Oregon Scooter Club -Come Ride With Us
McKenzie Pass - Ride Report
On Saturday, 8-29-09, the OSC Valley Chapter led a ride over the Mckenzie Pass. We met at Salem Harley/Vespa, and left at 10:30 am with Kathy Smith in the lead.
We had 2 members join us from the Portland area, 3 from the Salem area, and met one member near Albany. We had 6 scooterists total (3 male and 3 female) - a Vespa GTS 250, a Piaggio BV 250, a Piaggio MP3, (2) SYM RV250's, and a Suzuki Burgman 400.
We took I-5 south to Hwy 34, where we met up with our member from Albany. We headed east on backroads to Springfield, and then headed towards Sisters via Hwy 126. After we passed McKenzie Bridge, we took Hwy 242, better known as the McKenzie Hwy Scenic Route. The Scenic Route is 37 miles long, full of 10 mph hairpin turns, with lots of gravel and lava dust on the road. Oregon Motorcyclist classified this ride as 'difficult', and I would have to agree with them.
At the top of the Scenic Route is the Dee Wright Observatory, with an altitude of 5187 feet. It was built out of lava rock during the Great Depression by the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps), and was finished in 1935. In the Observatory, there are little portals, and you can see 21 different mountains and peaks.
We continued on into Sisters, and our 2 Portland area members headed back for home, due to travel time left. The other 4 members had lunch/dinner, which everyone thought was very good. Then we returned home, with myself (Melody) in the lead via Hwy 20 and Hwy 22. 3 members took the Aumsville Hwy exit, and ther other member returned to Salem.
It was a beautiful ride, with some difficult areas, and almost 300 miles round trip. The riders from Portland logged over 400 miles. It was certainly worth the trip!
We had 2 members join us from the Portland area, 3 from the Salem area, and met one member near Albany. We had 6 scooterists total (3 male and 3 female) - a Vespa GTS 250, a Piaggio BV 250, a Piaggio MP3, (2) SYM RV250's, and a Suzuki Burgman 400.
We took I-5 south to Hwy 34, where we met up with our member from Albany. We headed east on backroads to Springfield, and then headed towards Sisters via Hwy 126. After we passed McKenzie Bridge, we took Hwy 242, better known as the McKenzie Hwy Scenic Route. The Scenic Route is 37 miles long, full of 10 mph hairpin turns, with lots of gravel and lava dust on the road. Oregon Motorcyclist classified this ride as 'difficult', and I would have to agree with them.
At the top of the Scenic Route is the Dee Wright Observatory, with an altitude of 5187 feet. It was built out of lava rock during the Great Depression by the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps), and was finished in 1935. In the Observatory, there are little portals, and you can see 21 different mountains and peaks.
We continued on into Sisters, and our 2 Portland area members headed back for home, due to travel time left. The other 4 members had lunch/dinner, which everyone thought was very good. Then we returned home, with myself (Melody) in the lead via Hwy 20 and Hwy 22. 3 members took the Aumsville Hwy exit, and ther other member returned to Salem.
It was a beautiful ride, with some difficult areas, and almost 300 miles round trip. The riders from Portland logged over 400 miles. It was certainly worth the trip!
Comment
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Comment by William Abbott on September 3, 2009 at 8:15pm - Thanks for the great ride, it was very fun... Glad I was able to make it... the route up to the top was awesome, and fun to ride.
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Comment by Rick Fletcher on September 2, 2009 at 5:28am - Hats off to the OSC Valley Chapter for putting together a great ride. Coming from Portland it ended up being a 406 mile trip for me, but well worth it!
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Comment by Gini on August 31, 2009 at 9:54pm - Thanks to Melody and Kathy for putting together this ride. It was a great one! We should do it again next year.
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