The Dalles to Redmond was an absolutely gorgeous 330 mile day although it certainly was windy out until we got south of Hood River.

Historic Columbia River Highway turnout slightly west of The Dalles looking northwest towards the Columbia Gorge in Washington.

Rowena Overlook with view going east towards The Dalles and Columbia River. It was virtually deserted other than myself, Jack, and Mike. Very windy up here!

Rowena Crest can be read (the larger text, that is) by clicking on the pic.

Rowena Loop is a superbly designed and paved winding road going up to the crest. Couldn't get all of it with one photo.

Rowena Loop close-up. This road is on the cover of Motorcycle Journeys Through the Pacific Northwest by Bruce Hansen.

Hood River Bridge west of Koberg Beach SRA is a toll bridge. We could see rain clouds coming up.

Koberg Beach SRA has a fern grotto in the parking lot. ;^)

Mt. Hood, 11,240' high, to the south from Mt. Hood Hwy (SR-35) in Upper Hood River Valley near the town of Mount Hood. Had to stop in the 'hood for a pic.

Huckleberry Inn in Government Camp where we had some breakfast, and lots of coffee that cold morning before getting back on southbound US-26 to just past Clear Lake.

Timothy Lake wasn't on the agenda, but we took the wrong fork on Skyline Rd (NF-42) to Timothy Lake Rd (NF-57). Well worth the detour to the Hoodview campsite as it's very picturesque here.

Timothy Lake at the boat launch area was a nice background for our cruisers. ;^)

We returned to Skyline Rd and had a most excellent one-lane ride to the jct of southbound Clackamas River Rd. Was enjoying the ride too much to stop for pics.

Breitenbush River by Breitenbush Road (NF-46) enroute to Detroit Lake.

Breitenbush River bridge where we took a butt break.

Detroit Lake Marina at the jct of SR-22/NF-46 where we stopped for fuel and refreshments. This was a nice place to hang out at!

Detroit Lake Marina store has a patio overlooking the marina where we enjoyed some cold ones for awhile. We then cut southwest on Santiam Highway (SR-22) to Quartzville Rd (NF-11).

Quartzville Road Back Country Byway meanders along the emerald depths of Green Peter Reservoir and the clear, cool waters of Quartzville Creek National Wild and Scenic River. This is a corridor of old-growth and maturing forest, accented by rock outcroppings, huckleberry patches, wildflowers, and parked motorcycles. ;^)

Quartzville Road Overlook at the summit with view out to the west. This was a gnarly road at times thanks to frost heaves, potholes, rocks, and cracks.

Quartzville Road Bridge spanning Quartzville Creek where we took a butt break.

Green Peter Lake is located in the beautiful Willamette Valley on the Middle Santiam River along Quartville Road.

Green Peter Lake bridge that connected from Quartville Road to a southbound dirt road.

McKenzie Bridge General Store. We bypassed McKenzie Pass while on SH-126 to come out here for fuel and food only to find nothing available unless we rode another couple of miles west. Took a short butt break here before riding back to the McKenzie Highway (SH-242) jct.

McKenzie Pass is loaded with lava rocks quite a bit larger than our cruisers. I think that's Scott Mountain (6116') in the background. It was quite a ride up from Deadhorse Grade!

Three Sisters Viewpoint near summit of McKenzie Pass with Three Cruisers in the foreground. :)

Dee Wright Observatory was built from lava rocks, and has a spiral lava path and staircase that climbs all the way up to the top.

Dee Wright Observatory from the top looking down towards the parking lot and forest surrounded by lava rocks. Duh.

McKenzie Pass is at an elevation of 5325' and, trust me, it's much easier to navigate this road while eastbound. We descended down this road to Sisters for gas.

Sisters is a pretty cool town, and we stumbled across the Ski Inn seen in this pic for supper. Since it was really nice out, we ate outside on the patio.

Sisters. A final shot of our rides before departing the Ski Inn for Redmond where we called it a late night at the Super 8.