Official 2022 Ochoco Overlander Route

This route is final

All 2022 Ochoco Overlander riders MUST travel with a GPS device

Garmin, Wahoo, Smart Phone, whatever… we don’t care so long as it’s charged and works. You are solely responsible for navigating our route. Please load the Ride with GPS route onto your GPS device of choice prior to departure.

Day 1

62 miles

5,300' elevation gain
3,100' Elevation loss
Max grade 11.6%

5.5 hour estimate

MORNING

6:15am – Coffee provided by Autobahn Coffee Bus and Backporch Coffee Roasters

6:30am – Breakfast provided, breakfast burritos and fruit at Good Bike Co.

7:30am – Group Meeting

8:00am – Grand Group Depart from Good Bike Co.

Aid Station – Mile 38

EVENING

6:00pm – Course Cleared and everyone is required to be in camp

6:00pm – Dinner Provided. Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas, rice and beans, green salad and dessert. Beer Provided by Boneyard Beer, Deschutes Brewery, and Boneyard CBD Elixirs.

6:15–7:30pm
Live Music at camp

Day 2

49 miles

3,500' Elevation gain
4,080' Elevation loss
Max grade 12.1%

4.5 hour estimate

MORNING

6:30am – Coffee provided by Autobahn Coffee Bus and Backporch Coffee Roasters

7:30am – Breakfast is on. Scrambled eggs, fruit tray, assorted pastries, Bagels with fixings and assorted yogurt.

8:15am – 8:45 Yoga and Group Stretch

9:00am – Departure

Aid Station – Mile 26

EVENING

6:00pm – Course Cleared and everyone is required to be in camp

6:00pm – Dinner Provided. Shepards Pie, garlic Bread, salad and dessert. Beer Provided by Boneyardeer Beer, Deschutes Brewery and Boneyard CBD Elixirs.

6:15pm-7:30pm – Live Music at camp

Day 3

44 miles

4,250' Elevation gain
3,400' Elevation loss
Max grade 10.1%

4 hour estimate

MORNING

7:00am – Coffee provided by Autobahn Coffee Bus and Backporch Coffee Roasters

8:00am – Breakfast is on. Scrambled eggs, fruit tray, assorted pastries, Bagels with fixings and assorted yogurt.

8:30am-9:00am – Yoga and Group Stretch

9:00/9:30am – Departure

Aid Station – Mile 26

EVENING

6:00pm – Course Cleared and everyone is required to be in camp

6:00pm – Dinner Provided. Chicken Parmigiana, garlic bread, green salad and dessert. Beer Provided by Boneyardeer Beer, Deschutes Brewery and Boneyard CBD Elixirs.

6:15pm-7:30pm – Live Music at camp

Day 3 Alt Shorter Option

26 miles
2,400' Elevation gain

Day 4

46 miles

2,700' Elevation gain
5,000' Elevation loss
Max grade 12.8%
Average grade -0.8%

4 hour estimate

MORNING

7:00am – Coffee provided by Autobahn Coffee Bus and Backporch Coffee Roasters

8:00am – Breakfast is on. Scrambled eggs, fruit tray, assorted pastries, Bagels with fixings and assorted yogurt.

8:30am-9:00am – Yoga and Group Stretch

9:00/9:30am Departure

Aid Station – Mile 22

EVENING

4:00pm – Course Cleared and everyone is required to be back at the bike shop.

4:00pm – Family Style Dinner Provided at Good Bike Co. LLC. Chicken and Beef Taco Bar, rice and beans, chips and salsa and dessert. Beer Provided by Boneyardeer Beer, Deschutes Brewery and Boneyard CBD Elixirs.

4:15pm-5:30pm – Live Music at Good Bike Co. LLC

Support Provides

• Camp to camp transport for ONE small bag, no greater than 12"x18". It will be unavailable during the day.

• Departure day community gathering and breakfast.

• Breakfast and dinner at camp each day.

• One aid station stop along the route each day.

• Charging stations at camp each evening.

• Celebratory drinks and family-style going away meal at Good Bike Co. upon return.

Personal Requirements

• You must load our route and carry your own GPS device. The trails are not marked. Official route will post within two weeks of departure.

• Tubeless tires are mandatory.

• Transport 75% of your gear on your bike.

• Carry enough bike supplies to take care of a flat tire, broken chain, etc.

• Front and rear tail lights for your bike.

• Pack daily light snacks and energy foods with you on your bike.

Local Eats

Wild Ride Brewing Co.
CRB Brewery
The Sandwich Factory

Local Accommodation Recommendations

• Econo Lodge

• Best Western

• Wine Down Ranch (Air BNB w/ 2 night min)

• Crook County Fairgrounds (camping)

• Crook County RV Park near the fairgrounds (camping)

• Crooked River Canyon (some great camping options if up for a short drive)

Training

Hopefully this goes without saying – if you haven't already started training, now is the time to start. If you need training help, bikepacking.com has put together some helpful videos to get you going.

Visit our tips for a multi-day bikepacking adventure.

You'll spend many miles and hours in the saddle at elevation with gravel climbs. Our route doesn't aim to push you beyond your limits, though some days we may ride 60-70 miles with 4,000-5,000' of elevation gain where another day may be 20-30 miles and 2,000' of elevation gain.

Any amount of strengthening your mind and body before we hit the trail will only make this ride all the more enjoyable. The sooner you start the better prepared you'll feel which = MORE FUN FOR YOU!

Your Bike

A Salsa Cutthroat, Salsa Fargo, Salsa Journeyman, or Salsa Timberjack are all great bike options for Central Oregon’s bikepacking terrain.

Tubeless tires are mandatory – You will encounter goat heads/puncture vine, and Texas Tack along the course. If you’re not running tubeless you may end up with a lot of flats.

Tire size is personal preference – This year's route is roughly 200 miles or more through some beautiful and rugged country with roughly 15,000’ of total elevation climbs. There is no single track, however there are a few steep climbs, some chundery sections, and some big dirt descents. Some people will get by on 700x40 tires, and some will opt for 3" mountain bike tires. Neither are wrong. We personally prefer 29x2.2 Teravail Sparwood tires.

Bike repair tools – Carry enough bike supplies to take care of a flat tire, broken chain, etc.

Front and rear tail lights are required – For some stretches, especially the longer highway sections, it is imperative to have lights on your bike so high speed traffic can see you long in advance.

This is in no way a race – Choose a setup that will allow you to have the most fun, whether that means being able to fly on the pavement with thinner tires, or have plenty of cushion for the dirt with wide tires. Based on our own personal bike-riding opinions, something right in between would is ideal – a rigid bike with approximately. 1.8-2" or 2.2" tires.

Packing, Gear & Support

You are responsible for hauling 75% of your own gear – This is a self-sufficient bikepacking adventure. Know your gear and be prepared! You are traveling through the wilderness.

Each rider may shuttle ONE small 12"x18" bag – To ensure that everyone is prepared with everything necessary for an enjoyable trip, each rider may bring ONE small bag (standard backpack-size, no greater than 12”x18”). Support will shuttle it from camp to camp so it will not be available during the day. Anything you may need while pedaling during the daytime should be packed with you on your bike.

Bag and pack suggestions – Salsa EXP Series Framepacks, EXP Series Seatpack, EXP Series Anything cradle Plus Dry Bag, EXP Series Toptube Bag, and Anything Cages all work great. Frame bags, panniers, racks, baskets, and trailers are all fine options for this route. You will likely see some mix of all of them among fellow riders. Ensure that your gear is secure enough to stay put on bumpy dirt roads.

Velcro / Voile Straps – These handy straps are your best bet for strapping gear to your frame. Panniers can be fine depending on how they attach. With some of the rougher parts of the trail you may have excessive chatter. There is the potential that small plastic hardware on most panniers could break.

Reduce waste and Leave No Trace – Bring a reusable plate, cup, and utensils. Let's be responsible riders and pack out what we pack in. Don't leave any garbage behind and be sure to practice Leave No Trace Ethics in the forest.

Camp chairs – We will not shuttle personal camp chairs. We plan to bring as many camp chairs as we can. If you have your chair you want to carry on your bike we suggest you bring it if you think you need it.

Plan Ahead & Be Prepared

Russ Roca of Path Less Pedaled put together a very helpful video discussing his experience of what did and did not work for him on the Ochoco Overlander. As always, great work Russ. Check it out:

Weather

Temperatures are generally in the high 70's during the day and hovering in the high 30's or low 40's at night here. That said, we’re traveling in the high desert so the night time temps will feel cold. Weather can change quickly, so prepare for potential cool riding and rain.

Navigation

A Personal GPS Device is Required to Ride – This course will not be marked so it is imperative that you personally know the route. We require that everyone has a GPS of some sort – Garmin, Wahoo, Smart Phone, or whatever – we don’t care, just make sure it’s charged, it works, and is loaded up with our Ride With GPS route of turn by turn directions. We'll deliver the final route via email before we hit the trail. Load that data into your GPS device.

Charging Stations – You will have the opportunity to charge your devices for a few hours each night. The amount of plugins is limited so we suggest you bring battery chargers or small battery blocks to charge from along the way. Dynamo front hubs are also a great choice.

Food

Food allergies and special dietary needs – Please email before September 1, 2022 with 'Ochoco Overlander Food Preference' in the subject field with any nutritional preferences or allergies. We will do our best to accommodate accordingly.

Pack light snacks and energy foods with you – Don’t bonk! You can never be too prepared with too many snacks : ) Make sure you have enough food and electrolytes to get you through the day.

Daily aid stations on route – You’ll hit one aid station each day. We encourage everyone to supplement the daily aid station with road snacks.

Warm dinner and breakfast provided – Refuel with a warm meal, tea, and hot water provided each night as well as warm coffee, tea, and hot water each morning.

Celebratory drinks and family-style meal at Good Bike Co. to commemorate.