a great loop in to Dufur…IF IT WAS F-ING PAVED ALL THE WAY, instead, it just was opportunity to snap a couple of pics.

Buzz kill.



Wheat Country, with Mt Adams to the north.



Backtracking, I make my way back to Hwy 197 south.

From Tygh Ridge summit on Hwy 197 looking back toward The Dalles and Mt Adams.



Mt Hood’s east flank.



My Gix and the Horizon…



I continue south on 197 to Tygh Valley, then go east on Hwy 216 toward Sherars Bridge and the Deschutes River. I wanted to snap a few pics of the river, and run back up the canyon to the high platue of eastern Oregon.

The Deschutes River at Sherars Bridge.





One cool road…



Natural selection opportunities lurk around every corner…



They don’t build them the way they used too.





I turn back to the west at about 4 pm and roll back through the wheat country chasing the late afternoon sun. I get fuel in Tygh Valley and then decide to brave the chilly mountain pass on my way back to civilization. Hwy 216 (heading west now) eventually turns in to Wamic Market road and then to FR 48 as it makes its way through the Cascades.

The sunshine and 65 degrees of an hour earlier has turned in to high clouds and the low 50’s. It’s cold…but the bike runs good on this diet of cool mountain air. On the 48 road I start dicing it up with a guy in a well used Volvo 850 sedan. For what ever reason this dude seemed hell bent to be the first one through mountains, so I let him run blocker (for deer and such) until the road turned curvy and I could hold back no more. I’ll give the guy (and his Swedish beater) some credit, he had that Volvo up to 115 mph on one of the straits…I just laughed in my helmet. I soon was out of site and at the mercy of the deer.

It was still 52 degrees in Government Camp, but with the fading light, it felt 10 degrees cooler.

Heading down the pass on Hwy 26.





The “Fines Double in this Safety Corridor” signs cooled me out for the rest of the ride back in to Gresham.

Totals:
260 miles. No tickets, no drama. Soul recharged for another week…

See you on the roads.

SVD.

SNDSLGR

Looks like a damn fine day, thanks for sharing

FZ6Rider

Looks like you had fun day and many miles.
Nice write up - Thanks for sharing.

fijiman

Ah, wish I could have gone on that ride, but it was posted too late...oh bummer! I would have followed you so you did not have to entertain yourself with the cagers!
Nice write-up…and some awesome pictures…

ninjarider

great pictures and write up. sounds like you had a good time.

Bing44

Why you are just a picture taking fool aren't you? lol Great report and great pictures. I love that country, since I was born in Pendleton.

howl

really rad looking pix. thank you for sharing them; if only this weekend is as nice...

MMAGuy1970

Nice write up and thanks for the pics! The colors are out that’s for certain.

I did a very similar route a few months go after my curiosity got the best of me. Same pissed moment when I came to the gravel SE of 197 (there’s got to be a way through, just need to talk to the locals), enjoyed the seas of wheat fields (esp. when the wind was kick’n) and roll’n into Maupin via BLM Access Rd.

OneTrack

Good stuff, squiddly.

JesseJ

lOOKS LIKE A KILL TIME, THANKS FOR THE PICS.

CopperSV1

Thanks for taking us along!

Nicegy525

dickweed! :

ajs_or

that bike is gorgeous. thanks for sharing.

ZrexRich

Nice report and pic's

Oly ZX

Great Pics and write up. Thanks.

ApexGirl

Really enjoyed the pictures and write up. Almost felt like I was along for the ride.
Glad you were able to get another nice ride in before the rain.

So many roads so little time.

SpeedGeek

Squiddly... nice write up! Hopefully I'll be able to get in one more ride like yours before the rain sets in for good, and the mountain roads go in to hibernation til spring.

Jersey John

Great RR. Appreciate the pictures and taking us along. I gotta get out there for a ride.

Ordrock

Very cool write up and awesome pictures. It's fun sometimes to just make it up as you go along the road. I live out on the east side and ride those lonely road by myself some times too. Every once in a while I'll get the chick to ride with me.

You know when your out there riding you become ageless and the freedom is real. It's almost sad when you think that others aren't seeing what your seeing and they're missing something special.

Keep riding and reporting back those wonderful finds out there on the road.

Squiddly Van Dickweed

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