We’ve left the ocean behind, but the ride is still dominated by water. Yesterday we followed the Siuslaw River up the Coast Range and descended into the Willamette Valley.
Today, after a ride through southern Eugene and the University of Oregon area – mostly along Eugene’s extensive bicycle path network—Bruce and I briefly joined the Willamette River itself as it entered Eugene east of the campus.
After meeting Ellen and Toni for a pit stop in Springfield, Bruce and I headed out Camp Creek Road, a quiet road that wound through small farms and forests along, not Camp Creek, as I would have expected, but the McKenzie River.
Camp Creek Road
McKenzie River on Camp Creek Road
The McKenzie is a tributary of the Willamette that runs down from the Cascade Mountains to the east, and it accompanied us the rest of the day.
Camp Creek Road eventually joined Highway 126, the main road between Bend, Oregon and Eugene. For the first 20 miles, riding along 126 was a bit stressful. Narrow shoulders, combined with logging trucks and other big rigs passing at high speed, left me vigilant for places to escape as needed. Bruce and Ellen opted to avoid the stress, but the river kept me company.
McKenzie River near Blue RIver, OR
At Nimrod (yes, Nimrod), not so much a town as a small collection of houses and a fire station, we stopped for lunch with Bruce and Ellen. We loved their help launching our adventure, especially the excellent meals we had at their house in Northern California before we started and a very special meal of fresh, line-caught Chinook Salmon at their friend’s condo in Eugene last night. But it was time for them to return to their daily obligations, and after lunch, they turned back to Eugene as Toni and I continued east.
The road improved after lunch with wider shoulders, and at one point I enjoyed a scenic bypass, which followed the river and had virtually no traffic. Toni took the same bypass in the RV, and we met and took advantage of the spectacular photo ops.
Scenic Bypass
McKenzie River from Scenic Bypass
We even passed a covered bridge over the McKenzie.
The day’s ride had been lightly rolling, though overall gently uphill as we followed the river into the Cascade Mountains. Shortly after the scenic bypass, the road began to climb more noticeably. But before I had time to feel tired, I arrived at the Belknap Hot Springs Lodge and Garden, a beautiful, quiet campground, where we are now spending our first night of the trip in the RV.
From the exceptional meals provided by Bruce and Ellen we switched to macaroni and cheese from a box, but it fulfilled the need to replace calories I burned during the day. And the setting can’t be beat: sunny skies under tall fir trees, and the McKenzie River cascading down the mountain a few dozen feet beyond our campsite.
The technical stuff:
66.2 miles
2,283 feet of elevation
Average speed 15.4 mph
Weather: bright sunshine all day; low 40s to start and high 60s at the end of the day. Winds light and variable and more helpful than not