mtnbud

FYI :. There are lots of trees down and side roads closed in the Salem Oregon area right now. Minto Brown Park is closed.

I'd assume Willamette Mission and Champoeg would have similar issues.

How are roads in your neck of the woods? Portland area? Banks to Vernonia rails to trails?

How about Eugene area? Cottage Grove? The state of Washington?

The ice storm may take some time to clear up. Be aware you may find limited shoulders, closed roads, and downed power lines at least in certain areas on less trafficked areas.

Update: Minto Brown Park is open.

I did a gravel ride in the coast range yesterday and had to turn around after it became clear to me I was going to spend more time carrying my bike over fallen logs than riding.

rlmalisz

I'm a fair-weather cyclist, but walk the lower bit of the Banks-Vernonia once a week or so in the wet months. The volunteer crew is pretty good about clearing downed trees and branches within a day or so after weather events. When I was up there last (about 10 days back), the trail was clear of stuff...but the adjacent live RR tracks had whole trees across the rails. The lower sections, north and south, are mostly deciduous trees in pretty wet soil, so they fall over easily. The upper bit is mostly evergreens, better drained. I'll probably walk the bottom four miles Thursday, and am sure it will be clear. Beyond that, I'd expect everything in my county (up to the summit and a mile or so beyond) to be clear. Clatsop county doesn't seem to have the same level of enthusiasm for keeping the trail clear, so once you're over the top, YMMV.

jazzyrider

Roads here around the Seattle/Tacoma/eastside and up around Whidbey/Camano are relatively good. We've had some recent wind storms and snow back in Feb and experienced the same downed trees, lots of debris and sand/gravel on the shoulders. With spring around the corner and drier days, many local cities are now cleaning these up quickly. I have the fortunate experience to do some recon on my motorcycle to check road conditions and updated routes so I try to do this before doing a bike ride in areas to verify. Smaller towns and cities it might be a bit longer but the bigger cities are definitely on top of this. Would recommend wider tires to be on the safe side till end of March.

Shifty

The ice storm did not reach into the Eugene area. South of Corvallis all paved and gravel roads are business as usual. The exception is the area on the McKenzie where the fire occurred last September.

jazzyrider

Good to know about the Eugene area! Was hoping to finally bring the bike to do some sight seeing this month as we do the Eugene half marathon every few years but like most events either gone virtual or postponed. Looking forward to next year in the area!

Agree on the wildfires affecting many areas including McKenzie. Probably be down there soon on the motorcycle to do some recon and touring. We use Bend area as our central camp then venture out daily. I need to figure out a bike rack or trailer setup to bring on the motorcycle.

mtnbud

FYI:

I've been over to Sisters and Bend a few times recently and there is no storm damage at all on the east side of the Cascades. I also have it on good authority the fires didn't hit the McKenzie trail. If you time it right, the McKenzie highway opens to bicycle traffic before they open the gates to cars. Typically gates open to cars around mid June.

jazzyrider

Good to know, thanks! I know wildfires definitely hit Detroit area hard. We had just finished a good bike trip 2 weeks before. Saw the news and pics and totally devastated.

mtnbud

Yes, Detroit is gone. I believe the North Fork Opal Creek area and Shelburg Falls area are toast also. I'd assume anything off of the Brietenbush Hwy is also gone - Not totally sure about that. The fire damage is truly devastating.

droppedandlost 

For those riding in South King County, the Cedar River Trail is closed at SE 238th in Maple Valley. This is about a 1.5 miles from the end of the pavement. Bridge repair is scheduled to be finished mid May.

ReeseATPH

From driving around Bellevue, Redmond and Kirkland I can tell you road construction is everywhere. I see very few cyclists and hesitate to even take my car down certain streets.