Clearwater Path & Mohawk Valley

ByMichael Goatbells

A typical June day in Oregon … started a bit hazy / cloudy and by noon blue skies and sunshine. To save more of my knees and feet while getting in a bit more biking to prepare for upcoming bikekpacking trip, a good local bike loop seemed like a good idea. I added water, food, stay dry and stay warm kits to my gravel bike (Salsa) – all in the right places; then headed out from home.

The Route

First, the route traveled through Alton Baker Park and the Ruth Bascom Path all the way to Springfield, then over the hill to Dorris Ranch and on to Middle Fork Path to Clearwater. From there, a bike lane along 42st street goes all the way to Marcola road.

A river-side bike path to start that looked like this

Along the country roads in Mohawk Valley the roadside was covered in flowers – yellow, blue, purple and white.

Along the way

Turkey vultures were plentiful in Mohawk Valley; maybe 1 redtail hawk as well, but the song birds were so busy I couldn’t imagine wearing headphones.

A cemetery was off to the non-river side of the road up a short hill. I didn’t walk up but stopped at the gate to wonder why there …

Data Geek Corner

  • Bike load: 25% of bikepacking overnight kit (just stay warm and stay dry) and only snacks.
  • Bike bags: Front, frame and back panniers attached
  • Wind: moderate
  • Camera usage: low
  • Bike Carbon bank YTD: 3.0 (same algo: 3 hours biking for 1 hour driving)