This past weekend saw the first invitational ride event of the season. An eager group of seven of us gathered at noon at the Deschutes River Trail. Oregon Timber Trail board member extraordinaire Chip Andrus was kind enough to conceptualize and host this event. Originally we had planned to ride as a group of fifteen a week earlier, but Chip has smartly rescheduled for two dry weekends and we self-selected our new groups based on which weekend we had free. We rode 11 miles of lovely scenic rail trail. Chip stopped and told us stories of the history of the two competing railroads and how In 1909, two railroad barons, James J. Hill, and E.H. Harriman started building railroads on both sides of the Deschutes River from the mouth of the Columbia. Their crews raced against each other building track, using dynamite to sabotage each other's construction. Today, an active railroad still runs on the west side of the river while on the east side, the land has been transformed into the Railbed Trail.

We set up camp and Tracy started a “home tour” by sharing about her tent and sleep setup. We took turns sharing the highlights of our setups and why we thought they worked well for bikepacking. We all decided to ride a bit more before dinner, heading toward the south end of the trail. We rode the rough track for an hour before deciding we had enough and it was time to head back to camp for the evening. I was reminded that tour leaders need to remember to eat too, since I ran out of calories at the one-hour mark. Back at camp, we gathered around the fire pit and lit stoves, and chatted about our dinner choices. Chip took the opportunity to share his first aid and tool kits. Everyone was curious and shared their knowledge freely. We talked about repair kits, mini tools, spare chain links, and things that might keep our wheels rolling in the event of a mechanical away from the trailhead. We were all tired and joked about thru-hiker midnight being 9:30 as we all turned in early. A 2 am train reminded us that the railway on the far side of the Deschutes is still fully operational. Maybe a note for next weekend’s group: bring earplugs. Sound echoes off those canyon walls and sounds like that train is running right through camp.

Camp was buzzing by 6:30 am and we fired up stoves and made coffee and breakfast. We all shared our theories for what made the best camp coffee. Personally, I’m sticking with my Anthony’s instant mixed with a spoon of hot chocolate and some coconut powder. We packed up camp and decided to try our luck climbing an old jeep track that Chip had spotted. The group enthusiasm for the adventure was mixed, so we decided to ride a bit and see how it went. In my mind it was perfect bikepacking practice, since the riding was non technical, there was no way to get lost, and we only had packed for one night, so our loads were reasonable. I got to the first stopping point that had a bit of an outcropping and waited for the group. We stopped plenty and kept asking if we should keep going. It was the classic baby steps exploration…just a little further…I wonder what happens after that gnarly tree that’s blocking the track. At some point we ran out of trail and explored the meadow, wondering what it would take to hike out to Erskine or Gordon Ridge Road. Having our fill of exploration and feeling the pull of domestic Sunday afternoons we pointed our rigs downhill and sent the descent. Too much fun!

We regrouped and pedaled back towards the parking lot with a quick stop for an impromptu flat fixing clinic. With Tracy and Mark puncturing at the same time, we had the opportunity to try both Dynaplug and bacon strip style plugs as well as a CO2 cartridge top-off. We marveled at how the weekend so many opportunities to learn. At this point on day two, the group was well bonded and we rode and chatted easily for the remainder of the trail. The sun even broke through as we rejoined the day hikers near the trailhead. I was amazed at how rich a two day, one night trip seemed, how much we learned and shared. With as rainy as it’s been in Portland, and how much time I’ve spent indoors, this trip was exactly what I needed. If this sounds like something you’d like to do, I hope you keep an eye on our events page for something similar this spring or summer. We don’t have anything specific planned yet, but I know there is a huge amount of interest in these events from both our board and the OTT community. A huge thank you to Chip for making this event happen and and to Gracie, Luis, Tracy, Mark, and Michael for being open to learning and sharing your own experiences so willingly.