Oregon’s Big Country 2022: Part 1 - Together
May 31 to June 6, 2022
Route details can be found on bikepacking.com
Written by Irena
“If bikepacking was easy, everyone would be doing it.” This was my response to a friend asking about the trip after seeing my social media posts and then my honest answers about the challenging journey. It’s not all painted toenails and hot springs, is it? No, it never is. You still must get from one spot to the next and that usually takes a certain amount of grit.
Almost two months after losing my dog, Bella, I was still grieving and looking for a trip to turn the page, get over my inertia, and get out of the house. The wet PNW spring and lingering snow in the mountains have limited the bikepacking routes unless you want pure Type 2 fun. Oregon’s Big Country route has an excellent description on bikepacking.com and my friend, Pat, who completed it last year, gave it high marks and shared some beta. Of course, while the route was the same, his trip could not have been more different than mine. More on that later.
I was excited when Sarah decided to join me. We started together but ended separately. Each returning to our respective cars, parked at the Frenchglen Hotel, on our own schedules and routes. It’s a sign of a great friendship when we can partner for an adventure but also go our separate ways mid-adventure, if and when we need something different from the trip.
Preparing and packing for a bikepacking trip has become much easier, with the experience gained by riding the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route and completing other, shorter trips. However, we still compile a spreadsheet with our packing lists, food plans, route data and other logistics. We now spend less time debating and agonizing over every item and can be out the door much faster.
The first 30 miles were fast on flat pavement and champagne gravel. We were chatting and birdwatching and Sarah was taking stabs at identifying the various birds that we saw. Although we didn’t discuss it, we both became optimistic that we might go further than the 60 miles that we planned on day 1 and rather make it all the way to Alvord Hot Springs, more than 80 miles away. With high spirits, we took a long, relaxing lunch at Hotel Diamond and enjoyed a cold Coke. We heard about the lack of mosquitoes because of the cold and wet spring. Diamond has a population of 5. The 7, originally printed on the city sign, was crossed out.
After passing the last farm near Diamond, it was just us, some cattle, birds and pronghorn antelopes. The snow covered Steens Mountain was beautiful and we enjoyed the views for days. Our progress towards Paddle Meadows Pass was steady until everything changed when we turned off our gravel road by the Kiger Mustang Herd Management Area sign onto barely a trail with overgrown grass and mud. It didn’t take long until the mud completely shut us down. It was the kind of mud that sticks to your tires, clogs the drive chain, and takes the paint off your bike. The mud was completely deceiving, it looked rideable and somewhat firm but we were wrong over and over again. We made numerous efforts scraping the mud off our tires, the bike and its components with a stick. A good stick was an important tool for mud removal but finally, we gave up. It was around 7:30 pm and we decided to setup camp under one of the few trees around. We kicked the cow patties out of the way before pitching our tents. After all the effort of scraping the mud off our bikes, we were not in the mood to cook and ate leftovers and the fresh food that we brought. Our campsite at 6800 ft had a view of the Steens and we expected a very chilly night.
Although the mud situation was much improved the next morning, patches of snow, a very rough trail and the fear of the muddy nightmare from yesterday resulted in slow forward progress. The snow cleaned our tires. We struggled with the cattle gates and Sarah closed one of them, trapping herself on the wrong side. We were stoked to reach the top but then with all the snow for the first couple miles of the descent resulted in pushing bikes downhill. Once the snow cleared, we were on a rocky, steep descent with a few switchbacks. We had to stop to rest our hands from clenching the brakes so hard. We stopped at the first spot where we could access the creek and filled up our water bottles and bladders. We followed the creek down and soon we were riding through it. On the way down, we stopped several times to take pictures of the wildflowers.
We were on a high when we came to the nice, hard packed gravel road which would take us all the way to the Alvord Hot Springs and some limited amenities. Our joys did not last long as we settled into the heat and battled headwind. A handful of cars passed with thoughtful drivers who slowed way down so that they wouldn't dust us.
Alvord was more developed than we expected, with a small convenience store selling snacks and cold beer. Although we had only covered a little over 30 miles by mid-afternoon, the decision to stay and camp was easy. A beautiful sunset over the mountains and the dry lakebed along with a hot soak was a wonderful way to wrap up a day of riding.
We patted ourselves on our backs, when we started pedaling 20 minutes prior to our planned 7 am departure the next morning, hoping to beat the desert sun. Oatmeal with coffee and tea was not the most satisfying breakfast but usual when carrying food for six days. We zigzagged across the Alvord desert, took pictures and guessed at the distance across. 7 miles later, the ground softened, small brushes of sage appeared and we pushed our bikes through soft sand in the Big Sand Gap. We saw a few cattle and wondered where they got their water and just as we finished that sentence we were wayfinding through marshland going further and further off course hoping to get around it. Sarah was quick to walk through the various muddy stream crossings while I took my shoes off each time and lost count how many times I went through that painfully slow routine.
The trail disappeared on us. Cattle gates were a two-person job. It was hot. We wore the hoods from our sun hoodies over our helmets and reapplied sunscreen. We were not very encouraged to cover the 30 miles to Willow Creek Hot springs in 5.5 hours but it was only 12:30 pm when we arrived. We parked ourselves at a picnic table, then soaked in one of the hot pools, ate lunch and debated next steps. There was a family with small children playing nearby but otherwise, the area was mostly empty.
It was starting to look like the original 6-day plan to cover the 357-mile loop was not realistic given how much the mud and snow conditions have slowed our progress. Sarah had to be back at work on Monday (day 7). We spent a couple hours at Willow Creek, which included filtering water after we finally found the creek. We could hear the water running as we bushwhacked and wandered through marsh until we finally found a spot where we could access the running water and fill up our bottles and water bladders.
It was difficult to part ways and say our goodbyes after Sarah decided to take the road back to Fields, camp there and then return to Frenchglen the next day. I decided to continue. This was the first time that we would go our separate ways mid-trip. However, it feels good to have the trust and confidence in your partner to do that.
Continued…..