Bicycles on gravel road to Grassy Knoll 6-19-21

General discussions on hiking in Oregon and the Pacific Northwest
User avatar
BigBear
Posts: 1836
Joined: October 1st, 2009, 11:54 am

Bicycles on gravel road to Grassy Knoll 6-19-21

Post by BigBear » June 19th, 2021, 6:49 pm

Hiked Grassy Knoll trail today for the first time in three years. I used to do it every June, but had taken a couple years off. There were bicycles on Bear Creek Road this morning and spread-out all the way to the Grassy Knoll trailhead until mid-afternoon. I had never seen bikes on the one-lane gravel backroads in all of my three decades-plus hiking. But today there were dozens of them. None of them had a numbered parchment which you would expect in a timed event.

Is this a new thing...pedaling up narrow roads?

Fortunately, I didn't hit any of them with my vehicle, and it not appear any of the other vehicles using the road hit any of them either, but it wasn't easy at times. None of the cyclists wore bright colors and the sunny day and alternating shaded canopy and open areas made for a few blind spots. I would think that this sport would be rather risky, especially in the afternoon when they go down hill and vehicles are ascending.

Just wondered if anyone else has come across such a thing.

On the good news today, I also saw a grouse, a wild turkey and a doe with a runt of a spotted fawn...in spite of all the cars, motorcycles and bicycles on the roadway.

User avatar
Chip Down
Posts: 3037
Joined: November 8th, 2014, 8:41 pm

Re: Bicycles on gravel road to Grassy Knoll 6-19-21

Post by Chip Down » June 19th, 2021, 7:15 pm

BigBear wrote:
June 19th, 2021, 6:49 pm
...the sunny day and alternating shaded canopy and open areas made for a few blind spots...
I hate that. Would rather drive in thick fog.

I've pedaled up that road twice. First time because it was gated. Second time I got my car a little past the open gate, but was stopped at a rockslide. Third time the gate was open and rockslide was cleared, so guess what I did...drove to the TH.

Anyway, yeah, I'm under the impression there's a burgeoning interest in such routes, but I'm not certain. The times I did that ride, it was fun knowing there would be no cars, and I had it all to myself. Today I rode maybe four-ish miles from Grouse Vista back to my car, and hated it, always looking over my shoulder, breathing dust after every car passed.

User avatar
BigBear
Posts: 1836
Joined: October 1st, 2009, 11:54 am

Re: Bicycles on gravel road to Grassy Knoll 6-19-21

Post by BigBear » June 20th, 2021, 11:41 am

Chip: I think your 1st and 2nd ride on the closed road makes sense. It would be a nice pedal, getting away from it all. But yesterday's experience for bikers would seem comparable to (a) playing frisbee on the freeway or (2) hiking with a fur coat during hunting season. The risk would seem far greater than the reward. Wearing camoflauge-grey on a road with limited shoulders is a bad idea. My brother, who is an avid motorcyclist and bicyclist, often says: "why do so many cyclists get hit? They aren't seen. You have to assume you are invisible."

The other bizzare thing yesterday on that road were a group of motorcyclists (10 or 12) that were parked in the narrowest and most exposed section of the road checking their gear. It took then several minutes after we arrived to get their crap together and get out of the way. The strange things about this: 1) of course, blocking a busy road, 2) a caravan of SUVs (2 with trailers) had just come through, and 3) (the biggie) there was a very wide shoulder on a turn a couple hundred yards behind them where they could have stopped and had a picnic without anyone caring. Not sure why they were delayed but two of their friends were at Triangle Pass with arms folded, wondering what happened to the rest of the group, so they had been putzing around for some time.

User avatar
Waffle Stomper
Posts: 3707
Joined: May 28th, 2008, 10:03 pm

Re: Bicycles on gravel road to Grassy Knoll 6-19-21

Post by Waffle Stomper » June 20th, 2021, 2:39 pm

Why am I having an overwhelming sense of sadness? I understand that bicyclists need places to ride without conflict with cars, and the other way around. It seems there is an overwhelming demand to get away and all the treasured places are becoming overwhelmed.

I wonder if this will balance out in time, post pandemic. Or, is this what we will have in the future? Not trying to add controversy, but just feeling sad.
"When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the Universe." - John Muir

User avatar
Paul2
Posts: 84
Joined: March 2nd, 2014, 11:02 pm

Re: Bicycles on gravel road to Grassy Knoll 6-19-21

Post by Paul2 » June 21st, 2021, 8:40 am

Looks like it is the ride of the month for a bike group: http://www.omtm.cc/june-falls-creek-hinterland
I've been wandering early and late, from New York City to the Golden Gate, and it don't look like I'll ever stop my wandering.
-James Taylor

User avatar
aiwetir
Posts: 600
Joined: December 10th, 2014, 11:54 am
Contact:

Re: Bicycles on gravel road to Grassy Knoll 6-19-21

Post by aiwetir » June 21st, 2021, 9:09 am

I can't see how anyone would think that dozens of bikes going down a road built for large trucks to extract timber from the forests would be any kind of problem.

The irony of anyone thinking that biking down logging roads is a problem when the OP was driving a gas powered vehicle down this same road seems a bit unreasonable, I mean what's next, people walking roads too?
- Michael

User avatar
BigBear
Posts: 1836
Joined: October 1st, 2009, 11:54 am

Re: Bicycles on gravel road to Grassy Knoll 6-19-21

Post by BigBear » June 21st, 2021, 8:00 pm

Paul2: thanks for the website info. Evidently it is indeed a new hobby. Can't believe anyone would do such a crazy thing, but I guess things are changing. I'll start watching for frisbees being tossed on the freeway from now on, but I'm still not hiking while wearing fur during hunting season. :)

Aiwetir: I'm not sure if you're making a joke or really don't understand the danger. When I biked back in the 80s and 90s (with a whole lot less road traffic) I wore the brightest colors I could find and I chose roads (usually paved) that had wide shoulders. I did pedal in the Siuslaw forest one time (got a flat) but on the one-lane roads I had exactly zero traffic - just me and the deer. In Sunday's case, the one-lane roads were busy and none of the cyclists wore earth-tone colors with compromised visibility due to the sun and shadows. (It was about as good of a choice in colors as a person in a crosswalk at night wearing black - "the invisible pedestrian")

ChipDown's choice of a closed road would have been greatly preferable to peak-season use.

Oh, and yes, there was a group of walkers on the road down where its paved in case you were wondering - I suspect they lived in the houses along Bear Creek Road.

User avatar
aiwetir
Posts: 600
Joined: December 10th, 2014, 11:54 am
Contact:

Re: Bicycles on gravel road to Grassy Knoll 6-19-21

Post by aiwetir » June 21st, 2021, 11:05 pm

Yes I agree with Chip, we should close more gravel roads to cars during peak season and let the bikes have them.
- Michael

User avatar
Chip Down
Posts: 3037
Joined: November 8th, 2014, 8:41 pm

Re: Bicycles on gravel road to Grassy Knoll 6-19-21

Post by Chip Down » June 22nd, 2021, 6:38 am

aiwetir wrote:
June 21st, 2021, 11:05 pm
Yes I agree with Chip, we should close more gravel roads to cars during peak season and let the bikes have them.
I think you know I never proposed that! :lol:
However, there are some roads I'd like to see closed to the shoot-n-pollute degenerates.

User avatar
aiwetir
Posts: 600
Joined: December 10th, 2014, 11:54 am
Contact:

Re: Bicycles on gravel road to Grassy Knoll 6-19-21

Post by aiwetir » June 22nd, 2021, 7:35 am

Chip Down wrote:
June 22nd, 2021, 6:38 am
I think you know I never proposed that! :lol:
:lol:
- Michael

Post Reply