Each year we ask the people out riding the Oregon Timber Trail (OTT) questions about their experiences and themselves. This data is not only interesting to look at, it’s also great to see the parts of the experience that people highly value and also exposes what we need to improve along the trail. This check-in is quite validating for all of us here at the Oregon Timber Trail Alliance (OTTA), by and large you all have had an excellent experience. It’s good to see you have a sense of humor too—someone suggested a Star Trek transporter for the climbs… don’t hold your breath on that one.

Thank you to the 111 riders who took the survey, we asked a lot of questions and appreciate the time and thoughtfulness you put into your responses. Since responding to each question was voluntary, not everyone answered every question. As you review this summary of the survey, please keep in mind that there may have been more people who did all or some of the OTT that didn’t know about or chose not to respond to the survey. The results that follow are a snapshot, a representative sample of OTT riders in 2019.

The OTTA is a non-profit organization that is partially funded through grants. The information collected in our annual rider survey is used for grant reporting, organizational level planning and prioritization of tasks and so we can learn how best to improve the rider experience and work towards our objectives for 2020-2025 which are: 

1. Provide stewardship of the Oregon Timber Trail by building/maintaining 20 miles of trails annually in partnership with land managers and other trail stewards, and by educating trail users about responsible use and care of the trail. 

2. Engage with land managers and other conservation and recreation groups within each tier to preserve and enhance backcountry singletrack access for cyclists along the Oregon Timber Trail corridor. 

3. Create economic opportunities for rural communities by bringing visitors to and through the Oregon Timber Trail corridor. 

4. Fund a full-time executive director position and associated operational costs to perform programmatic work. 

Overall impression: people are stoked and primarily had positive experiences on the Oregon Timber Trail. 98% of survey takers said they would recommend the OTT to others. Thanks! We also love the OTT and are happy to share; there is plenty to go around. Here is an abridged summary of the responses to the 2019 OTT Rider Survey.

Rider Experience

All kinds of people rode the Oregon Timber Trail in 2019! Riders were primarily from Oregon; the majority from the Portland Metro Area, but with strong representation from Bend as well. Most other riders came from Washington and California and some from the East Coast. Big shout out to our international riders from Switzerland, the Czech Republic, the UK and Canada. Check out this map that shows the riders' home city, state or country.

Riders had a range of experience with cycling from those who have never bike-packed to seasoned veterans of multi-week trips on dirt and singletrack. This makes sense since many riders reported that they experienced the OTT via day trips to trails that fall within the OTT route. Still, bikepacking had the highest showing with a whopping 47 people who reported that they rode multi-day segments and 13 determined individuals who rode the entire route! Well done! 

When embarking on an epic journey like the OTT, it helps to have a point of reference so that one can prepare accordingly (or just know what level of suffering to expect). We asked riders to compare the difficulty of the OTT to both the Arizona Trail and the Colorado Trail; here are their responses:

Riders like to know what type of bike & tires to run for the OTT, which is primarily singletrack and definitely not a Rails to Trails soft ride situation. Here is the type of bike and tires used on the OTT last year: 

It appears that people like to suffer alone on these backpacking adventures: roughly a quarter of the people rode solo and nearly half rode with just one other person. Style of travel was a mixed bag: nearly a third of respondents relied on car camping and day rides. This makes sense as many of the rad segments on the Willamette, Deschutes and Hood Tiers are easily accessed for a lovely weekend of shredding for those who live in Bend, Portland and the cities in the Willamette Valley. Still, a whole slew of you (38%) camped and carried your gear the whole way! Impressive! 

Riders accessed all four Tiers of the OTT with the Willamette and Deschutes Tiers getting more traffic than the Hood or Fremont Tiers. The vast majority of riders plan to return to ride all four of the tiers in the future.

“Most Challenging Part of the Oregon Timber Trail”

“Navigation & logistics and technical trails”

Common themes that emerged from the free response questions regarding challenges were navigation & logistics, timing of the trip and technical level of a trail. One rider mentioned that simply finding the trailhead was a challenge and another elaborated on the challenge of navigation with “disappearing, or unmarked trails that don't seem to be properly routed on Ride with GPS files”. Logistics of riding in a remote location along with the trip timing came up often. One rider commented on the difficulty of “route finding under snow” and pointed out that  - “Trailforks is wrong, wrong, wrong”. Some riders phrased their response with a positive spin; for some the biggest challenge was finding enough time in their life (employment in general or too much work or family obligations) to ride the entire route. Many people brought up the technical level of the trails: Bunchgrass Trail on the Willamette Tier was mentioned most frequently but others noted the steep hike-a-bike sections in the Old Cascade Crest and the fire affected segments in the Fremont. While analyzing the survey responses, it became apparent that oftentimes the most challenging aspect was also the most rewarding aspect of the experience. One rider condensed this idea well: “The goddamn hills. My god....but what a joy”.

“Forces of nature, bikes and people”

Forces of nature like weather and animals along with bike issues and group dynamics were also listed as challenges of the OTT experience. One rider recalled hike-a-bikes in the rain for days on end. Lots of people brought up mosquitos and one rider mentioned that their group quit early because of mosquitos!  Another rider brought up the challenge of getting past a bull on the trail. One rider expressed the challenge and reward of, “keeping a large group with unequal gear and skills together”. A standout response comes from the rider who simply expressed that the primary challenge arose with, “knowing my ride would come to an end”.

“Most Rewarding Part of the Oregon Timber Trail”

A contrasting question about the most rewarding aspect of OTT experience brought up themes that include the fantastic trails of course, but also the overwhelming sense of accomplishment and adventure, the backcountry experience, sense of discovery, connection to Oregon and interacting with people. 

“Accomplishment & Adventure”

The majority of the responses to “What was the most rewarding part of the OTT experience?” was a sense of accomplishment or sense of adventure. One rider recalled, “Hauling ass to get to shelter in Suttle Lodge before a huge storm set in! Then we were able to snag a yurt at the nearby campsite after the big storm passed.” Another wrote: “Finishing it! Did 1/3 last year, and 2/3 this year, and it felt great to dip my tire in the [Columbia] river.”

“Solitude”

The second most popular theme was the solitude experienced in the backcountry. Many people used the words remote and solitude which makes sense since y’all like to ride solo or with one other (which means you really spend most of the day alone). The joy of “Being out for a full day without seeing other people” or “being alone in the wilderness...hard to find these days” was a common refrain.

“Natural environment”

Riders remarked on the nature experience, the word spectacular was used to describe the scenery over a dozen times! One rider remarked that the most rewarding part was, “Time spent outdoors in exceptionally beautiful places.” People brought up wildflowers and wildlife. One rider said the highlight was the flowers and added, “We hit it just right this spring”! Someone wrote about seeing two bears in the Cascades Crest area. One rider wrote that the most rewarding part was, “Seeing a bear, elk, fishing for trout, being alone in the wilderness...hard to find these days”.

“Discovery”

An interesting theme, especially considering that the vast majority of the riders come from Oregon, was the sense of discovery and connection to place. One rider says the most rewarding part was, “Discovering new parts of my home state and the profound sense of adventure”.

“People”

The people, whether riding partners or friendly strangers encountered along the way, were highlights of the OTT experience for many. One rider remarked: “the kindness of strangers - we were offered many free beers”. Even when responding to a question about negative experiences on the OTT, the overwhelming majority of riders noted only positive experiences. 

“If I could do one thing to improve the OTT experience…”

The question about improving the OTT experience brought useful information that will help the OTTA as we grow as an organization. The main areas of focus for improving the OTT experience are navigation & logistics, trail maintenance and ways to improve and hone the community aspect. 

Navigation and Logistics:

In general, people had productive and kind words to say about the work that has gone into the website, online maps, Ride with GPS, etc. and we have work to do in all those areas. One person requested, “More info on logistics like time of year to ride certain sections”. Others asked for information on “sections that are more appropriate for different abilities of riders”. All valid requests as we certainly don’t want to turn off a beginner rider by taking them on a trail like Bunchgrass! But, one area stood out as a needed improvement: signage.  About a dozen people brought up the idea of official OTT route markers; some type of consistent, branded signage to mark the trail, especially at the confusing intersections. One rider said, “Would be awesome to have a little OTT sign just to know you're on track”.  Reminders to provide “trail magic” were appreciated. It’s not out of the question to have a “water stash for the Fremont”! A few people requested more information on loop options—that’s something we’re working on developing.

Trail work suggestions: 

Great minds think alike! Many of the areas that you called out for necessary trail work, such as requests to clear blown down in the Fremont, are already on our events calendar for this year. Remember, all this is tentative and some dates will be rescheduled as we come out of this public health crisis. Take a look at this recent blog post that highlights the grants awarded to fund trail work.  We’re really excited about the Fugrass connector! 

Community building:

One rider put it pretty succinctly in their response to how to improve the OTT experience: “Build community around the experience of riding the trail. Sometimes it was lonely out there”!  A few people brought up the desire to volunteer for trail work, so here is your official invitation to join a trail work party! While some dates will need to be rescheduled, the 2020 work parties are on the events calendar . Come out and get to know other riders and volunteers. We’re also toying with the possibility of hosting an event as a fundraiser for operational stability, stay tuned! One rider pointed out that a way to improve the OTT experience would be to get, “more people interested and invested in long backcountry MTB trips (especially women and POC)”.  Clearly we have our work cut out for us as the OTT riders are primarily men (78%) ranging from age 35 to 54 (60%).

We’re at the beginning of a new season; snow and blow down still covers much of the OTT route, but we're planning and getting ready to ride once we get the all clear from the Forest Service. Are you planning and waiting too? What do you want to know about the OTT riders and their experience on the trail?  Any questions you think need to be added to the survey? We look forward to connecting with you virtually and possibly in real life! Look for the 2020 survey in late fall and please respond, we value your input. 

And some final input that may be relevant to many of us: