Day One - Klamath Falls to 5 Mile Creek

The day started out easy. We met at the Bi-Mart in Klamath Falls after a leisurely morning. Our bikes, clothing, and muscles were clean and fresh.

The OC&E trail was only a few blocks away, and it was paved for the first 10 or so miles. We made great time... about 17 miles per hour. It was scenic, the weather was pleasant, and the air was fresh and bright.

Then, the pavement ended and the dirt and gravel began. At first it wasn’t too bad. A nice double-track through farmland and juniper forest.

Soon, we were coming in to the “soul-crushing gates” as one writer put it. A bit of an exaggeration. However, there were several... maybe 50? And at each gate, someone had to open it, wait for the others to pass, and then close and latch it. We switched off in a round-robin fashion.

The ride, for the next 20 miles or so was gentle, if occasionally pocked with cattle hooves in dry adobe. I wished for a suspension bike rather than my hard-tail and rigid front fork, but the 3” tires absorbed much of the jarring.

After 30 or 40 miles, the terrain shifted to loose gravel. We were continuing to climb and the plus-sized tires tended to float over the gravel for the most part.

My fellow riders had 2” or 2.25” tires, and they had a rougher go of it, sinking and fish-tailing in the loose rock.

We pulled up into camp late, completely spent, We set up camp in the woods and had a toast of some whiskey that James brought. And then we crawled into our tents and slept like tired, spent logs.

Next