Triumphrat

daniel_p_hanson

I am off to Eugene, OR from my home base in Calgary for a running race on May 5... friends are going via car, so I can hop in with them. But I have some time before and after and was thinking of a motorcycle trip down, and then loop back up through the Olympic peninsula and back through BC to Calgary.

My concern is the chances of stormy snowy weather which don't mix well with mountain passes and motorcycles..

Around here, I would feel pretty safe unless a big storm was forecast (I can change my plans if this is the case) but what kind of condition will the roads be in for that trip. How about daily low's, around freezing?

What are the passes down through Washington and Oregon like? How about the interior of Washington State?

Cheers and thanks for advice from anyone who lives along my proposed route.

mistermellow001

Daniel, Google the Washington State Department of Transportation to check pass conditions. The most scenic pass through the Cascades is the North Cascades Highway (State Route 20), which usually opens up in late April or early May, I think. The passes to the south are lower in elevation and more likely to be clear by then. Average temperature state-wide is:
APRIL: 59 / 36
MAY: 66 / 41

But the state's topography varies WIDELY - generally, dry east of the Cascades, wet west. Colder evenings east, warmer west. Warmer and wetter close to the Pacific Ocean.

As for the Olympic Peninsula, it's hit and miss. Most of the peninsula is rainforest, and it means what it says, although I've had some beautiful rainless rides out there. If you want to do the U.S. 101 loop around the peninsula, you should count on rain. You might get lucky, but you'll enjoy the trip much more if you're prepared to get rained on, and even more if it ends up being nice!

If you can hold off your decision to the last minute, you could check the forecast before you make your decision. I usually use the (U.S.) National Weather Service website, which seems to hit the nail on the head better than Accuweather or the Weather Channel.

Another cool route at that time of year might be to stay east of the Cascades and work your way down from Kelowna, B.C. through the Okanogan Valley, through Washington following the Columbia River down to the Oregon border. I rarely cross into Oregon on the east side, so I don't have a recommended crossing for you, but I do love Eastern Oregon, and I'm sure there's an easy east-west highway to Eugene. You can follow the Columbia all the way to the Pacific Ocean, and there are plenty of crossings.

Hope that helps.

__________________
Guy

M700R

Generally pretty good weather here in central Washington, along the Columbia, by late April/early May. Once in a while the Cascades get snow even then, but it usually passes quickly. Sticking to lower elevations, like along the Columbia River, is a good way to avoid those springtime snow showers that sometimes hit the higher elevations in the mountains. It's a nice ride too, with some good side trips off of highway 97, which you can take all the way through Washington and Oregon and even into northern California as far as the town of Weed.

I've been riding 97 quite a bit already this year, and it's ice & snow free already. The higher country on either side of it is still in the grip of winter, but even that is fading fast.

Regards, Guy

BBR

Guy is spot on with recommending 97. It would be the most fun probably, but if the weather is iffy in the mountains you could go a along th Columbia to avoid a mtn pass in the Cascades. There are some back roads you could take, but you run into a lot more towns on them in the Willamette Valley. Pretty country on either side of the mountains. E Wa is great country!! (I grew up there so I mightbe a little biased.)

Hope you can ride!

__________________
BBR

“Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.”
Benjamin Franklin