The drive from Oakland, Oregon to Susanville, California is 337 miles. I've done it several times. The first half of the route is on I-5. The second half is on 2-lane state highways 89 and 44. All of the route is mountainous, with countless curves and 9 signed road summits.
Volcanoes
Clouds permitting, the driving route has views of three Cascade Range volcanoes: Mt. McLoughlin, Mt. Shasta, and Mt. Lassen. During this trip the volcano views were excellent because the weather was unusually warm and sunny.
The first volcano I saw was Mt. McLoughlin (M'laiksini Yaina) in southern Oregon. The 9493 foot (2894 m) peak is visible for only a short time from I-5 west of Medford. In 2009 I pedaled near the mountain, then hiked to the summit 3 weeks later. My legs hurt for 3 days afterwards.
Mt. McLoughlin. 10x telephoto view through the windshield while driving on I-5.
The second volcano I saw was Mt. Shasta (Ako-Yet or Et ti ja na) which is the northern of two stratovolcanoes in California. The summit elevation is 14,162 feet (4318 m). It's a popular destination for mountain climbers, but beyond my ability now.
California has a little-known third volcano northeast of Mt. Shasta, a shield volcano called Medicine Lake volcano. Only 7921 feet (2415 m) high, but it has a larger volume than Mt. Shasta and covers 770 square miles, making it the largest volcano in North America by surface area. I pedaled into the caldera during my 2009 California J bike tour.
Distant view of Mt. Shasta and Trinity Alps from the I-5 vista point north of Yreka.
The third volcano I saw was Mt. Lassen (Kohm Yah-mah-nee), the southernmost volcano in the Cascade Range. Summit elevation is 10,463 feet (3190 m).
The hiking trail to the summit is relatively easy because the trailhead is 8512 feet elevation at the crest of the park road. I hope to do the hike soon, between mid July and mid September when snow is minimal. I wanted to do the hike during my 2009 California J bike tour but the trail was closed because of a fatality. I hiked to nearby Brokeoff Mountain instead.
Mt. Lassen from the CA 44 scenic overloook which burned in the 2009 Goat fire and in the 2021 Dixie fire.
In southernmost Oregon I-5 has up close views of the 2020 Almeda fire, a 3200 acre urban wildfire that burned 2368 residential structures and 178 commercial structures in the cities of Phoenix and Talent. It was started by arson in two places along the Bear Creek Greenway trail which I pedaled 3 months earlier during my 2020 Going Rogue tour. I took a break from driving to pedal 15 miles on the Greenway trail and see how it changed.
Entering the burn zone on the Bear Creek Greenway.
East of Mt. Lassen the driving route passes through the northernmost extent of the Dixie fire which I first saw when driving to my 2022 Brigham Young's Promised Land bike tour. The change was stunning compared to a year earlier when driving to my 2021 Silver and Gold bike tour.
BEFORE: Roadside view of Mt. Lassen on May 10, 2021, two months before the Dixie fire.
The drive to Susanville gave me two excellent places to experience before and after views of wildfires. The bike tour route has some Dixie fire before and after photo opportunities along CA 89 between Greenville and Quincy. Unfortunately I have no "before" photos of most of the route.
Susanville
In Susanville I explored the downtown a little bit. I have seen the town several times over the years. It seems to be declining.
Overall it was a good day. This was my first time to do a short bike ride while driving to a bike tour. It worked out well to break up the drive and add an additional dimension to the Destruction and Renewal theme. I spent more time driving than biking, but I did an interesting bike ride so I'm calling this day 1 of the bike tour.
I did not feel well when I went to bed. I had a stuffy nose and sore throat that seemed to be caused by dehydration. I didn't drink water during the warm 15 mile bike ride, and I didn't drink much water during the warm drive. I resolved to stay more hydrated in the future.
Distance: 14.5 miles (23.2 km) Average Speed: 10.5 mph (16.8 km/h) Ascent/Descent: +317/-317 ft. (+97/-97 m)
Today's ride: 15 miles (24 km) Total: 15 miles (24 km)
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marilyn swettWhat an interesting theme for a tour. We drove into Lassen Volcanic NP and on to Susanville last summer and saw the aftermath of that fire. It was very sobering. I'll be looking forward to reading your journal, Wayne! Reply to this comment 8 months ago
