Bikepacking Overnight: Pine Mountain Observatory

Memorial Day weekend is a notorious shitshow of people -- a lot like me -- trying to get out into the woods to commune with nature in tents, RVs, and everything in between. Somehow, miraculously, we managed to find a route that we could ride straight from my front door, with zero mosquitos and almost no people (an empty campground on Memorial Day!? yep... but we saw a few folks walking around and one paraglider).

We modified a route from Bikepacking.com, which did not take into account some very aggressive private property owners who don't like to share with others (aka there is a pretty sweet network of dirt canal trails in and near Bend... some property owners have given our parks and recreation department an easement so others can enjoy them, and some are jerks and zealously stand guard over the trail). There are two sections, one near the Nottingham neighborhood and another near Stevens and 27th that I would stay clear of, lest you do what we did, and get in "trouble" with a gentleman who apparently has nothing else to do on a Sunday morning than harass people on bikes. The route below is modified (a) to start near my house, (b) to avoid those canal trail sections, and (c) to stop over at a brewery and food carts at the end.

This route has a fun Type II mix of pavement, gravel, singletrack, sandy doubletrack, and everything in between! Since there in no water at the campground, we went real heavy and packed in all our water -- but be careful -- this route is pretty exposed, so it was also hotter than expected and some people forgot to take into account water needed at camp after the riding was done, so they didn't pack enough water. Luckily, I am a water camel and had also schlepped up enough to share and we made it back with just enough.

Well, we may have gotten turned around by a meanie meanie bo beanie, but look at those views!

The only shade for miles = best snack spot before the big climb.

Chris investigates what Elisa calls the murder shack.

Sandy doubletrack.

Even a well graded gravel climb can get steep... Elisa has a rule if she ends up pedaling slower than 3 mph, she is allowed to walk. This time she found some help with her bike!

Just a couple dorks having happy hour in a hammock at camp!

Walking up to the observatory to watch the sunset.

Sunset joy... after we drank all the whiskey, wine, and beer!

The way down was real fun... sandy, rocky, but still rideable!

A magical lemonade stand at just the right time on the way back into town. Essential after Chris and Elisa ran out of water!

A few tips for bike tourists:

• The Pine Mountain Observatory is only open a few weekends from the summer into early fall. It is open late into the night, which means for those few weekends, I imagine the campground is a lot more full.
• The Pine Mountain Campground is a free BLM campground, and boasts a single pit toilet and no running water. It is otherwise a lovely campsite with big sites, lots o' trees, picnic tables, and is walking distance from the observatory and the 360 views from the summit.
• You'll need to pack all your water in -- Patrick and I carried a combined 12 liters. Elisa and Chris carried a combined 9 liters, which was not enough -- they woke up to just 1/2 a liter for the ride home. Patrick and I were able to give them 2 liters so we were fine, but the moral of the story, take more than you think you'll need!
• The sweet spot for this ride is pretty dang short. You have to go early enough that the sandy bits aren't too sandy, and late enough that the snow has melted out. Typically, this is late April to early May. This year, with a late spring, we did the ride just about as late as I would want to, with some of the lower sections being pretty sandy. The singletrack at Horse Ridge wasn't as sandy as I expected and Horse Butte was pretty magical. 
• I highly recommend riding this loop clockwise like we did... it makes for a wonderfully graded climb on a good gravel road at the end of a long day, and the road down is loose, sandy, and rocky enough I would have had to walk a decent amount. It was way more fun slippin' and sliding down!
• There is a section of singletrack that has a fence between Horse Butte and Horse Ridge that is an informal unsanctioned trail, but it has been used for years by local Bend riders. Folks will have to lift bikes over the fence, but we've never had enforcement issues there.
• Chubby tires recommended... we had everything from 700 x 43 to 650b x 50.