September 14, 2018
Pendleton, Oregon to La Grande, Oregon
Up The Most Beautiful Climb Ever, then Riding on the Interstate
Pendelton was really starting to feel like home, so it was bittersweet to leave. The morning temps were again brisk, but the sky was sunny. Last night the organizers had warned us that it might be wise to get a move on because there would likely be a fair amount of "Round-Up" traffic after 8 AM, but we managed to fritter that buffer away before we rolled. Actually the traffic was manageable.
I'm embarrassed to admit that we are so saturated with the beautiful scenery that it takes something really phenomenal to catch our attention now. Today our attention was most definitely going to be grabbed by the lapels, but first let's talk about another roadway hazard ... Cattle Guards.
Although I'd much rather hassle with cattle guards than goat heads, they are a bother nonetheless. Cattle guards are slotted rows of metal "ribs" laid across roadways, with the pieces running perpendicular to the roadway and open space between each rib. Cars can drive over them, but cattle cannot walk over them because their legs will slip between the open metal and they'll be stuck there. The terrain around the road prevents the cattle from proceeding anywhere beside the road, so the cattle guards embedded in the roadway closes off their only route of escape on the pavement. Cattle, being the intellectual beings that they are, avoid the guards. Cattle, being the semi-sentient beings that they are, take the hint and avoid the guards.
This absolutely is cattle country, and on certain days (this being one of them) the route can be populated with many, many cattle guards. We have no choice but to ride over them on our bikes. Even though it is disconcerting, it can be done with minor little risk. But their crossing is accomplished with great discomfort. It seems that the cattle guards are somehow "tuned" to generate the greatest amount of vibration possible, no matter what speed you cross. Trust me, we played with all the variations. But no matter what, it was a skull rattling, teeth chattering experience. You could hear bikers groaning up ahead as they approached the guards. Those who didn't notice them until just before the crossing would often let loose with a horrified yelp ... a mixture of regret and outrage. If there was a cattle guard at the bottom of any kind of descent (because of the faster entry speed) you would see a small debris field of items vibrated loose from the crossing .. bike lights, water bottles, even the occasional helmet mirror. Still ... better a cattle guard than a Goat Head, for sure.
The Star Attraction today was said to be the climb up Emigrant Hill, AKA Deadman's Pass. It was everything it was cracked up to be. A long sweeping climb with switchbacks and beautiful, sinuous lines to it. Every time I looked behind or to the side I gasped in awe. I stopped to take a picture and another guy pulled in behind me to do the same. "I can't go more than 200 yards without taking a picture," he chuckled. It was true. Every glance left or right made you want to stop and document it.
The Yang to that Yin (or is it Yin to Yang? Well, its a duality anyway) was the finish to the day's ride. The last several miles, out of necessity, were on Interstate 84! Yes. On the shoulder of the Interstate. I think it was because there was no other paved option to get to La Grande, so what the heck. It was both thrilling and white-knuckle frightening to do that but after a bit it started seeming normal. The only bit of stupidity about this came from some of the riders. Although there was an ample shoulder, there was not quite enough of it (along with the rumble strip there) to easily pass a biker going slower than you. Some hot shots simply could not bear the idea of riding their brakes and were demonstrating some serious asshole-ery by making some very questionable passes. One guy was making some handlebar-to-handlebar passes ahead of us as he worked his way through the line, shouting "Left!". Grrr. For obvious reasons I didn't try to take any interstate photos, although they would have been jaw dropping for all the wrong reasons.
Today's ride: 56 miles (90 km)
Total: 332 miles (534 km)
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