Bike Overnight: McKenzie Pass v 7.0 (Pandemic Edition)

I've lost count of how many folks who have entrusted me to help them bikepack over the McKenzie pass and back again, but every year is special and amazing in its own way. From sticky humid weather to the kindness of strangers (and friends), this year was one for the books. It was a little bittersweet because this trip almost didn't happen... from the COVID 19 pandemic, to my business drowning in work, to the McKenzie pass opening to cars a week early, to not knowing if the campground I had reserved would be open, to last minute emergencies and gear borrowing... everything felt really uncertain. For any real tips, check out this trip from 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019.

The whole crew... my favorite hiking partner-in-crime Jess decided to take a leap of faith and try a bikepacking trip... and Nicole and Sarah had both attended my bike talk in years past, but were not able to make the trips those years. Better late than never!

Nicole is in great spirits as we pull out of Windy Point. Which was soooo windy. Duh.

Yaaaaaas. The summit.

Hunkered down away from the wind behind the sign... and the crowds.

The rhododendron and bear grass were in full bloom in the rainforest on the other side of the mountain.

Thank you Rob and your most nice lady friend! You saved us from an afternoon of wandering around looking for firewood!!! Also, you are very good at firewood pannier Tetris.

Jess is loaded up with wood and ready to head back to camp.

Our awesome fire and awesome camp... if anyone cares, campsite #10 at Limberlost is really the best one. It has private stream access and is tucked away mostly out of sight from every other site.

I still maintain that ladies who bikepack do the best happy hour.

Sometimes, the stars and planets align and things work out just the way they are supposed to. Sarah had some stomach issues early on the second day and so I zip-tied her panniers to mine and managed to get us up to Proxy Falls... where our friend Bob just happened to be with his truck. A quick ride up the mountain and Sarah was able to let her tummy settle and rejoin us shortly before the summit to finish the ride in fine style.

Even though Jess says she doesn't like to bike, she is looking pretty good here.

Sarah makes it back to the summit in good spirits and ready for more.

Bikepacking Overnight: McKenzie Pass 6.0 (Ladies' Ride... Again!)

Bike touring from Sisters over the McKenzie pass and back again is a tradition that is six years strong now. It is the quintessential bike tour and my favorite way to lure unsuspecting folks new to bike touring into the cult of bike touring. In the sweet spot at the end of May through mid-June, there is a certain camaraderie when the road is closed, but especially amongst the folks loaded up with camping gear... a knowing look, a wave, a dinging of a bell, or a joyful "yeeeeaaaaah" sums it all up. We were blessed with perfect weather with clear blue skies this year and after a few drinks at The Bite in Tumalo, I feel pretty content. I don't have anything to add that hasn't been said before, so feel free to check out the ride from 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018, and I'll just let the photos speak for themselves.

Marmot enjoying the views and leftovers from cyclists at Windy Point.

The crew: we had alumni from our first and second years of our bike touring presentation at The Gear Fix as well as Mandy, who rocked her first bike tour ever!

First flat of the trip.

We made great time and got to camp early, so we did a 10-mile beer and firewood run to the McKenzie Bridge store.

We got back in time for the perfect early evening hammock happy hour.

Firewood. Check. Kindling. Check.

Ani and I like to up the food game each year. This time, I carried a full size cast iron skillet so I could make cheese pupusas from scratch topped with stewed lamb, arugula, and green onion.

Ani and Michelle rock the switchbacks.

It was HOT.

Glamour shotz.

By accident... no seriously... we all packed a rainbow of wind layers.

We had a lovely shower at the end of our ride at Sisters Middle School.

Bikepacking Overnight: McKenzie Pass 5.0 (Ladies Ride Redux)

The McKenzie pass has become a tradition that I'm happy to share with anyone and everyone (see 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017). It has everything bike tours are made of... no cars (at least during that sweet spot at the end of May and beginning of June when it is closed to cars), sweeping views of the Cascade mountains, whooshing switchbacks into lush green forests, hot springs to fit every personality, snowmelt fed streams, and an endless supply of camping options. With challenging climbs and proportionate rewards, if riding the McKenzie pass can't make you fall in love with bike touring, nothing will. After the resounding success of my last presentation to introduce women to bike touring and bikepacking, I put together a motley crew of strong and amazing women ranging in age from 29 to 52 this year to bike from Sisters to the McKenzie river and back again.

Looking mostly normalish... at least as normal as this group gets.

Our fearless mascot Bandit. It is possible to pull a 30 pound trailer and a 60 pound dog up a mountain pass... though Bandit was able to run parts of this route because there were no cars.

The gang rolling out of Windy Point.

Everyone made it to the summit!

Lunchtime on top of the Dee Wright Observatory... we are sitting here mostly to get out of the wind!

Detour to Proxy Falls.

Remember that time we find a free bundle of wood by the side of the road?

Happy hour tapas!

After a brief thunderstorm, the rain stopped and we were able to enjoy our campfire, the 6 liters of wine/beer/cider that we collectively brought, and each other's conversations.

Deer Creek (aka Bigelow) hot springs are kinda magical looking in the morning.

A roadside pullout is as good of a lunch spot as any. Except for the mosquitos. They liked me too much so I hopped on my bike and sped away.

Nearly three times the climbing to get back home!

Apparently it wasn't too much climbing because we had enough energy for a silly second summit picture.

A few tips for cycle tourists:

• The McKenzie pass re-opens to cars the Monday after Father's day every year. There is a supported bike event that happens every year to make this ride accessible to everyone that has aid stations and group camping in Sisters on the Saturday before Father's day. Expect waves of bikes if you happen to ride on this weekend.

• This also means that all the best campsites are booked out in advance... I was not able to find a campsite at my favorite site, Limberlost. So I had to settle for the still incredibly charming Ollalie on the McKenzie campground. Limberlost is a gem because it is still on the 242 and doesn't require you to bike on the much more trafficked 126. Ollalie on the McKenzie has amazing sites, especially on the lower river loop that sit right on the McKenzie river, but requires a 7 mile slog slightly uphill with a minimal shoulder and a few too many RVs that don't want to give a lot of passing space for bikes. 

• With a group as big as we had, I didn't want to risk trying to find a dispersed campsite, but there are some really great ones right next to the Deer Creek (aka Bigelow) hot springs. This is just a single gorgeous pool that can get busy at night, but if you soak in the morning, you are much less likely to find crowds. 

Bikepacking Overnight: McKenzie Pass 4.0 (Ladies Ride!)

A bike tour over the McKenzie Pass seems to have snuck its way into my life again (see 2014, 2015, and 2016).  After lamenting a lack of women on the road, I decided it was time to do something about it.  My friend runs the local chapter of the Outdoor Women's Alliance and so I reached out to her and offered to put on a presentation to introduce women to bike touring and bikepacking.  We had about 30 participants and a lot of stoke, so I decided to lead an overnight bike tour for those who wanted a safe way to experience a bike tour.  

After a false start due to rain and snow, we finally were able to do it.  It wasn't a complicated ride as it started and ended on Highway 242.  We biked from Sisters Middle School to the Limberlost Campground and back again, with a lovely detour to the McKenzie Bridge General Store. It was too hot for hot springs so in lieu of hitting up Belknap or Cougar, we braved the icy cold water of Lost Creek nestled right next to our site instead.  

Day 1: Windy Point, looking like a respectable group of bike touring gals.

Day 1: Badass bike touring gang...

Day 1: Bikes get the best parking spots at the summit... time to explore the Dee Wright Observatory!

Day 1: Victory!

Day 1: Legs still have enough juice in 'em for a little summit acroyoga.

Day 1: Lunchtime at Proxy Falls on the green jungle-y side of the pass.

Day 1: 95 degrees + sweaty 6 mile bike from camp + cold beer fridge = beer fridge selfie.

Day 1: The infamous Mr. Ed on his hog outside the McKenzie Bridge General Store.  Wooing the ladies as always.

Day 1: No fire ban?  Well then, surely we can carry a bundle of firewood back to the campground.

Day 1: Happy hour.  The flamingos are getting out of control.

Day 1: Our neighbor.

Day 2: Double the climb, double the fun!

Day 2: Flamingos getting a free ride up.

Day 2: Butterflies at the summit seemed to love us.

Day 2: Post-ride "we made it" portrait.

A few tips for cycle tourists:

• I've done this tour so many times that I don't know what else to add... except that for the shorter more "beginner-friendly" version of the ride we did this year, Limberlost is a gem.  It has 12 reservable sites and 2 walk-in sites.  It is not particularly suited to RVs and so there were none when we were there.  We had site 9 which was lovely and right on the creek so we could listen to the water at night.  I highly suggest reservations in the summer on the weekends as the whole place was booked out (but we did grab the last site just two weeks before the tour)