Central Oregon on my KLR650

[pdedse]

Love this thread!

Gesendet von meinem Pixel 4 mit Tapatalk

Cool, thanks! It's about over...

Ran into some forest fire smoke...ugh!

Had to change directions and head north instead of crossing Mt. Hood area

Tried to camp one more night

But smoke changed directions and so I had to pack up at 1am and head for home! Made it by 4am.

Very fun trip. If you want the whole story

 

[peterbaron]

Magnificent journey with spectacular views/pics.
Well done and thank you for sharing it with us Pdedse.

 

[Cormanus]

Great report pdedse. I recommend the whole story to anyone who hasn't read it.

 

[pdedse]

Thanks for the replies. Mile wise, it was only a 750 mile trip spread out over 5 riding days, but the KLR650 is the type of bike that invites (demands?) you to slow down, take your time and explore things a bit.

 

[pdedse]

I thought I'd add to last summer's trip with one I just finished. This time, more southern-central to eastern OR.

Day 1: leave Gresham, head south on I-5 to Eugene, then take hiway 58 to cross the Cascades. All decked out and ready to explore

Lake Odell

First night camping...COLD! Note: don't use lightweight sleeping bag in September in the mountains.

Day 2: to Lakeview and end up in Plush

Between Chiloquin and Lakeview

I bedded down at a town park / camp site in Plush. It was plush because the grass was thick and green--perfect to pitch a tent on because it's so soft...it's also a desert area and the reason the grass was so lush and plush was because they water it with automatic sprinklers that dump at ton of water on you if you choose to camp here on Sundays at 9:15pm. Luckily, my rain fly worked well, but my helmet got a good rinsing.

 

[tod.branko_imp]

Looks beautiful

'14 CB1100 STD 5 speed

 

[Cormanus]

It does indeed.

 

[GoldOxide_imp]

I thought I'd add to last summer's trip with one I just finished. This time, more southern-central to eastern OR.

Day 1: leave Gresham, head south on I-5 to Eugene, then take hiway 58 to cross the Cascades. All decked out and ready to explore

Lake Odell

First night camping...COLD! Note: don't use lightweight sleeping bag in September in the mountains.

Day 2: to Lakeview and end up in Plush

Between Chiloquin and Lakeview

I bedded down at a town park / camp site in Plush. It was plush because the grass was thick and green--perfect to pitch a tent on because it's so soft...it's also a desert area and the reason the grass was so lush and plush was because they water it with automatic sprinklers that dump at ton of water on you if you choose to camp here on Sundays at 9:15pm. Luckily, my rain fly worked well, but my helmet got a good rinsing.

Agreed, great shot.

 

[Vic_imp]

so nice to read and view a bit of this adventure with you. :biker:

 

[pdedse]

Day 3

I was so happy my tent kept everything inside the tent dry, now I know I should be good if I get caught in a rain storm on a trip. I wasn't in a great hurry so I let the morning sun dry things out a bit.

As of 2019, the internet says Plush had 95 residents, while in '17 it had only 45...what's that 111% increase in two years? Imagine if your city's population doubled in 2 years! Everybody is coming here here...just as I was heading out of town, these guys were moving in:

On the way to the Antelope Refuge in the Hart Mountain area...

Heading up to where there are some hot springs...

After two nights camping and wearing a lot of desert dust, this was a welcome relief...

After lunch and a bath, I got to see a few antelope...love to watch them run.

About 40 miles of loose gravel, not too difficult, 30-50 mph for me.

A little bit of forest fire haze

A very nice day 3. I was out here to explore the area for a longer trip in the future. I wanted to get into the Steens Mt. area, but I need 6-7 days instead of 4.

 

[GoldOxide_imp]

Some great shares there pdedse and some half decent offroad experiences. The dip looks welcoming.

 

[Nachodaddy]

Beautiful country and a really nice trip. Thanks for sharing it with us. Sad about the fires.

 

[Whoops]

I love that somebody actually hauled a ladder, concrete and bricks up to the hot spring and then took the time and effort to build a private little pool area in the middle of nowhere. And no graffiti!

 

[pdedse]

Thanks for the comments...I know it's on the KLR, but I don't belong to a KLR specific site.

I love that somebody actually hauled a ladder, concrete and bricks up to the hot spring and then took the time and effort to build a private little pool area in the middle of nowhere. And no graffiti!

A lot of the camping ammenities are free out in this area of OR...Plush didn't charge, and the Hart campground at the base of the mountain is real nice with potable water, clean bathrooms, amazing views of Hart Mt., space between the sites--and no fee charged.

The roads are gravel, but in good condition to the hot springs up top and all about the mountain. But the hot springs are a definite draw to the surrounding campground there. It would be nice to set up camp, do day hikes and rides, go for high desert run...and then have the spring to come back to and soak your bones in the warm water.

I love that somebody actually hauled a ladder, concrete and bricks up to the hot spring and then took the time and effort to build a private little pool area in the middle of nowhere. And no graffiti!

Good think I held off from writing my own hieroglyphics on the stones!


Day 4 (yesterday)...

Couldn't sleep much so I started the coffee at 4am...quite cold again.

Heading towards Prineville on route 27...not many people about, just the two of us

Prinevill Reservoir

Yes, I removed the rock

Crooked River

The trip basically ended for me at Prineville as hiway 26 to Madras and the over the Mt. Hood area and down to Gresham is 135 miles, but also quite familiar to me. It was a great trip that's going to be used to plan next summer's trip to the Steens Mt. area. 850 miles over 4 days of riding.

The red is part of this route, the blue...next year.

 

[Whoops]

Your pictures are fantastic and so what if they are on a KLR. Those are great bikes and I enjoy reading your trip reports.

One of your pictures made me wince though and I know I am going to sound like a mother hen and should probably just shut up, but holy cow that seems so dangerous!

 

[Cormanus]

And then there was more. Great stuff, pdedse. At as well the rock missed you.

Your friend is almost as tall as you are!

 

[pdedse]

Your pictures are fantastic and so what if they are on a KLR. Those are great bikes and I enjoy reading your trip reports.

One of your pictures made me wince though and I know I am going to sound like a mother hen and should probably just shut up, but holy cow that seems so dangerous!

Wait, which photo? The cow stampede?

 

[GoldOxide_imp]

Very nice again pdedse.

Glad you were able to save the rock from roadkill.

 

[Whoops]

Your pictures are fantastic and so what if they are on a KLR. Those are great bikes and I enjoy reading your trip reports.

One of your pictures made me wince though and I know I am going to sound like a mother hen and should probably just shut up, but holy cow that seems so dangerous!

Wait, which photo? The cow stampede?

Wait, which photo? The cow stampede?
No, the stove lit inside the tent.

 

[pdedse]

Your pictures are fantastic and so what if they are on a KLR. Those are great bikes and I enjoy reading your trip reports.

One of your pictures made me wince though and I know I am going to sound like a mother hen and should probably just shut up, but holy cow that seems so dangerous!

Wait, which photo? The cow stampede?

Wait, which photo? The cow stampede?
No, the stove lit inside the tent.

Oh, that! I suppose tent material is flammable and all that, but I was pretty restless not being able to fall asleep and it was much too cold and dirty and dusty to try to make coffee outside. If there were kids around, maybe dangerous. But I was sitting smack in front of the flame, holding the pan on it the whole time. Seemed safe enough. I let that stove warm me up for a good hour.

And if the tent did catch on fire, well, it was my last night! : )