Introduction - South Oregon Coast and Coast Range 2008 - CycleBlaze

Introduction

Tour de Home 2

This is a 7-day shakedown tour on a new bike, starting and finishing from my home in Oakland, Oregon.

Heart 0 Comment 0

I broke my previous bike's frame during a tour last summer in British Columbia. This is my first tour on the new bike, a BACCHETTA GIRO 20 short wheelbase recumbent.

This tour stays close to home in case of problems with the equipment. The panniers aren't new but the bike, racks, and fenders are new. I'm using new tires, 40mm wide Schwalbe Marathons. The wheels are not new. I'm using the home-built wheels from my old bike which have heavier rims and more spokes (36) than the Bacchetta's stock 32-spoke wheels.

The day before the tour I rode the loaded bike in my town's 4th of July (US Independence Day) parade. It was good practice riding at a slow walking pace.

Riding in my town's 4th of July parade the day before the tour started.
Heart 1 Comment 0

The main objective of this tour is simply to make sure the new bike is set up properly for loaded touring. I'm carrying the same gear that I would carry on a much longer tour. The routes across the coast range are paved back roads that I had never seen before. This 7-day tour took me through only two counties - Douglas and Coos. Rural Oregon has big counties! I planned the exact route in advance but campsites weren't planned in advance.

The northern part of the route is along the Smith river, a very remote area of commercial timber land. Along the upper Smith River I saw less than 1 car per hour. The coastal portion of this route is probably the least scenic section of the Oregon coast bike route. Miles inland, with few ocean views. But I detoured off US 101 to see spectacular coastal scenery at Cape Arago and Bandon Beach Loop. The southern part of the route is along the Coquille river, South Fork Coquille river, West Fork Cow Creek, Cow Creek, and the South Umpqua river. The area is also very remote but it sees more visitors than the Smith river. The road climbs up to 3800 feet (1150m) elevation and I hiked to the summit of 4319 foot (1310 m) Mt. Bolivar.

Rate this entry's writing Heart 2
Comment on this entry Comment 0