TransAm Day #60 Prineville, OR - Bend, OR
TransAm Day #60
July 26, 2018
Prineville, OR - Bend, OR
51 Miles
Ride Time 3:56 Hours
Tour Total Miles 4207
I slept well in my tent last night in Phil and Robin’s backyard in Prineville. By a tremendous stroke of luck, Phil had recognized us last night at the Ochoco Brewery. It was getting late, and we still hadn’t found a place to stay for the night. There wasn’t a campground in town, and we were unable to find a Warm Showers host that would take three cyclists.
We had met Phil nine days ago at a breakfast stop in Lowell, ID. He was fly fishing and rafting with friends, and had talked to us about our trip. He had recommended that we go to the Ochoco brewery when we got to Prineville. By blessing of trail magic Phil recognized us last night and invited us to stay at his house. I slept without a fly on my tent, and it got a little chilly in the middle of the night. This morning Phil and Robin made us a wonderful breakfast and we traded adventure stories.
I followed the Crooked River out of Prineville along State Route 370. Prineville is in Crook County. The valley was rather shallow with long square rock bluffs to either side. The road shared the valley with a railroad track. I was headed southwest and there were large snowcapped mountains in the distance. Enormous Mt. Jefferson stood to the Northwest. There was no shoulder on the highway, and not even a white line. I rode past beautiful Smith Rock, which Phil had recommended seeing.
I left the route at Terrebonne and headed south on US Highway 97 which was heavy with traffic. Eileen is meeting her husband Klaus in Bend today, and Scott and I are accompanying her. The plan was to have lunch in Redmond, population 28,000. It was wild to have so many options. It was also fantastic to have phone and internet service again. I got a chocolate milkshake at Sno-Cap and then met Scott and Eileen at Christie’s Kitchen, where I had a veggie burger and lemonade.
Heading towards Bend, I got off busy US highway 97 and took two-lane South Canal Boulevard, which had much less traffic. For the most part, it was tree-lined and a lot nicer. I continued to pass grass fields and livestock. Coming into Bend, population 91,000, I noticed numerous housing developments encroaching on the prairie.
Despite the desert landscape and climate, the culture here in Bend seems Pacific Northwest. There are bike lanes everywhere, and veggie and gluten free options on the menus. Breweries are everywhere.
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