I was in central WA for a spring ride getaway. To me it's a nice time to be out in the sagebrush. Not too hot yet and no snakes. I prefer alpine riding but there’s feet of snow there now. Since I was in the area I was thinking about the Columbia River and the newly remodeled Beverly pedestrian bridge across it. The bridge just opened for use last fall. I see this as a cool new recreation opportunity for the area. I started thinking about how to incorporate a ride out of the new bridge.
Chilling at camp after a day of riding sagebrush singletrack I pulled out the gazetteer and started sussing out routes. I like riding loops to see more and the Hwy 24 Vernita bridge down river from Beverly provided another way across the Columbia.
So, starting in Beverly I plan on riding southeast through the Sentinel Butes on as much gravel as possible. There are some random gravel roads starting out but I’ll end up on pavement before crossing at the Vernita bridge. Across the Columbia I’ll make a right and pick up the old Milwaukee railroad grade. More Gravel here. Google shows a couple tressel crossings on the railroad grade. These may or may not still be passable. I guess that's part of the adventure. I’ll ride this along the Columbia back to the new ped bridge and across to Beverly. I'm guessing about 60 miles.
It all looks doable on google maps. Hopefully I can get down there for a lap before it gets too deep into the heat of summer. Reach out if you want to join, tackle it yourself or stay tuned for the report.