Day 11: Corvallis to Junction City

June 30, 2022

Today is a short easy day, so I left the hotel in Corvallis at 10:20. I entered Corvallis mostly on trails through the Oregon State University campus. Today I leave Corvallis mostly on trails along the Willamette and Marys rivers. The first 10 blocks is through new upscale developments.

Splash fountain in the riverfront park in Corvallis.

After the new high rise riverfront developments the trail enters forested flood bottom filled with homeless tents. I passed more than 50 tents. The homeless camps are extremely visible from the bike trail but not visible from city streets. During this tour I saw also homeless camps in Cottage Grove, Sweet Home, and Salem. But Corvallis had by far the most homeless tents.

Homeless tents disappear when the trail starts following a narrow corridor between the Marys river and a busy road.

I got out of Corvallis quickly and easily. The country roads south of Corvallis are quite nice. Minimal traffic. Good cycling.

Today's route would be even shorter and flatter if I stayed close to the Willamette river on Peoria road which is the Adventure Cycling Association TransAmerica bike route. But I decided to go farther west into the coast range hills to start the day. I had hills in the morning and the flat valley in the afternoon.

Nice valley view with Marys Peak in the distance.

On Bellfountain road I saw a sign indicating that I am on the Applegate emigrant trail. I have pedaled much of the trail route in Oregon. I never paid attention to the route in the Willamette Valley but assumed that the trail was along highway 99 like it is in my county.

I didn't know that some of today's route is on the Applegate emigrant trail.

I stopped to look around in Bellfountain. Census data says the 2020 population is 8 people. The multi-sign post is downtown Bellfountain. A little to the east are two historic buildings facing each other. On the north is the Community Church. On the south is the 1908 school. Both buildings still appear to be used for their intended purposes.

This signpost is downtown Bellfountain. Population 8.

Community church in Bellfountain. Oregon is famously "unaffiliated".

1908 school in Bellfountain. Looks like it might still be used.

East of Bellfountain I climbed one last big hill, then descended slowly into the main part of the Willamette Valley once again.

Final look back at Marys Peak as I enter the flat valley.

Grass seed is the main crop in the southern Willamette valley. The region is promoted as the "grass seed capital of the world". Some articles claim that Oregon grows 75% of the world's grass seed.

Quote from Oregon Historical Society's Oregon Encyclopedia:
Oregon growers now produce essentially all of the U.S. commercial production of annual ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum), perennial ryegrass (L. perenne), bent grass (Agrostis spp.), and fine fescue (Festuca spp). They also produce substantial amounts of Kentucky blue grass (Poa pratensis), orchard grass (Dactylis glomerata), and tall fescue (F. arundinacea), which is used primarily for turf and lawns.

Today's tributary river is the Long Tom river. One of the bigger rivers that flow out of the Coast Range, but it's tiny compared to the rivers that flow out of the Cascade Range. The Long Tom river is the muddiest river I saw during this tour. Most streams have been crystal clear. Tomorrow I will have distant views of Fern Ridge Reservoir which is built on the Long Tom river.

I was very hungry when I got to OR 99W. My original plan was to bypass the town of Monroe on back roads. But I decided to pedal busy OR 99W into Monroe for lunch. After lunch I didn't find an easy way to get to my planned back roads route, so I stayed on OR 99W another 8 level miles south to Junction City. The shoulder is narrow and traffic doesn't expect bicycles. I was glad to have two 350 Lumen flashers.

Somebody planted mile long lines of Redwoods and Douglas Firs on both sides of OR 99W.

Even with a late start and long lunch stop, I arrived at Junction City at 4 PM and got my room at Guest House Inn. Nicest motel in town but not that great.

I was told that downtown Junction City all burned to the ground in the late 1890s. Today's downtown has less historic charm than most Willamette Valley farm towns.

Downtown Junction City doesn't have much historic charm because downtown burned to the ground in the late 1890s.

I had a great dinner at the Raven Grill house downtown. It's a couple blocks off OR 99W.

After dinner I wandered around the downtown area. It was a beautiful 80F evening. The Scandinavian Festival grounds occupy a one block park. I might go sometime.

Junction City has an annual Scandinavian Festival. This year it is August 11-14.

A saw a popular tavern in the former train station. I might have to go there sometime as well. The train track next to the tavern is seldom used. The main Union Pacific track is 2 blocks east. That track is very busy.

The former train station is now a tavern called Beer Station.

It's June 30 and Junction City is all decorated for the July 4 Independence Day festivities.

City Park decorated for the July 4 Independence Day celebrations.

I'm pretty sure that Junction City is the only place during this tour that I saw water towers. Water towers are rare in Oregon because nearly every city builds a water tank on a convenient hill. Few towns need to build water towers.

Junction City is the only town I saw that uses water towers. Most cities build a tank on a convenient hill.

Junction City has several old buildings that have been repurposed in interesting ways. A former train station, former theatre, and former gas station.

A former gas station is now an insurance office.

Early in today's ride I reduced the front tire pressure to 30 psi to minimize the deflection of the cracked rim. The front tire was a bit bouncy but was not a problem. The front brake is disabled so I can't accidentally brake out of habit. Using only the rear brake is no problem. I just don't let the speed get so high that I might need powerful brakes. I pedaled part of yesterday and all of today with the cracked rim. Tomorrow is hillier than today, but I'm confident that the rim will survive one more day.

Front rim cracked at the seam. Tire pressure is 30 psi. I pedaled all day with it like this and have one day to go.

I just read the upside down warning label in the photo above. It says the rim is subject to wear from braking, and that excessive use can damage the rim. This is a textbook example of how 25,000 miles of rim braking scours a rim to failure.

This is not my first time to end a tour with a cracked rim. I also finished my 2012 Southwest US Coast to Coast tour with a cracked front rim.

Cracked front rim in 2012 in Corpus Christi, Texas.

I enjoyed the forested hills and barely populated farm settlements in the morning. The afternoon ride in the valley was more boring and had far more traffic because I stayed on OR 99W. The afternoon towns, Monroe and Junction City, are less charming than most of the towns I saw in the Willamette Valley. The southern Willamette Valley is not as prosperous as the northern Willamette Valley.

Today had very pleasant weather. High of 80F with a gentle southeast wind that was a headwind most of the time.

I wasn't very happy with my $143 motel room at Guest House Inn. I unplugged the extremely loud refrigerator. The air conditioner seemed to get louder the longer it ran, so I turned it off and opened the window instead.

Today was arguably the most boring day of the tour. No covered bridges, no historic towns, no awesome rivers. I wasn't bored, though. The scenery is still good. The cycling is still mostly good.

Distance: 37.9 mi. (60.6 km)
Average Speed: 9.2 mph (4.7 km/h)
Ascent/Descent: +1121/-971 ft. (+357/-296 m)

Today's ride: 38 miles (61 km)
Total: 457 miles (735 km)

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