ZEN.01Museum
A ski exhibit in the Mt. Hood Cultural Center & Museum at Government Camp. The museum is also officially "bike friendly," according to Travel Oregon.
(The Oregonian/2005)
Already ski friendly, the Mt. Hood Cultural Center & Museum is also officially "bike friendly,'' according to Travel Oregon.
Curator Lloyd Musser said the museum at Government Camp was the first business/organization to be granted bike friendly status by Travel Oregon earlier this year. Being Bike Friendly means the museum offers restrooms, water, information and events for bicycle travelers. See a list on rideoregonride.com.
The museum, which is open daily 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., is planning two heritage recreation events in August that involve bicycles.
The first is the annual Steiner Cabins Tour on Aug. 9. The museum has been doing these tours for many years, but always designed for cars. This year the cabins selected for the tour are ideal for a bicycle tour starting at the museum in the center of Government Camp.
After viewing the special exhibit and Steiner Cabin Gary Randall Photography show, riders proceed to visit two cabins in Government Camp. Then head to Rhododendron via either mountain bikes on the Pioneer Bridle Trail or road bikes down U.S. 26. They visit two cabins in Rhododendron and then cross the Zigzag River on the pedestrian bridge and follow Road 19 to Lolo Pass Road where the last cabin on the tour is located.
Road 19 is closed to motor vehicles and is actually the route of the original Barlow Road. After visiting the last cabin on tour, riders can proceed to the bus stop in Welches and either return to Portland or Government Camp via the Mt. Hood Express bus service.
The museum wants to encourage tour participants to drive their vehicle to Government Camp and take the tour on mountain bikes, then ride the Mt. Hood Express back to Government Camp at the end of the tour. Musser said the Clackamas County tourism folks are excited about combining bicycling and heritage in one event.
The other museum-related bike event is the annual Barlow Road Ride on Aug. 23-24. This is a century ride that starts at the End of the Oregon Trail and follows the Barlow Road route back to Government Camp, again mixing biking and heritage.
Riders spend the night is Government Camp, where the ride staff treats them to food, libations and music before the ride back to Oregon City on Sunday. Those that have ridden it say it is one of the best and picturesque of all the century rides in the metro area, according to Musser. Read about this ride at barlowroadride.com.
-- Terry Richard