Mike Murray
A better route that avoids going over the Bridge of the Gods, HWY-14 (not so
good for bikes) and Hood River bridge is:
- Ride the Scenic Highway until after Dodson, as far as you can,
then a brief stretch on I-84
- Ride the surface roads through Cascade Locks and on to Frontage
Road to the south of I-84
- Turn on Wyeth Road and go over a large and steep hill
- Get back on I-84 for a brief bit to Hood River
The parts on the I-84 shoulder are pretty short. The only really dicey bit
there is riding through the tunnel just before Cascade Locks which is not so
bad as it is short and downhill. You can also get off at Eagle Creek and
ride a bike path into Cascade Locks.
Mike Murray
From: obra-bounces@list.obra.org [mailto:obra-bounces@list.obra.org] On
Behalf Of Aaron Leritz
Sent: Friday, April 15, 2011 10:33 AM
To: 'Martin Baker'; 'OBRA list'
Subject: Re: [OBRA Chat] Route to Hood River
My consider one more option.
Oregon side to Mult. Falls, various side roads/paths along I-84 to Cascade
Locks (with one very short ¼ mile I-84 stretch). Cross at Bridge of the Gods
to WA and ride the HWY-14 side to Hood River Bridge (I guess local hitchhike
across the bridge). The Cascade Locks to Hood River section of HWY-14 is
much more bike friendly than Camas to Bridge of the Gods section.
From: obra-bounces@list.obra.org [mailto:obra-bounces@list.obra.org] On
Behalf Of Martin Baker
Sent: Friday, April 15, 2011 10:04 AM
To: OBRA list
Subject: Re: [OBRA Chat] Route to Hood River
Several people asked me to provide them with what I learned, so I thought I
would summarize and put it out to everyone.
It seems that there are four basic options:
1. Hwy 26 out to Government Camp to hwy 35 north to Hood River. 125 miles
from my house, currently snowy. I've driven this route many times and it
just doesn't seem fun on a bike. Too much traffic moving too fast. Plus,
it's a bit too long for what I have in mind.
2. Marine Drive to Troutdale to Historic Highway. This option would be cool
if you could avoid long stretches riding on I84, which I'm not going to do.
I might ride out past Multnomah Falls and have my wife pick me up and drive
the rest of the way. It's kinda short doing that, though and the ride won't
end at a brewery (Rule of Long Rides, paragraph 1, section 1).
3. Marine Drive to I205 to WA 14 out to Hood River bridge. Might be a decent
option, but I've driven 14 once and I remember quite a bit of fast traffic
and narrow shoulders - kinda like taking hwy 6 to the coast (I'll never do
that again *shudder*). If I'm wrong about this, someone let me know.
4. Marine Drive to Troutdale to various back roads to Lolo Pass Road. This
would be by far the best option if it wasn't under many feet of snow. Looks
like it's a little under 100 miles from my house. There is 5 miles of gravel
at the top of the pass but I guess it's passable on a road bike with burly
tires. I plan to do this some day but it will probably be another month
until it's passable.
So there you have it. Basically the options are limited, particularly at
this time of year.
mb
On Wed, Apr 13, 2011 at 9:03 AM, Martin Baker wrote:
I'm thinking of riding to Hood River on Saturday. Can anyone suggest a fun
route from Hillsboro that's passable this time of year. Since I'll be riding
alone, keeping it relatively close to civilization would keep the family
happy. Thanks!
Martin