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10 Memorable Mountain Bike Rides in Oregon’s Old Cascade Crest

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10 Memorable Mountain Bike Rides in Oregon’s Old Cascade Crest

Traveling the Santiam Canyon is a bit like traveling back in time. As you head east from the Willamette Valley, you ascend into the Cascade Range foothills—where the Santiam Canyon begins to envelop the Santiam River and its tributaries in basalt-strewn, old-growth forests of Douglas fir and mountain hemlock. These heavily forested ridgelines and valleys are home to the Old Cascades—a remote region that’s home to some of the most cherished trails along the whole Oregon Timber Trail. 

Mark Shafer’s fundraising ride for ovarian cancer

Mark Shafer’s fundraising ride for ovarian cancer

Mark Shafer grew up in Kalamath Falls, and has lived and adventured across the state of Oregon. His first bikepacking trip was as a kid, riding to a nearby campground on a 10-speed bike with a backpack. He recently retired from Merrill Lynch, and now splits his time between the high desert and the Wilamette Valley of Oregon. Currently, he is on the board of directors for the Ovarian Cancer Alliance of Oregon & Southwest Washington. Mark is also a volunteer for the Oregon Timber Trail.

Geo Mcguts Interview

Geo Mcguts Interview

Geo Mcguts @geo_mcguts is an artist, a long-distance cyclist, and one of our BIPOC/WTF/Q scholarship recipients. We wanted to get to know Geo and hear about what motivates them in life, so we did an interview. We talk about Geo’s first ever Grand Depart and surviving in extremely difficult conditions, about what it means to be genderqueer while finding freedom and a sense of self in both artistic creation and bikepacking. We also asked Geo to pick their favorite artwork that tells the story. Geo reminds us of the importance of paying attention to the details on trail and how to showing up is just the first step in a journey. The rest is listening to your inner self and finding your path. We’re inspired by Geo’s courage on trail and in finding one’s true self in life. As Geo says “I want to become a beacon, to shine so brightly that all the queers, the weirdos, the losers, the people who are at risk of being drowned in the darkness, can see that we are powerful enough to forge our own pathways and define what success and happiness mean for ourselves, and that we're not at the mercy of anyone else to standardize or judge who we are for us.” Shine on, Geo!

Best Day Rides on the OTT

Best Day Rides on the OTT

Sure, it’s still winter and there is still plenty of snow on the higher elevations, but spring is just around the corner. It’s a perfect time to start dreaming and scheming about rides big and small. While the Oregon Timber Trail is an ambitious 670-mile trail, many of us also like bite-sized weekend rides and base camping. One day rides? Yeah, we do those too. So, we’ve compiled a list of some of the best rides that hit the OTT, or are what I’m calling “OTT adjacent” - in the same zone, but are fun trails that we use for bike practice, fully loaded or otherwise. We created this handy guide that’s full of routes and loaded with trip ideas. Click through to see the guide!

Dusty Eroh Interview

Dusty Eroh Interview

I first met Dustin “Dusty” Eroh at Revelate HQ when my partner and I made our first ever trip to Anchorage to ride the Kenai Peninsula. Dusty was Revelate’s first full-time employee who has gone on to design and produce many of the bags we’ve come to know and love. In 2017, Dusty and his buddy, “Thrasher” were early OTT pioneers, riding the whole route in 10 days and 8 hours. We sat down recently as Dusty was driving from the Bay Area to Alaska to reminisce about his OTT through ride, learn more about his work with Revelate and hear how life has changed since.

Max Morales Interview

Max Morales Interview

Max Morales is a Bay Area teacher, long-distance cyclist, and one of our BIPOC scholarship recipients. We talked about what it means to be a teacher, a role model, and how to adapt when conditions throw you a curveball. We wanted to get to know Max and hear about what motivates him in his life, so we did an interview. We also asked Max to pick his favorite ten images that told the story. Max reminds us about the meaning of community on trail and how to show up.

Conan Thai's Grand Depart

Conan Thai's Grand Depart

July 2021 brought both the first-ever Oregon Timber Trail Grand Depart and the (now infamous) Bootleg fire. Riders converged on Lakeview, OR where anxious riders met each other, the mayor barbequed. The ride is now history. What can you say about summer bikepacking in the American West? Be prepared to improvise, change plans, and bring an N95. Despite all of this, one rider (and photographer, Conan Thai returned with a stunning set of images that captured the essence of this race-not-a-race. We wanted to get to know Conan a bit better and hear a bit more about his process. Anyone that wants to capture their own adventures will appreciate what Conan accomplished during this Grand Depart.

Paisley Oregon and the Triumphant Return

Paisley Oregon and the Triumphant Return

I first came to the PNW 1977 hitchhiking from Massachusetts as a college student with a copy of “On the Road” in my backpack. On this trip, I decided Oregon was where I wanted to live when I grew up and left the East Coast. In 1979, after graduating from Mount Holyoke College, my boyfriend and I hiked for ten weeks on the Pacific Crest Trail. We took it slow, immersed in the natural beauty of the Cascades, starting in Canada and petering out in the cold rain at Mt. Hood. I made Oregon my home, and the Cascades my playground.

2021 Year End Review

2021 Year End Review

2021 was quite a year for us all, but luckily, we got back to life on the trail. We did seven trail stewardship events, including breaking ground on the Fugrass connector, Winter Rim reroute and made huge strides with the 3-year Watson Fire Rehab project. In April we were proud to offer our first ever BIPOC scholarship, where we offered five $1000 scholarships. July brought the first-ever Grand Depart, while abbreviated due to fire closures, and cut short because of the growing Bootleg fire.

Kurt Refsnider AZTR300 Preparation

Kurt Refsnider AZTR300 Preparation

Kurt Refsnider is one of the most experienced and fastest bikepack racers and in many ways has shaped the pointy end of the sport. But we’re not just fans because he’s fast, we’re also interested because he co-founded Bikepacking Roots with Kait Boyle in 2017 and works as a climate and land activist. He was a former geology professor at Prescott College. He started a geology curriculum incorporating bikepacking trips! Now that’s a class we’d like to take!

Finding New Lines: Interview with Dr. Elizabeth Sampey

Finding New Lines: Interview with Dr. Elizabeth Sampey

Dr. Elizabeth Sampey is an explorer. She’s designed her life to be a balance between outdoor adventures and her professional life as a therapist and coach, teaching her clients how to balance mind, body, and spirit. She earned her doctorate in physical therapy in 2008. Not satisfied with the limitations of that modality, she kept pushing to find ways to heal holistically. Bikepackers will know her as the Arizona Trail Race 750 women’s record holder and Revel Bikes ambassador. While she’s relatively new to ultra bikepack racing, she's not new to human-powered adventure. She’s been pushing her limits with backcountry skiing, running, and mountain biking for her entire adult life. She’s done months-long multisport expeditions in places like Peru and Pakistan. She’s been able to apply all she’s learned in her adventuring and her path as a healer to her own life with a unique sense of curiosity and humility that we find inspiring. We sat down with Dr. Sampey recently to learn more about her approach.

Garbanzo Powerblasters: Ron Lewis Recipe

Garbanzo Powerblasters: Ron Lewis Recipe

For fans of Dustin Klein’s EBD YouTube page, where Ron and Dustin took on the Oregon Timber Trail's newest published route “Stiletsi & the White Crane,” a Mt. Hood tier loop . In Dustin’s videos, there’s always a snack break. Anyone that spends hours on the bike the way gravel riders and bikepackers do know the importance of good homemade ride food, which is perhaps why Dustin’s snack breaks resonate with us. So when at 2:22 Ron breaks out his homemade Garbanzo Power Cookies, our interest was piqued. Garbanzo cookies? Can those be good?

Knobby-Tired Nights: Videos to get you Stoked

Knobby-Tired Nights: Videos to get you Stoked

Couldn’t join the crowd at Hopworks Urban Brewery for our final Knobby-Tired Night? Check out the films we watched below, and if you have a ton of time our other four events are online too.

Knobby-Tired Nights: Videos about Perspectives

Knobby-Tired Nights: Videos about Perspectives

Couldn’t join the crowd at Hopworks Urban Brewery last week? Check out the films we watched below, and see you next month on March 20th for a series of films to get you stoked.

Knobby-Tired Nights: Videos about Conservation

Knobby-Tired Nights: Videos about Conservation

Couldn’t join the crowd at Hopworks Urban Brewery last night? Check out the films we watched below, and see you next month on February 20th for a series of films about perspective.

Knobby-Tired Nights: Videos of Discovery

Knobby-Tired Nights: Videos of Discovery

Couldn’t join the crowd at Hopworks last night? Check out the films we watched below, and consider donating to our Cross the Cascades project. We were able to raise $235 last night thanks to y’alls generosity and Hopworks’ $1 per Pint program!

Knobby-Tired Nights: Videos to Inspire

Knobby-Tired Nights: Videos to Inspire

Couldn’t join the crowd at Hopworks last night? Check out the films we watched below, and consider donating to our Cross the Cascades project. We were able to raise almost $300 last night thanks to y’alls generosity and Hopworks’ $1 per Pint program!

 

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The Santiam Wagon Road makes up 37 miles of the Oregon Timber Trail Deschutes Tier. Trail users can travel west from Sisters over Santiam Pass and through the headwaters of the McKenzie River towards the historic Fish Lake Work Center. Support our fr
Like the trail and want to get more involved? Join the Oregon Timber Trail Alliance Board of Directors! OTTA is seeking enthusiasts, visionaries, and folks interested in investing in the future of the Oregon Timber Trail to join our Board of Direct
Join us for a one-day ride/work event on Saturday, September 14 as we place reassurance badges on the iconic Surveyor’s Ridge Trail. WHERE? - We’ll meet at the 44 Trails Hub Trailhead (where Super Connector trail crosses Road 17) at 9:00
Looking to extend your summer with a few more adventures? Great, we're looking for a few more signage volunteers in September! If you've hiked or ridden the trail before, you know how tricky navigation can be. Better signage will significantly enha
We’re collecting tales from the trail about your experiences with mosquitoes along the OTT. So get in your wayback machine and conjure up your most memorable swarm stories! Share them in the comments and don't forget to include where along the
Like the trail and want to get more involved!? Well, you’re in luck! The Oregon Timber Trail Alliance is seeking enthusiasts, visionaries, and folks interested in investing in the future of the Oregon Timber Trail to join our Board of Directors
We can't believe it's mid-August already! Way-finder extraordinaire Dan Sharp @d_sharp has been out on the trail placing signage all summer long with the help of some great volunteers. But there is still a ways to go and trailblazers, we need your he
The Sister’s Rodeo wasn’t the only thing happening the first weekend of June. As a crowd gathered along the streets of downtown Sisters for the kick-off parade, our group was busy fussing about in the parking lot of Blazin Saddles gettin
 

The Oregon Timber Trail Alliance is dedicated to stewardship, education, community, and quality trail experiences throughout the Oregon Timber Trail corridor.

 
 

Oregon Timber Trail Alliance
PO Box 6531, Portland, OR 97228
503-298-5152

The Oregon Timber Trail Alliance is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation. Our EIN number is 82-5018544

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