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Riding from Sisters to Bend on Single Track this week (6/13)

7K views 22 replies 11 participants last post by  NastyNick 
#1 ·
Hello,

I was curious if it'd be possible to connect single track all the way to Bend this week. I'm thinking about taking the 92 LTD bus from Eugene out to the McKenzie Ranger Station and then riding my bike out to Sisters and jumping on trail from there to Bend. I'll have a rack/pannier on my 29er and will have all the gear I'll need to camp. Would like to make it straight forward, but wouldn't mind diverting a bit from the path for things like hot springs/amazing photo ops.

How would I do this? Peterson Ridge - Mzark - Phils? I'm pretty vague on the subject and am new to finding maps for these areas.

Would the weather even allow this? If not, would it be possible to ride mostly single track and cut out snowy sections by road (gravel or tar)?

According to ODOT's trip check, the 242 will be open to bikes/ped. So I'm adding that into my route.

Thanks all!
 
#4 ·
We ride that thing to Sisters all the time. It is a ride one can do when all else is snowed in. Wide, loose and boring, but it goes. We do a loop--out on the BS road, back on Sizemore.

There are some interesting side roads, and a fair number of dirtbike single tracks. I've long thought about getting involved with trying to put together a long Mrazak-Peterson single track. Anyone else think it could be done?
 
#6 ·
Hold tight Newf-dog

Oh, yeah. The Deschutes Basin Land Trust is in the early stages of making this happen and is working with COTA and the Sisters Trails Alliance for just such trails of which you speak. We're waiting on the establishment of the Skyline Forest to allow for legal and protected trail network connecting Bend and the PRT (low to mid elevation). Its still several years out, but I remember a time when the Wanoga Network seemed like it would never happen. Please don't get creative out there yet, we've got plenty of projects on the plate right now that need all our efforts.

Skyline Forest

Visualize a connected network of trail from the PRT, through Skyline Forest, through Phils, and Wanoga and beyond. Three season riding from Sisters to Sunriver.
 
#8 ·
We're waiting on the establishment of the Skyline Forest to allow for legal and protected trail network connecting Bend and the PRT (low to mid elevation). Its still several years out, Skyline Forest

Visualize a connected network of trail from the PRT, through Skyline Forest, through Phils, and Wanoga and beyond. Three season riding from Sisters to Sunriver.
Thanks for the info SYC!

I agree that we need a santioned trail, or it will be dirtbiked and horse pocked to no end. I did a 20 mile loop from Tumalo Reservoir last week, and must have done 8 miles of unofficial dirtbike single track. It was primo then but will be a sandbox soon.

Looking at the maps in your link, the Crown Pacific land swap of a few years ago has done wonders for our contiguous public land. There is now a continuous strip of Forest Service and BLM land parallel to the BS road from before Tumalo Reservoir to Sisters. A trail could be done now, with a loop formed if the Skyline Forest effort is successful. Also from your link:

Unfortunately, the lack of a firm date and binding commitment for a transaction also creates some very real challenges for the Land Trust. Most notably, the Land Trust can't generally raise funds to purchase a property that the landowner hasn't committed to selling. While the Land Trust has managed to secure $4 million in federal Forest Legacy Funds, even these funds will be at risk if the landowner doesn't make a formal commitment in the near future.

I'm thinking we ought to be looking at doing something on the public land now.
 
#9 ·
Newf,

The words "public land" and "now" do not come together as often as we would like. COTA/STA are working with the FS to incorporate connections with the Skyline Forest and many other areas as well.. If Skyline Forest is a long ways out, you would blow a gasket on the FS timeframe. x10 for BLM in our experience here.

It took about 12 years from the time COTA and the FS officially began the planning stages for Wanoga. We got the go ahead, what about 4 years ago, and we've still got considerable trail to complete.

Skyline Forest/Land Trust is going to be our best hope for the next great new trail network. If we can get even more community support to help finish Wanoga we can focus more efforts on the next area.

Oh, and currently in Central Oregon we're working on Wanoga and Cline Butte/Maston networks and the East Redmond project. I think we all wish the other trail organizations in this state had the projects to complete that we do. Fact is through a lot of bureaucratic hoop jumping we're actually seeing great progress with our public lands. And we're not quitting any time soon. Community support for our existing projects and respect for the public lands process (by not building or riding illegal trails) will continue our successes with public lands managers.
 
#11 ·
Newf,

The words "public land" and "now" do not come together as often as we would like.

Community support for our existing projects and respect for the public lands process (by not building or riding illegal trails) will continue our successes with public lands managers.
I've got some friends involved with senator Wyden's recreation initiative. I'll see if they have any ideas for streamlining.

I don't want to sound unappreciative, but Ben's and Storm King were sketched out on a napkin over a few beers at my house, and two guys did much of the work. Soon we had a trail. You can see why rogue trails emerged in that era.

Meanwhile, it isn't the mountainbikers doing rogue trails, it is the dirtbikers. I was out there today and can't believe how many single tracks already exist.
 
#12 ·
I wish there was an organization for dirt bikes like COTA around here.

I ride both mtb and dirt bikes and there is not a SINGLE sanctioned single track trail in central Oregon for dirt bikes. And whenever there is one the quads end up on it and it ends up being a 5 foot wide highway like the EFR riding area. Although I think the vandavert area is becoming a sanctioned area for dirt bikes..until the quads ruin it.

I'm all for new single track for moto's or bikes!. ( separate of course )


PS.. the MTB'rs make rogue trails and the horses do also.
 
#13 ·
And whenever there is one the quads end up on it and it ends up being a 5 foot wide highway like the EFR riding area. Although I think the vandavert area is becoming a sanctioned area for dirt bikes..until the quads ruin it.

.
Hah! I'd heard the quads had no friends! Those things totally ruined the Kettle Valley Railway and much of the Trans Canada Trail in BC.

Horses, MTBs, Dirt Bikes, Quads, just don't mix very well. I thought motors were motors. Thanks for the perspective.
 
#16 ·
Can't start a new thread yet, so I thought I'd bump this one.
My wife and I are new to mountain biking, and looking for some relatively mellow introductory rides in the Bend area. Tried Horse Butte last week, but I'm really intrigued by the old Brooks-Scanlon logging road. The problem we found today is with access. We tried connnecting via Bull Springs road just past Shevlin (off of Johnson), but it was gated by Taylor NW. We moved on up to Tumalo Reservoir (where Sizemore road branches off) thinking to go south on Bull Flat Road, but that looked to be marked No Trespassing. So we're still trying to figure out how to access: out of Shevlin Park or perhaps dropping east from Tumalo Res? Maybe some place up closer to Sisters?
Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.
 
#18 ·
If you get on the right road, there should not be a Taylor NW gate. You need to hang a right before their gate. There will be another gate a couple miles further down the road to control motor vehicles as the area is closed to them this time of year.
 
#19 ·
That is a long boring gravel road. My wife rides it all the time for some reason. It is actually pretty useful for various loops, and clear of snow early.

It is a bit screwy around the Hap Taylor pit finding the right road, but the open road is there.

You can get on on it off Skyliner, from Shevlin Park, or near Tumalo Reservoir, where again, the roads are open, while some of the land off the road is marked no trespassing. Get yourself a forest service map, and don't get too paranoid about the pieces of private land. As long as you don't cross gates and fences you should be fine. We've been riding out the for 20 years without a hassle.
 
#20 ·
Hey, thanks, Richard, Rockin and newfydog.

We will give it another shot today (when it warms up a little bit later this morning). Looks like a nice day for a cruise, (boring is okay for us at this point, my wife prefers that) great view from Sizemore yesterday, so it should be pretty nice on 4606, too. Maybe I can jump off onto some of the loops that we might encounter. I've gotta get me some of those forest service maps and topos.....
 
#22 ·
Hey Newfydog,

I guess I can't pm until I have a 10 post-count. Let's see...I guess this makes three.
Mary and I are going to try again today at about noon, leave from Shevlin, via Jack Springs Pine road. We are pretty pathetic at this point, just getting into it, but maybe we'll see you at the trailhead if you get up that way today.
Pseudo-luddites, we don't have a GPS, but looking at the maze of dirt roads we've seen on the maps, thinking it might be a good idea.
Thanks for the tips!
 
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