Oregon and Mammoth: Umpqua, Sandy Ridge, Mammoth Rock and LRC

I got a call from my brother in Oregon asking me to come up and ride with him so he could show off his new Santa Cruz Bronson. I had to do a little planning to fit in Junior Olympic Water Polo in San Jose on the way up there, but it all worked out great, kind of. Our original plan was to stop on the way to Sandy in Ashland but there was too much smoke from wildfires. We decided to continue further north to Roseburg where we rode a six mile stretch of the Umpqua Trail. I didn't think we would get much climbing in since the trail ran along the river but I was wrong about that. We started at Swiftwater and rode the trail up river and it was awesome. It seemed a little mellow in the beginning but it got a little more personality as it went on. It was not technical at all, but it was so beautiful that it is difficult to describe. The trails were lined by the river on one side and ferns, moss, and trees on the other. There was enough climbing to make it a workout and the return on the out and back was pretty fun.
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After we left the Umpqua Trail we headed up to Sandy Ridge to ride with my brother. Sandy Ridge is the best place I have ever ridden. It is like a giant bmx track with some rock gardens, berms, roots, trees, tabletops, and rock drops. It begins with a climb up a closed paved road for about 3 1/2 miles. There are several spots along the way that you can drop in on and have a blast. However, the further up you go the longer the roller coaster ride down will be. The trails are in great shape with a lot of fun flowy sections but you do need to keep you eyes open for rocks and tree roots. My only complaint about riding in Oregon is that is hard to take pictures because there are so many trees. The first afternoon I rode I almost wanted a light kit to see the trails as the day came to a close. It was great to have a tour guide for the ride, although not necessary, since my brother rides there four or five times a week (it's in his backyard). The best part of the trip was going on a night ride with my wife and brother. Night riding through trees with berms, jumps, and all other kinds of fun obstacles is a blast.

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I hated to leave Oregon, but it was time to start the trip home with a quick stop at the condo in Mammoth. We only had one day in town so we tried to make the best of it by riding Mammoth Rock, Panorama Dome from Horseshoe, and Lower Rock Creek. The trails were in great shape since it had rained overnight and off and on throughout the morning. The main mountain would have been a blast to ride I'm certain but free is a nice price for the ride we got in so I wont complain.

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All things considered it was an awesome trip getting to ride and spend time with the family. However, next time I don't think I will go over the bars in a rock garden and destroy my new Garmin 510.

 

Sounds like a great time! I'd love to take a three week tour and ride all the hotspots from Vancouver through Washington state, Oregon, nor cal to so cal!

 

Thanks for sharing and posting pix ! I love seeing rides in different parts of the country.

Coincidently, I made a quick trip up to portland couple of weeks ago. My buddy who lives up now there told me about Sandy Ridge. I didn't get a chance to go for a mtb ride there, but have to make that a point to do so. Cool to see your ride report about Sandy Ridge !

 

The pics are GREAT!!!!!

 

Damn teachers out doing fun stuff all summer while I'm stuck working.... Nice RR Doug, looks like an awesome trip!

 

The pics were not easy to take. There are so many shadows and I don't have a great camera, the Iphone wouldn't work at all, so I did the best I could. I have about 100 of the blurriest pics you have ever seen if you would like some more. LOL Mammoth was much easier to get some pics in, but Oregon was so beautiful. Oregon is about as green as Kauai in my opinion.

 

Very cool, I'm in Roseburg right now! Gonna ride Mt. Bachelor to Bend with Cog Wild Friday. Plan on riding the Umpqua Trail sometime next week before heading home. Thanks for RR and pics.

 

Awesome, have fun. We started the Umpqua at Swiftwater and rode east. I would love to hear how your ride goes and how much of the Umpqua you end up riding. I would love to go back next year and do as much of the Umpqua, 79 miles, as possible. We were going to try to ride Ashland and Mckenzie River but I got called back to work early.

 

Nice report and great pics! I'm jealous.

 

I just rode North Umpqua trail last week, it is sweet. 3.5 mile segments that allow you back to the paved road via bridges. The sections I rode were down stream. Funny, it rides like a climb with major exposure on the right 95% of the time. The trail climbs 200 to 300 feet above the river and then swoops down only to repeat, over and over again. The swoops go fast so you basically climb the entire ride. There is lots of green stuff on the sides crowding the trail, in a few places are PO. I never saw another rider on the trail (nor hiker).

Next I headed to the McKenzie River Lava trail from the old Santiam wagon road to Trail Bridge. This trail was sweet but you needed to pay attention at all times. The entire length contains ankle biters (sawn small logs and overhanging lava rocks). The trail is dark and the overhangs will bite. The trail drops downhill 80% of the time following the underground river. The trail ventures into 1000, 3000 and 5000 year old lava flows. The new flows are nasty with wicked sharp crinkle lava and lots of screed, no smooth spongy dirt here. 3K lava is smoother with soil on the trail bed, 5K lava is smoother still with long stretches of soft spongy dirt. The 5K areas were worn enough to use the tandem. I met a lot of riders on this trail last weekend. There was nobody on the trail mid week (except me and some hikers). It is pretty flat and I rode segments as an out n back to keep off the highway. We got some rain the last two days which made the rocks and roots a little more fun but no extra thrills.
Happy Oregon Trails

I can post picts once I unpack.

No cell phone coverage on either trail. those old school hand held comumicators would have come in handy, me I had a whistle, talk about old school.
I ran higher tire pressures so I did not loose a tire lug, but Lava has a tendency to rip lugs down to the cord, so an extra set of meats might be something to keep at base camp.