Recumbent Retreat 2015

2 trikes, gear and 3 cases of wine!

Once again, I had a great time at the Recumbent Retreat this year. I was joined on the 2 day tour to the coast by my friend Barbara. This is my 11th retreat and I always look forward to this ride. We had a generous offer from another cycling friend, Kathi, who picked us up in her minivan to bring us over the southwest hills of Portland. I sat in Myrtle to make room for all our gear, trikes and 3 cases of wine. Kathi decided the safest place for us to start would be the Banks/Vernonia Linear trail head. That saved us 20 miles and over a 1,000 feet of climbing. Nice - thanks Kathi!!

The Banks/Vernonia trail is a fantastic 20 mile paved path through forest and farmland. Being an old train line the inclines are very gradual with no more than 2% grade but there is 1,000 feet of climbing to the highest point. We stopped along the way to pick blackberries for our morning oatmeal. The bushes were over flowing with berries. This summer in Portland has been brutally hot and we were very lucky to get temperatures in the low 80's with a light breeze. 

At the Banks/Vernonia trail head

We pulled over to let the horses pass

The trail also allows horses and we pulled over to let them pass without incident. One short section of this path has hairpin turns where a trestle bridge used to be. The path is very steep going down and then back up.

I often meet trikers somewhere along this trail during my yearly pilgrimage and expect they are also on their way to the retreat. It always surprises me when the trikers have never heard of the recumbent retreat. Today we met a couple with Terra trikes in their truck bed driving to Stub Stewart State Park. Maybe they'll go to the retreat next year.

Barbara and I made it to downtown Vernonia in the mid afternoon stopping for a delicious lunch at the Mediterranean inspired Blue House cafe. We bought a few baklava to-go for later. Then we went to the market to pick up supplies for dinner and lunch for day 2 of our tour. We found a loaf of Dave's Killer Bread and added avocado, cucumber and onion to make sandwiches for dinner. Banana, almond butter and honey sandwiches with fruit would keep us fueled for our ride over the coastal range. Yum!!

Big Eddy hiker/biker site

Leaving Vernonia, we rode back to the trail for the last few miles around Lake Vernonia and then out to Big Eddy County Park on Hwy 47. The hosts at this campground are always very nice. The hiker/biker area is $7 per tent and there are picnic tables but no water or electricity. The hosts let us use outlets from the closest RV site to charge up our phones, batteries and other electronics. The water used to have a strong pungent smell of iron but that has been cleared up. The water was always safe but the smell used to make me nauseous. 

This area is big logging country but every year there is less and less truck traffic to deal with. The sound of logging trucks loudly rumbling passed the campground used to be a constant companion. The heavily loaded trucks would start rolling by at 3 am and make sleeping difficult even with ear plugs. This year the roaring trucks were more occasional than constant.

I also got to try out my new camping gear. I was excited to have a new 2 person tent, sleeping bag and pad this year. The bigger tent felt so luxurious and the wider pad made a huge difference to my comfort. The new bag has more room in the feet than my old bag and was so thick with down I felt very cozy. All my new gear provided a noticeable improvement and I actually slept well. Until now, I didn't think that was possible. After this night's sleep I feel much better about tent camping.

The only hiccup was I bought the wrong fuel for my alcohol stove. I mistakenly picked up 90% Isopropyl alcohol instead of denatured alcohol cooking fuel. I didn't understand the difference and there is a big difference! Isopropyl alcohol burns very dirty and sooty and it took a long time to boil water for after dinner tea. The flame was wide and orange instead of blue. My pot was coated in grimy black soot and the handles even melted a bit. I really didn't want to use that fuel again so I knocked on some RV camper doors to see if I could find better alcohol. All anyone had was more isopropyl. Oh my, what would we do without coffee in the morning?! Luckily, the campground hosts came through offering to boil water in the morning for our coffee. Phew - crisis averted! Riding 63 miles over the coastal range without coffee is almost unthinkable.

Banks/Vernonia Linear Trail

We gratefully stopped at the host's RV in the morning for glorious boiled water for coffee. Then we got our trikes loaded and pushed off down the road around 9 am. There used to be a bar in Birkenfeld to stop at 15 miles into this ride. They had fabulous berry shakes and I would usually get food to go for later. Now the bar is only open on weekends and the area seems to have fallen on hard times. We did stop to use the facilities at a modern Mist fire station. The firemen didn't hesitate to let us in.

Video of my ride with Barbara to the Retreat

Kathi surprised us by pulling over on her way to the retreat just as we arrived at the Jewell Elk Preserve. We were almost to the start of the climb over the coastal range when she took all our gear substantially lightening our load. Wow! Sagged at the most difficult part of the trip. Great timing!

Using the facilities at the fire house in Mist

The ride over the coastal range isn't especially hard. It's 6.5 miles ascending at a constant 6% grade. We had overcast skies which kept temperatures lower. There have been years where the heat made the ride very difficult. Some years a huge elk herd is visible in the meadow but none were out today. Once over the top we had sweeping downhills on smooth pavement with canopied forested roads. It was fantastic. The next stop was at the fish hatchery at the bottom of the hill. They have rest rooms right at the perfect time. The last 20 miles is along the Young's River and there is a surprising amount of short steep climbs. Little by little the road gets busier until the intersection with Hwy 101. Usually we take the Lewis and Clark bridge over the Lewis and Clark River but it was closed for repairs. We spent some time to see if there was a way around the construction equipment but we had to turn around. Instead of taking the traffic laden and narrow Young's Bay bridge we called friends and got a ride the last few miles. Thanks for a fun ride Barbara!


The Recumbent Retreat was fantastic, the best yet. Even though the retreat officially starts on Friday, almost everyone had arrived on Thursday by the time we got there. The retreat is run by OHPV (Oregon Human Vehicle Association) and they did an outstanding job. Every year, they reserve 2 loops at Ft. Stevens State Park the same weekend in August. Over 100 riders attend. This year's retreat was so much more relaxed than any in the past. There were lots of new faces and everyone had a great time.

Raffle prizes call out has a captive audience

Ft Stevens is a terrific campground.

Peter Iredale shipwreck in the sand at sunset

On friday night, Lonnie, The Capt, led 20 riders on a wonderful twilight route through the park to the beach. The deep orange sunset added drama to the Peter Iredale shipwreck remains in the sand and pounding surf. This was the first year Lonnie led this ride but I think it has become an instant classic.  We returned to the park to join everyone else for smores around the campfire. There had been light rain throughout the day but the night cleared up nicely. The next day is crowded with events starting with a breakfast ride to various restaurants. Then there's the photo shoot followed by more rides through the park or out to the Young's River waterfall. The potluck dinner had a huge amount of fabulous food.

Twilight ride

I brought some local wine that is made using a recumbent trike to crush the grapes. Kathi found room in the van for 3 cases of Recumbent Red and Recumbent Riesling that was sold to raise money for OHPV. Everyone seemed to get a kick out of it and the wine was good too.

Local Oregon wine made using a recumbent trike to crush the grapes.

The highlight of the retreat is the lighted bike parade. This year so many people went all out with lights. Jeff, the champion cat herder, expertly led us, at a relaxed pace, through all the loops in the campground. The parade is hilarious! The lighted bike parade is such a well known event that lots of campers return every year to watch. Some campers even light up their sites to join in the fun.

Getting lit up for the parade

Video of the Recumbent Retreat event

Everyone really went all out with the lights this year.

The retreat is the highlight of summer but at the end of the weekend I also feel like summer is coming to a close. Since my next tour is going to start in another 2 weeks I didn't feel like I wanted to take the time to pedal home and Lonnie gave me a ride back to Portland. Thanks Lonnie!!

Thanks to everyone for making this another fantastic Recumbent Retreat. I'm already looking forward to next year!