*Motorcycle Roads NorthWest

One thing that is immediately apparent about Apiary Road is that it’s rural. If you’re coming in from the north end around Rainier or Clatskanie, you have to climb up out of the river valley to get there, and then you go up a set of wonderful uphill esses that take you up onto the plateau.

If there’s no traffic, you can have a significantly fun trip up through those curves and still not be in serious hoodlum territory. Those are some good sweepers.

Unfortunately, that also means that the bicyclists like them too. I had to wait at intersections several times for the bicycle race that was running that weekend that went up through Fern Hill Road and then down Apiary back to US 30.

The south end of this road is more timer country than rural. The trees are thicker and taller, and evergreen instead of deciduous, and the farms don’t have lovely manicured lawns out in front of the house once you’re a few miles past the wide spot in the road that is the hamlet of Apiary itself.

One thing to keep in mind. Get gas in Clatskanie or Rainier before you head Apiary Road. There’s no services along the roadside and services are very scant even further south on the roads this one connects to.

• Road Name: Apiary Road
• Counties: Columbia(OR)
• Length: 23
• Towns: Apiary, Hudson, Rainier, West Rainier

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Oh Frabjous Joy!

Or something to that effect. This road is a real kick in the pants, hidden in the Oregon Coast Range.

Yes, it’s a bit short and is the shortest-distance route between Oregon Route 202 and US 26, but it’s still a gas. When I rode it this past summer, it was also freshly-paved and as smooth as the south end of a north-bound infant. Seriously. I think I could’ve rolled a quarter from on edge from the 202 intersection all the way to US26.

Now, there’s no services on this route except for a towing yard, and nobody wants to have to use their services. And there’s plenty of logging trucks too, so no guarantees that the road is going to stay that nice either.

The only thing that was seriously wrong with this road is that it was too short, only 9 miles. Were it not raining, I would’ve turned around and done this one a few more times.

But for the meantime, you can enjoy some seriously Coastal Range-style twisties. Even in the rain, this one was a kick.

• Counties:
• Length:
• Towns: Jewell, Vinemaple, Jewell Junction

And keep an eye out for Sasquatch. He’s reputed to live in those hills.

Microsoft Streets & Trips file for Oregon Route 103 ‘Fishhawk Falls Highway’

Garmin GPX file for Oregon Route 103 ‘Fishhawk Falls Highway’

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Editor’s Note: I keep wanting to call this Fishkill Falls Highway. Guess I spent too many years Out East.

Editor’s Note: Garmin GPX file added at the bottom

The first time that I rode through in August of 2007, the western stretch of this road was a wondrous piece of pavement with fresh, racetrack-smooth pavement that was to die for even in the wet.

Then the paving stopped. And it became an adventure road. It was wet, gnarly, bumpy, frost-heavy, and oh yes, highly twisty.

With either a fresh coat of pavement or dry weather, Oregon 202 would’ve been highly enjoyable. As it was, between the damp weather and the logging trucks on Monday morning, it was very nerve-wracking.

Riding out of the south end of Astoria Oregon, one easily finds oneself on this old forest highway. It starts on the south side of Astoria where US101 splits off to the right and crosses the Youngs Bay Bridge. Once you get out of the Astoria area, there’s little to nothing for services. Make sure that you’re fed, fueled, and hydrated before leaving town.

It’s not rather unexpected in this particular damp part of Oregon, but this road has a couple of nice waterfalls.

The small waterfalls along the roadway are rather pretty and a nice spot to rest and stretch. This one, Barth Falls, along the Klatskanie River is only a drop of a few feet but has an interesting little fish ladder to the left.

Much to my surprise and even though it looms large on my maps, the town of Jewell isn’t really a town but rather a spot where the farmhouses are a little closer together. It’s very easy to miss the turn down Fishhawk Falls Highway, that is if you’re heading back to 101. There’s also no services there, so you’re out of luck until you get to Mist or back to 101.

If you’re heading back to Portland, you might was well stay on 202 until you meet Oregon 47. From there you can pick any number of excellent backroads that will take you back to the big city.

• Towns: Astoria, Jewell, Mist
• Length: 43
• Counties: Clatsop, Columbia

Microsoft Streets & Trips file for Oregon Route 202 (Available soon)

Garmin GPX format file for Oregon Route 202

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This is another member of the Grangeville Gang. And no, this road is not named after a mountain, at least not directly, but after a town that at one time was more important than Grangeville.

This road is very sparsely travelled as Mount Idaho isn’t exactly a bustling metropolis. The road has a few new houses built along it though as the views are quite nice. Not sure I’d want to live up there in the winter though, as I bet it snows like nobody’s business.

In the summer though, this road is a giggle. I thoroughly enjoyed ripping up it at a good clip, and didn’t see a single vehicle until I was into “downtown” Mt. Idaho and not another one until I was right back into Grangeville.

You also don’t have the impressive vistas that you can get with Harpster or Whitebird. Instead, you have a load of fun on a road that isn’t so challenging that the novice is tired after a run or two. You might need more gas in Grangeville after you’ve done the Harpster-Elk City-Mt. Idaho Loop though. This is some seriously rugged country.

Right in the middle of Mt. Idaho at the curve in the main road you can see the back of a Idaho State Historical Marker, which reads:

In 1862, a noted Western scout, Mose Milner, started Mount Idaho on his gold rush trail to Florence. Camas Prairie’s major early town soon grew up here. But when civic leaders resisted a farm effort to organize a grange there in 1874, Grangeville grew up as a better-located town. Although Mount Idaho became county seat from 1875 to 1902 and had an important Chinese community, Grangeville soon surpassed its older rival. Most of its early buildings have disappeared.

It’s not terribly picturesque, but gives a view of the valley to the south.

• Towns: Mount Idaho
• Length: 9 miles
• County: Idaho County, Idaho

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I rode Oregon Route 22 out of Hebo with part of our group returning to Beaverton (outside Portland) from Beaver (along 101). Oregon 22 is a very picturesque road with lots of trees and interesting geology lining it. While most of the road was 40-50mph sweepers, some of the corners were surprisingly abrupt 90-degree right angles more frequently seen on back-country ‘farm-to-market’ roads.

OR22 has a decent road surface, but very few long straights for passing. I distinctly recall having difficulty finding a spot to pass the preceding rider in a safe and legal manner. This is not to say that Oregon DoT was over-liberal in their use of double yellows, but rather that the straights were often far too short to pass other motorcyclists who crawl through corners and pin the throttle on the straights.

OR22 (together with OR18) is the easy road between US101 and points east for this area. A more-challenging road is to be found in the Nestucca Valley Road.

One point of particular interest to aeronautic and aircraft enthusiasts, The Evergreen Flight Musuem located in McMinnville, Oregon is just off Highway 18 along this route east. An immense glass and brick building with many WW2 and early-Cold War aircraft, it’s certainly a site worth visiting.

• Towns: Cloverdale, Dolph, Grande Ronde
• Length: 25
• Counties: Tillamook, Yamhill

Microsoft Streets & Trips file for Oregon Route 22

Overview Map of Oregon Highway 22, Hebo to Valley Junction:

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