Portland-Nehalem Bikepacking Route

Numbers

• 200 miles
• 14,000 ft elevation gain
• 70:30 paved:unpaved

Description

This route starts in Portland and follows a 200-mile loop. Traveling counter-clockwise, the southern half follows the Trask River through the Tillamook Forest. There are several camping options along the river, and plenty of opportunities to filter water.

The halfway point is Nehalem Bay State Park which is one of my favorite state parks in Oregon. It has so much to offer:

• Sweeping views of beautiful coastline where the forest butts up against dunes.
• Very nice hiker/biker sites
• Lockers for food
• USB charging stations
• Bicycle repair tools
• Hot showers!

If that’s not enough, Manzanita is only about one and a half miles away. Manzanita is a charming little coastal town with a cute grocery store/deli and several options for dining.

The 100-mile ride home follows a northern route through the Tillamook forest, along the Nehalem River. Once again, there are plenty of places to filter water along the route and several dispersed camping options (including one of my favorite getaways).

Alternate Options

My ideal route has campsites at roughly 50-mile intervals, which would break the ride down to 4-days and 3 nights, but this route has a few options.

• You could start from Hillsboro transit center to cut the first and last days a bit shorter.
• You could skip the riverside campsites and ride 100 miles out and/or back.
• You can take the NW Connector Bus which has a 3-day all-you-can-ride pass for $25.

I have not ridden this route yet, but having these options makes it a lot more accessible for different types of riders to enjoy.

Route

From what I can tell, there should be plenty of options for water, groceries, bathroom and camping along the first half and a little less on the second half. I marked out the ones I think are ideal.

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/55907104

Let me know if you ride it. Hope you enjoy :)

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