June 8 Eugene to McKenzie Bridge 58 miles 5:23

Touched by Angels - We followed the McKenzie River through pleasant country up to McKenzie Bridge in good weather. McKenzie Bridge consists of a store and a few rental cabins. We wanted a room because the weather report promised rain soon. None to be had. Gary and Joyce, a retired couple, chatted with us and then opened their home to us. We camped on the lawn, showered. Roy helped Gary drink some beer. Gary and Joyce loaned us their car to drive to the nearest restaurant a few miles back down the road (they had already dined)! Joyce fed us strawberry shortcake for dessert and excellent pancakes and bacon and eggs for breakfast. Kindness to strangers is still to be found!

The Ordeal! June 9 McKenzie Bridge to Sisters 44 miles 5:48 riding time

McKenzie Pass is about 4500 vertical feet above McKenzie Bridge. Highway 242 is closed to automobile traffic at this time of year but open, sort of, to bikers. It's 22 miles from the turn-off to the top. Eleven miles up, there is a gate to close the road. We had to push the bikes through the woods and over a steep rocky berm to get around the gate. By then the weather had turned to drizzle and intermittent rain. I was in granny gear pretty much entirely from the turn off to about Mile Sixteen. We were reduced to pedaling for about fifteen minutes, rest for two or three. You should understand, this is wilderness - no houses, no cars, no nothing out there. At Mile Sixteen, there's a guy inexplicably walking two little dogs who says "You're okay. The road plateaus in about two blocks." Two minutes later, we're on flat road for three or four miles! Back to granny gear for the last few miles to the top. The pass is a lava field, an expanse of crazily broken stone with scattered snow patches remaining. There's an "observatory", a stone structure with openings to direct the view to the Three Sisters peaks and others. With the clouds and rain, we could see almost nothing. There was a young girl at the pass who cycled up with her father, wearing just a cotton t-shirt and skimpy shorts. She was turning blue, so Michele gave her a shirt to wear to get back down in some comfort. We huddled behind the restroom for some shelter from the wind to eat a snack before heading down. When we got to Sisters, the annual rodeo was on. We were grateful to get the last motel room.