Flinn's Cycle Oregon Blog: Day 6: Crane to Seneca (74 miles)

Day 6 was probably one of the toughest days of the tour - some tough (and relentless) uphills, along with a stretch of gravel road - which is incredibly rough on a road bike with very narrow tires. The route started off smooth and flat as we headed north from Crane; once we turned east on Highway 20, we had a bit of a hill climb until we turned off on Pine Creek Road. Lunch was at the Pine Creek School, which we were informed has a student body population of three students (all of whom volunteered in serving lunch). We continued to head north on Pine Creek Road, until just past the Borelli Ranch where the pavement ended and the road turned to gravel. After the last water stop, the fun began - a good 12 miles of steep uphill climbing, including several false summits (reaching a peak and getting some downhill, only to discover another peak ahead!). I managed to get through that without coughing up a lung, and then we had several miles of downhill coasting into the Silvies Valley and on to our campground in the town of Seneca.

Seneca's claim to fame is that it holds the coldest recorded temperature in Oregon; a temperature of -54 degrees was recorded in 1933. Luckily, it wasn't quite that cold the night we were there - it only got down to 40 degrees - but that was still pretty chilly for my thin Las Vegas blood. We camped out on the local golf course in Seneca, which prides itself on not being "overly manicured," which is a nice way of saying it's pretty rough. Luckily, I was able to stake my claim to a spot near one of the more manicured greens, so I had a nice soft resting place for the night.