NW Rgruppe campout/dinner and tour ?

[Dane]

The Linden's put on an amazing tour, food fest and camp out while hosting us for 2 days. Randy Wells chose some incredible roads for 1300 miles of WA, ID. and OR. Many thanks all three involved. All we had to do was sit back and undure the terrible pain

Local and state LE liked our cars and took every opportunity to stop and tell us...no... really they did in every state! No tickets, accidents or dead animals on our parts.

This from the 4th day and 1000 miles into the tour. (i cleaned the grill a couple of times a day..every day...but the oil temps never did get above 180 thank goodness)



Thanks to all. My first rgruppe tour and a real hoot!

[Earl Green]

Yum... grasshopper soup!

Thanks Dane for leading the way... Eric and Tammy for your gracious hospitality... Everyone that showed up throughout the weekend... and Randy for putting it togather!

I got home and helped Smith drop a car off in Sisters Oregon today for another few hundred bonus miles. That makes it a five day weekend!

R Gruppe #259

[kenikh]

Now we just need to see some of the amazing photos Randy took posted to the site. I can think of a few I can't wait to see. I want to see all of the roads that I missed in Idaho, too!

Many thanks to the Linden's, too. They were the most hospitable hosts you could imagine!

[Dane]

All of these are within a an hour or so of Lewiston Idaho.






First up was the old Lewiston Grade, now called the Spiral Highway finished in 1917. 30 years ago there wasn't a house on the hill side now it has everything from million dollar homes to beat up old trailers that use the grade as access to their driveway. Nice drive but too populated for my tastes today.

10 miles long, 2000ft. elevation gain, 45 turns, and 13, 180 degree switch backs



This one just was resealed so we ddin't drive it this year. The old Whitbird Hill road while no longer maintained or used except by tourists looking for a different in or out of the canyon. The road is in generally excellent condition. My wife described this one, "as 8.5 miles of abject terror!" I had ridden down it on my bike and in a school bus twice a day 40+ years ago so it was just coming home for me But it was fun to see it through her wide eyes







Whitebird Grade is 8.5 miles long. Has 62 turns and 17 switchbacks finished in 1915. The straight aways will get you 100+mph if you have the stones for the 2nd gear banked corners on each end with major disaster potential. It could be a wild ride! The drive gains momentum as you gain height and the straights become shorter, the banks higher, the hair pins even tighter as the drop off on each corner grows to over 3000 feet! Comforting thought if the brakes fail or you hit a corner a little hot.

Whitebird is worth the drive all by itself. You could spend the day there doing it over and over again. Next up is old Winchester Grade

This one is 6 miles...but it has 72 turns and 9 switch backs. You don't want to make a mistake here. There are no second chances and the only grade I am really very cautious and leery of driving. It is a 2000 foot drop, no guard rails and no road edge on a tiny, tiny, tiny, barely two lane road and yes...it is still in daily use by the locals who live on the road. Thank goodness the population is mostly cows and a new 4 lane by passes this road. On a good day with no traffic it is spectacular in the extreme. You can see the Snake river and well into Oregon and Washigton from here.





No pictures yet of Hell's Canyon. But you drop 3 or 4000 feet getting in and coming out on soem good twisties, and Deadman's pass which is a grat drop as well....and then there was the Salmon river canyons (Main and Little Salmon), The Yakima River Canyon and a few other treats that sorta blur over 1300 miles.



Because of the forest fires this year these were a couple more we were forced to miss.

The Greer grade is steep, long and lots of turns. This one is still a major road into a remote section of cental Idaho. Little traffic though and good pavement.

10 miles, 61 turns, 7, 180 degree switch backs and 3000 ft elevation gain. It gives you the flavor of what is to come.

If you make this trip don't miss the Stites Canyon road...5 miles one way..10% grade and it is straight up and down...I don't think there is really a turn on the entire 5 miles! Nor is there a guard rail or a run out

Both of these next two are still on well traveled Idaho roads. But it is Idaho, they aren't that well traveled. Good pavement but little traffic.

Mt. Idaho Grade is just up the river. It climbs out of the Clearwater river canyon in 4.5 very steep miles and is spectacular. 39 turns and not a single switch back in the 3000 ft of elevation gain..

Back down the river you drove by the Harpster Grade. This is one is 5.6 miles and 42 turns. Worth the effort for the 3500 feet of elevation gain.

[Gburner]

This from the 4th day and 1000 miles into the tour. (i cleaned the grill a couple of times a day..every day...but the oil temps never did get above 180 thank goodness)

Kills bugs FAST!
Awesome looking roads too.

[a911s]

It was a great weekend! Thanks to everyone who joined in the fun - we had 16 cars on Saturday and 7 cars headed east on Sunday. Special thanks to Eric and Tammy Linden for putting us up on Saturday night and preparing some first class meals over the weekend (homemade sausage, salmon, pies and eggs for breakfast). Wow! Those folks sure made us feel welcome.

We hope to repeat this event next year. We may make the "ultimate tour" to eastern WA, ID and OR a separate 4 day event in September - to keep the temps and daily miles more reasonable.

I'll post some pics from the event when I return home (currently still in Pennsylvania). The shots of Dane's 911 are promised to Excellence for a feature, so those will have to wait until they are published.

Thanks Everyone!

[Howard Lazarus]

Thanks again to the Linden family.
Can't wait to see those photos Randy!!

[John Fusco]

Amazing tracks/tracts you have there in eastern Oregon and west Idaho.

John

[BAPhotowerks]

I don't think I could say it better than any of the others have, but I truly appreciated all the effort put forth by Randy and Eric to make the Roundup happen. That goes for Tammy as well; to open up their get-away to a bunch of fiends like ourselves is exceptionally trusting, but loading them full of potent ale borders on rediculous!

Thanks again, I'm looking forward to next year.

I wish I could have made it further east with the gang, but Monterey has become a habit I can't seem to shake! Attached is a 935 that was being supported by our own PNW R Grupper Bernie. I'll post more pics as soon as I get back on the right computer.

[a911s]

Ok, here's those pics I promised :