Oregon Coast and the Willamette Valley
Tillamook · McMinnville · Silver Falls State Park · Portland
Przegląd wycieczki
The natural beauty of the Oregon Coast needs no introduction. Formidable cliffs and “sea stack” rock outcroppings rise dramatically from countless miles of tranquil, sandy beaches. Once upon a time (decades ago, before the coast highway got busy with traffic), we ran a lot of bike tours here. And while Oregon has tried very hard to keep the route as pleasant as possible for cyclists, the hard truth is that this scenic road is a motorway first, and a bikeway second. On this tour, we venture to give you the “Oregon Coast Experience” while staying off the busy highway. We connect coastal villages, beaches, and vista points via inland river roads as we explore along the coast before heading inland to the lush Willamette Valley, a homesteader’s paradise, otherwise known as the end of the Oregon Trail. In the mid-19th century, it was the lure of this “Promised Land” that caused nearly a half a million people to risk their lives on a perilous journey, traveling over two thousand miles across the virtual unknowns of wild and rugged North America. Indeed, this one-hundred-mile-long valley of lush oaks, wild berries, hazelnuts, wild game, timber for homes, temperate weather, rivers for travel and crop irrigation, and rich agricultural lands proved to be true. More pioneers decided to settle here than anywhere else in what we now call the Pacific Northwest.
Plan dzień po dniu
Meet in Portland. Shuttle (about 1.5 hours) to begin cycling in Oregon’s Coast Range. Pedal inland valleys along the Nehalem River and a short section of Highway 101 up to the famous Neahkahnie Viewpoint before descending to the tiny, artsy town of Manzanita. Try and spot a snowy plover in Nehalem Bay State Park. Finish at Rockaway Beach – a sleepy coastal hideaway. Take a moment to stroll the open beach and contemplate the rocky sea stacks from your hotel, or check out the town’s Old Growth Nature Preserve, which showcases a 900-year-old western red cedar! Stay tonight at Rockaway Beach Resort.
44 miles · +2,108 ft / -2,280 ft (or less)
