Oregon

We enter Oregon and the scenery changes again, we travel over large plains and past stunning lakes….…I go down for a closer look and get stuck in the soft muddy sand, with a little heaving we get the rear tyre free and are off again…peace returns to the guys trying to have a quiet days fishing:-)we met our first real Cowboys, these guys (and Girl) look after around 1200 cattle on this 70,000 acres ranch, very cool.

The wet zone

We start to climb from the plains as we head for the mountains,  as we cross the range things get much greener….…..great trails cut through the forest as we head for the John Day, camping on a RV park in centre of town.…..we eventually left John Day and were back on the the trails quickly, rain was forecast and did not disappoint….……no sooner had we found the trails than the temperature dropped and the rain began to come in hard, we stopped to zip up our KLIM and (Me) add some layers and we were off again….…the rain persisted for some time, but not like the UK when it rains for days……at first the trails were the usual grey gravel (not nice) but the rest ranged from fast trails, deep forest sections with sand and lots of fallen trees, most had already been cleared after the storm, 345 miles into the Oregon TAT and no trails have been “closed impassable” yet.

An impressive site all the same when a big one is down.As we head towards Prineville we spot these dudes…arriving in Prineville an hour before dark….we stay at the Bellavista Bed and Breakfast…a nice place to stay with great hosts..We head off next morning and stop at a Lakeside cafe in East Lake and are treated to coffee and cakes by some local bikers…..nice touch… “Be safe” they say sincerely with a big hug……nice people.We make our way around the Lake travelling the short distance to Lake Paulina on their recommendation and make camp early that day..Paulina Lake is one of the twin crater lakes in Newberry Crater, central Oregon, It is located 6,331 feet above sea level in the Deschutes National Forest.…basically a water filled Volcano and very nice too, with good camping around the deep lake,  although clouds are looming again.Gary borrows an axe and we make a fire as the temperature drops,  It rains hard in the night but our little MSR tents keep the rain out and are warm, we pack them away wet, just have no choice.

The end is near

We are getting close to the end of the TAT now  and push on and cover a good distance.

Even with off road tyres fitted the Husky 701 is a not bad road bike, pushing on around the perfect surface, bend after bend, the river to our left as we decend at a good speed.. 

It is so stunning here, Gary suggests we find a base and we are soon in the Susan Creek camp site… ….this is about 50 miles short of where we wanted to be, but hey we can catch that up tomorrow…
I am awaken to the sound of the early Rolling Stones album Gary had playing the night before, followed by Brian Adams…not a bad start to the day even if a little loud for our neighbours! Well nobody complained anyway!We packed up after an odd breakfast to use up some of the food we had, pasta, bacon, corn and the donated egg!

Leaveing a little late again and we are off on the road into a town called Riddle, we are there in good time and have a Fuel/Mac stop which gives me a chance to catch up on emails and have a coffee.

Its good to be back on the TAT after some road work, the trails vary but are so much better than being on the pavement or in traffic….however some of Sam’s instructions are way off and we waste time finding the correct route, then a fallen tree then lost again…GrrrrrrThe SAT NAV suggests a 110 mile bail out route via Portland but we really want to finish the TAT properly, even if the instructions are not that good.
We finally find the right trail and head for the last mountain range, its about 30 miles, the light is fading fast, we climb towards the summit and just for fun I put Port Alford into the SATNAV…..well blow me its has found the shortest route over the mountains, just  22 miles it says…I am elated and we press on at speed.

At the top you can see right across to the West, beyond the last range there is nothing, I think I can really see the sea….….but its only clouds darn it, but we know we are close now.

We make it off the mountain late and put up our tents by the bike headlamps as its dark.  but what an achievement!

Next morning we arrive at the coast and head for the beach…but not before a excellent Breakfast an the nearby diner.

then down the well known slip road…

Video here….

It takes some effort in the deep sand but we make it out with clutch intact.So thats it, TAT completed, its been an amazing experiance and we clock up 7,000 miles before we head north to Vancouver…we have taken just under 6 weeks got through 1.5 back tyres and the front tyre is looking very thin on Gary’s bike. 

What would you change on the TAT then?

Not much actually, bring less weight and now the SAT NAV maps have been reduced in price i would buy those instead of the paper maps, maybe more time (but you will never have enough)

Our Bikes have proved an excellent choice… and Irene has saved me on many occasions when I would have been off on lesser bikes, the chassis, suspension and low centre of gravity makes the bike great off road and not too shabby on paved roads:-)

We have had great experiances right across the country, so random and unexpected, the scenery and National Parks are stunning and we have met great people in every State…..Good times…..once again thank you America!