West Side Tour - September 27, 2009

Ritner Creek Bridge on Hwy 223

We had a great group of folks along for this ride. Russ riding his Honda Magna, Tollie riding her Kawasaki Vulcan, Greg on his Kawasaki Vulcan Custom, Patrick and Heather riding their Honda Shadow ACE, Jim with his Harley Fat Boy, Larry riding his Yamaha Royal Star Venture, Dan riding his Harley Fat Boy and Kevin riding his Honda Shadow Sabre.

This ride took us through South Salem and on back roads to the Buena Vista Ferry, where we crossed the Willamette River.

West side of Willamette River at boat launch after riding Buena Vista Ferry Ride

From there we headed over to Adair Village, Airlie and Kings Valley.

Rest break at Ritner Creek Bridge off Kings Valley Hwy in Polk County, Oregon

We then followed the Kings Valley Hwy through Dallas, to Perrydale, then Amily and finally Dayton, Oregon. We planned to have lunch in Dayton but the restaurant was closed.

Jim, Larry and Dan decided to head back to Salem so they took Hwy 221 while the rest of us trotted over to McMinnville, Oregon and had lunch at McMenamins Oregon Hotel Rooftop Bar. Not a bad second choice!

After lunch we wandered on back roads that lead us by Brush College and into West Salem.

This trip covered about 125 miles

Here a map of the route we rode:


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Timothy Lake - September 12, 2009

(l-r): Tollie, Russ, Shelbi and Kevin

We had a great ride up to Timothy Lake on a beautiful September day. We took back roads from Stayton, Oregon to Gates, Oregon then just a short ride on Hwy 22 before turning onto Hwy 46. We followed Hwy 46 until we reach Hwy 57 then onto Hwy 58, which went around the north side of Timothy Lake.

We stopped and had lunch at a campground near Little Crater Lake campground then a quick ride on Hwy 26 to top off the fuel tanks before heading down Hwy 42 and back on Hwy 46 to Detroit, Oregon.

The entire ride was over 250 miles and the weather was outstanding.

Lunch break at campground on the east side of Timothy Lake

Lunch break at campground on the east side of Timothy Lake

Map of the route we took:


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Whidbey Island , Washington - August 22-26, 2009

A friend (Patrick) and I spend August 22 - 26, 2009 riding up the coastlines of Oregon and Washington then around Whidbey Island, NW Washington and Orcas Island.

We covered 1,336 miles and enjoyed every minute.

Astoria Column - Astoria, Oregon
Saturday August 22, 2009

The Astoria-Megler Bridge is a continuous truss bridge that spans the mouth of the Columbia River between Astoria, Oregon and Point Ellice near Megler, Washington, in the United States. The span was the last segment of U.S. Route 101 between Olympia, Washington and Los Angeles, California. It is the longest continuous truss bridge in North America.

Saturday August 22, 2009

Lunch stop in South Bend, Washington
August 22, 2009

Waiting for the Pt. Townsend ferry to Whidbey Island
August 22, 2009

Waiting for the Pt. Townsend ferry to Whidbey Island
August 22, 2009

Riding on the Pt. Townsend ferry to Whidbey Island
August 22, 2009

Sunday morning we traveled to Anacortes, Washington and met up with my brother (Mike) and Patrick's brother-in-law (Jesse) for a ride up Chickanut Drive to Bellingham, Washington. We ended our 220 mile ride north of Mukilteo, Washington
Sunday August 23, 2009

In Bellingham we stopped to visit with a friend before heading out to ride around Lake Whatcom.
(l-r): Kevin, Steve, Patrick and Mike - Not pictured was Jesse but someone had to take the photo. Sunday August 23, 2009

Riding the Mukilteo ferry back to Whidbey Island
(l-r); Kevin, Patrick and Jesse
Sunday August 23, 2009

Patrick's mom's house on Whidbey Island

Prepping to ride around the south end of Whidbey Island.
Leslie would be my passenger since Patrick only had his single seat mounted for this trip.
Monday August 24, 2009

Lunch stop in Langley Washington on Whidbey Island
Monday August 24, 2009

Cruising through Langley . It was nice having someone to take photos while we rode.
Monday August 24, 2009

We visited Fort Casey State Park on Whidbey Island.
This is Admiralty Head Lighthouse behind us.
Monday August 24, 2009

Riding north through Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve on Whidbey Island
Monday August 24, 2009

House in Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve

Riding north east in Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve on Whidbey Island
Monday August 24, 2009

Waiting at the Anacortes ferry dock to catch a ferry to the San Juan Islands
Tuesday August 25, 2009

Pulling into Shaw Island to unload some vehicles
Tuesday August 25, 2009

Pulling into Orcas Island, our stop for the day. Yes I know I didn't shave but I was on vacation!
Tuesday August 25, 2009

On the top of Mt. Constitution, inside Moran State Park on Orcas Island,
with Lummi Island in the background.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Patrick at Stone tower on the top of Mt. Constitution
Tuesday August 25, 2009

The road down from Mt. Constitution with the San Juan Islands in the background
Tuesday August 25, 2009

Back entrance to the park - Tuesday August 25, 2009

Olga is located on the south east side of Orcas Island - Tuesday August 25, 2009

Front entrance to the park - Tuesday August 25, 2009

Deer Harbor is located on the south west side of Orcas Island
Tuesday August 25, 2009

Catching the Keystone ferry on Whidbey Island heading to Pt. Townsend.
The start of our trip home to Oregon.
Wednesday August 26, 2009

Taking a lunch break in Raymond, Washington.
That is a mural painted on the building behind us.
Wednesday August 26, 2009

Our final stop in Otis, Oregon for dinner before riding back into the Willamette Valley
Wednesday August 26, 2009

Here a map of the route we took on the Oregon and Washington Coasts:

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Quartzville Road - Oregon - August 9, 2009

This is a route that I've wanted to ride for a long time and I'm not sure why I didn't sooner. One of the nice things about this ride is the roads are very lightly traveled. Most of the route has you following rivers, lakes and creeks. The east end of Quartzville Road turns into one lane and you feel like you are riding on your own personal path.

After Straight Creek Road (Forest Service Road 11) we had a short ride east on Hwy 22 where we then descended back in the valley on Hwy 20, which leads to Sweet Home, Oregon. Funny how many of the rides have us passing through Sweet Home.

There were only four bikes on this ride but after sharing our enjoyment of this ride with others, I know next time we'll have a much larger group.

Dan and his Harley Fat Boy

Greg and his Kawasaki Vulcan

Tollie and her Kawasaki Vulcan

Kevin and his Honda Shadow Sabre

Rest stop before crossing over Quartzville Creek

We watched a family catching some nice trout from these pools.

Quartzville Creek is crystal clear

Rest break on the east ride before dropping onto Hwy 22

Views from our rest stop before Hwy 22

This ride was just over 200 miles

Here is a map of the route:


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