Originally Posted by
M Rose
my wife is from Pendleton. But the ride from Athena to Elgin along 204 would be a cake walk compared to the ride I’m planning. The steepest part is going to be from Imnaha to Salt Creek Summit along the Wallowa Mountain Loop Road (FS 39). Almost straight up the backside of Hell’s Canyon.
I won’t be bringing bear spray. I’m not an advocate of bear spray… In my personal experience bear spray only makes matters worse. I want to neutralize the problem, hence I have bear
and cougar tags… and I have the proper bear deterrents.
I think this year if I can go at all it will be a shorter trip. I was hoping to have a bike this year to be able to make the trip, but because someone vandalized my daily I had to spend a big chunk of my new bike money repairing it instead.
204 is a cake walk with regards to great scenery. It would make a good overnight loop for you to "iron out" your gear (pun intended). You could return along the Umatilla river and maybe convince the folks at the Bar M ranch to let you take a swim in the Bingham hot springs pool.
As I remember the ride starts with a steep meandering open cheat grass hillside which allow some glimpses of multiple Cascade volcanos 100 miles to the the west. As you reach the summit of the Blue Mountains you can take a break at the Tollgate store near Spout Springs ski resort. Then there is a dramatic downhill into the lush high pasture land of the Wallowa valley. Maybe my memory of the ride is unrealistically beautiful, but I like it that way.