Roadpizza Circumnavigates Oregon

[brian]

1st pic - John Day Fossil Beds National Monument
Many more to come....

[Luxamor]

Looks good so far.
:p

[brian]

John Day Fossil Beds Day one Lap of Oregon

[brian]

South Central Oregon Day two, One lap of Oregon

[brian]

Crater Lake, Day three, One Lap Of Oregon

[brian]

Rogue river this morning

[brian]

Canon Beach

[Roadpizza]

Again Brian I am in your debt for getting these pictures on the site for me....Many thanks!

I am home now after spending most of this week on a one lap tour of Oregon. I put over 1200 miles on the S and I am pretty much spent. I enjoyed the ride and all the various scenery that Oregon has to offer. Central Oregon is much like parts of Nevada and Utah with very little traffic to speak of..
There is a alkaline lake bed that I rode by that looks every bit like the Salt Flats near Salt Lake city, Utah, just not as big in size. A word of warning for anybody planning on riding through the area. That is to make sure you keep the gas tank full, never letting it go down to even half a tank otherwise you may find yourself like me, stranded on the highway out of petrol. It really wasn't my fault but, was due to the fact that the tiny little towns between John Day and Lakeview are not always going to have gasoline, let alone a gas station! I had filled up in John Day and was confident when riding through Burns with over half a tank left that I could fill up at the next town or two. As it so happens the first station I found had no gas and a sign on the road said that the next gas station was 61 miles away. OK, I can do that the S has the mileage left. so off I go. When I arrived at the junction that the road sign back at Riley advertised I was chagrined to find the station abandoned! The only thing left to do was to press on regardless and lay off the throttle. Something that I'll admit I hadn't up till now. So as I was motoring along, trying not to act too worried about my situation...the S quits breathing! So there I am stuck along side of the road, in the middle of bum-F$#% Oregon. I coasted the bike down a opening to a field and prepared for a long walk. As luck would have it, I had gotten no more than 300 feet when a battered old red Ford pick-up pulls over and the driver asked if she could be of help! Thanking my lucky stars I gladly take up the offer. Loretta, the driver, could have not been more friendly and drove me into Lakeview, Oregon nine miles down the road. Nine miles more on the S would have been do-able again, if I had not been so liberal with the right hand earlier. Loretta was kind enough to make the return trip back to my stranded S and after much insisting on my part I was able to pay Loretta for her troubles. Once back on the road I made a personal note to keep the tank as full as possible for the rest of the trip......... this getting long so I'll cut it short for now. Next up, Crater Lake!

[stainman]

Stunning photos Phil. You have had more decent weather in your week than we have had all summer!

[Fleuger99]

Philip, that didn't sound like it was fun!! Good thing someone helped you out!

[SHU]

You must have good karma, Roadpizza. That's a pretty lonely part of the state to be walking in. I find it's the Lorettas of the world that make traveling by bike so interesting. You don't travel in a bubble and you find out how many great people there are out there.

.....................shu

[Roadpizza]

Yep, I was lucky that Loretta chose to head into town that morning to pick up materials for a shed. By the way Shu was my family's original name some five generations ago before they Americanized it to an awkward spelling of "ey" with an added "c". I have no idea what that was all about.

You must have good karma, Road-pizza. That's a pretty lonely part of the state to be walking in. I find it's the Loretta's of the world that make traveling by bike so interesting. You don't travel in a bubble and you find out how many great people there are out there.

.....................shu

[Roadpizza]

The thing that is great about living in my area is that from the time I left my driveway and headed out on I-84 East I was surrounded by natural beauty. The Columbia River and the rocky Gorge walls are by my side all the way to the Biggs turn off. Once on my way towards Condon, Fossil, and the John Day area I enter into drier high desert scenery heavy with the scent of Juniper, sage,and cedar. The John Day Fossil Beds is one of the richest sources Fossils on earth. They are literally finding new species of plant and animal life from as far back as 44 million years ago on a nearly daily basis. Do a search on the area and see what I'm talking about.

I have all ready written a bit about the Central Oregon area of it's vast openness ( loneliness). In contrast to this is the area around Klamath and Crater Lake lakes. There you enter into mountainous terrain and huge pines. I camped along the Klamath Lake and packed early the next morning to head up to Crater Lake Lodge for breakfast and some sightseeing. The temperatures had been near the nineties during the day but, as I was threading my way up to the Lodge I had to avoid patches of black ice and frost as it was freezing in the shadowed areas of the twisty road. Once at the Lodge, I went in and removed most of my gear that I had on and sat down to a grand breakfast of country fried venison and eggs with some of the best coffee I ever had to wash it down.

To see Crater Lake is an experience not to be soon forgotten. The blue of the lake is almost surreal. The air is clean and crisp. The clarity of sight is amazing. And I will add the silence was breathtaking. There was no traffic noise. No airplanes rubbling overhead. No boom boxes, land-mowers, leaf-blowers, or some neighbor's dog yelping in the distance. Just pure unadulterated silence. All adding to the wondrous vista that is Crater Lake.

Next up the Oregon coast and disaster!

[Roadpizza]

The ride will get so much better before it gets so much more worse.

Philip, that didn't sound like it was fun!! Good thing someone helped you out!

[Gus]

Pizza, that last entry sounds 'ominous' but since you are still posting it couldn't have been a total disaster.
For those that have never ridden/driven any of the roads that you are talking about, it's a real treat. They don't call most of Central Oregon High Desert for nothing!

[Roadpizza]

Sorry for the delay....update on the trip will be coming shortly. As to the question of being " ominous".......That would the $6400 question.

[SHU]

'the $6400 question'

Hmmmmm........this is not sounding good.

....shu

[Roadpizza]

I'll have and update and the finish to this adventure shortly.....

[TNT]

I'll have and update and the finish to this adventure shortly.....

Hoping everything is ok to this tale! Richard

[Roadpizza]

I should have an update by Saturday....

[batamali]

You bought a boat?

[Roadpizza]

Nope... but, I had this kind of sinking feeling just the same.

[batamali]

So we have to wait until Saturday...

[Roadpizza]

Sunday is almost Saturday...

Maybe it was the fact that I had covered over 900 miles in a couple days or the fact that I had mistakenly brought my Macbook and was hauling it around in a Chrome currier bag, the result being that it was now feeling like I had a 300 lbs sack of rocks slung over my shoulder. Maybe it was the head cold that had started to develop and continued for the next two weeks after the trip. Maybe I should have checked my Horoscope and after reading it, would have been warned to stay put till the stars and planets moved into a more favorable position. Maybe I should a have Yinged when I yanged.........

Having had my breakfast at the Crater Lake lodge I began working my way down highway 62 pulling over from time to time to enjoy the sites and the beginnings of the Rogue river. Near Medford I had to decide either to turn left and spend sometime in Ashland, home of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival or find a route to the coast and the Pacific Ocean. I decided to turn right and work my way up along the famed Oregon coast line. North of Medford I pulled off of I-5 at Sunny Valley (sounded good enough). Looking over my tattered map ( I am horrible to maps) I had decided to try a road that haphazardly followed the ever enlarging Rogue to it's path to the Pacific. It was early afternoon and the sky, for once was not covered in Chemtrails. Some five miles in I stopped a female Mail-person and asked about the route I was on. She replied that the locals take the road to the coast but, cautioned that the road turns to single lane from time to time. She also reassured me that it was paved all the way. Satisfied that I had a nice ride ahead , beautiful weather and a wonderful bike to enjoy it all ( in-spite of the heavy load on my shoulder), I continued on my way. The road was narrow and tree lined with the sun shining through the trees. Beautiful. While making my way around one of many increasing radius turns, I caught some loose gravel. This alone would not spelt instant disaster but, I was caught off guard and for an instant froze long enough for the rear tire to find it's way to the edge of the road and into the bar ditch next to the road, taking the rest of the bike and the still dazed me with it.

After a short but, rather strong verbal assessment of my family's origins and my lowly status in the Cosmos. I recovered and flipping up the lid on my helmet began to survey the situation. Not good. My F800S was laying down on it's side at a 45 degree list. The Factory hard bag was three feet behind the bike. I lifted the injured BMW and held it there to see the extent of damage. One of the first things I noted was the left front and rear turn signals dingle- dangling from their respective electrical entrails. There was a heavy coating of bar ditch dust everywhere. After noting road rash on the body panels and the clutch level, ect, I began to look for engine damage. In short order, I returned the left hard bag back to it's place and oddly found that it fit better then before the trip into the ditch. After checking to see that there was no sign of fluid leakage, I started the bike up and did the only thing for me to do on a lonely stretch road such as this. I rode it forty-some feet through the bar ditch and up on to the road where it began to turn back into a tight right hander and the ditch was only a foot high at that point.....................................

[kzrxzs]

My F800S was laying down on it's side at a 45 degree list. The Factory hard bag was three feet behind the bike. I lifted the injured BMW and held it there to see the extent of damage. One of the first things I noted was the left front and rear turn signals dingle- dangling from their respective electrical entrails. There was a heavy coating of bar ditch dust everywhere.

Sorry to hear that, so I want to cheer you up:
1. You were not hurt (As we say here, if its only money, its nothing)
2. Had a beautiful trip, anyone of us would like to have.

Take care and thanks for beautiful photos.

[Roadpizza]

Thanks kzrxzs. Your right of course. The fact of the matter was, after getting the bike back up on to the road I was in fairly good spirits and continued to the coast. With the turn indicators flapping in the breeze........

[Roadpizza]

I am proud to announce that the ride to circumnavigate Oregon has come....well ...full circle.
I got off work at noon today and had my wife take me to Portland Motorcycle to pick up the bike and return it home, safely tucked in the garage; Thereby, completing the ride.

The ride through the Gorge was a bit cold, dark and wet. With plenty of Washington missed* and temperatures in the mid-forties. The F800S looks and runs great! It's good to have both of us home.




*Rain that missed Washington and hit Oregon.

[batamali]

I praise the experience you shared with us.

Glad you were not hurt, and your bike suffered just a minor damage (seems like from your post).

Thanks for sharing!

[Roadpizza]

Thanks Sasha. As a footnote on the ride from Portland to home I was wearing , for the first time, my newly purchased Gering electric vest. Why o why I have been riding in the cold without this little marvel I'll never know......nice, lovely heat around the neck and torso. AHhhhh....

[Roadpizza]

I thought I'd bump this up as a reminiscing of a long ago ride....

[ccramerusc]

That's funny. I bought my Gerbing heated jacket about 5 years ago and made the same exact comments. I've become such a spoiled brat that I now wear it anytime it's under 60 degrees.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using Tapatalk

[notacop]

A blast from the past. Very nice pictures. Been through Lakeview, found a decent place to eat there.
And yes, Central and Eastern Oregon is a vast foreboding looking bit of earth. Like in Baja, never pass up a gas station.