Great Northwest Lodges — 10 days

Day 1: Tuesday. Seattle to Seaside Oregon (215 miles)

We'll leave Seattle (the small town of Edmonds, actually) via ferry to Kingston. The Washington State ferries are an icon of the Puget Sound area and a great way to start the tour. From Kingston, we'll ride the length of Hood Canal before finding our way out to the Pacific coast. The mouth of the Columbia River is about four and a half miles wide and we'll cross the river into Oregon on the Megler Bridge. A short ride south takes us to our day's destination next to the ocean in Seaside. The beach here is fantastic and the town is very active and has lots of interesting shops and restaurants.

Day 2: Wednesday. Seaside to Florence (185 miles)

We'll continue south along the beautiful Oregon coast. Our first stop will be in Tillamook, home of the Tillamook Cheese factory where we can take a self-guided tour. From here we continue south through a series of interesting beach towns before reaching our destination overlooking the Siuslaw River in historic Old Town Florence. There will be plenty of scenic stops along the way.

Day 3: Thursday. Florence to Klamath California (200 miles)

Just south of Florence are the huge coastal sand dunes. Wish we had time for a dune buggy ride but we'll at least manage to find one or more dune over-looks for a photo op. The dunes continue for another 45 miles south. This is a relaxing cruise along the spectacular southern Oregon coast. We'll end the day at the historic Requa Inn overlooking the Klamath River in northern California.

Day 4: Friday. Klamath to Happy Camp (180 miles)

Who wouldn't want to go to a place called Happy Camp? Along the way we'll find a couple of large Redwood groves. These trees are truly spectacular and only grow in very specific areas where the climate is just right. South of the Redwoods, we'll turn inland into the coastal mountains and some really fun roads before arriving in Happy Camp, the alleged home of Big Foot.

Day 5: Saturday. Happy Camp to Oregon Caves (75 miles)

This is our shortest riding day but it's still plenty challenging as we cross the Siskiyou Mountains and go back into Oregon. Our destination today is the Chateau at the Oregon Caves. We'll arrive early enough for a guided tour of the caves which are fascinating and beautiful. The Oregon Caves Chateau is one of Oregon's most striking lodges. Featured in "Great Lodges of the American West" on PBS, the Chateau is a beautiful six story bark-clad building spanning the tiny valley caused by the stream that flows out from the cave and through the Chateau dining room. Very unique!

Day 6: Sunday. Oregon Caves to Crater Lake (185 miles)

When Mount Mazama blew its top 7,700 years ago, it created a huge caldera that subsequently filled with water. The resulting Crater Lake has inspired people for hundreds of years. No place else on earth combines a deep, pure lake, so blue in color; sheer surrounding cliffs almost two thousand feet high; two picturesque islands, and a violent volcanic past. The roads and scenery along the route are great but our destination at the historic Crater Lake Lodge is equally great. This lodge, originally built in 1915 is also featured in "Great Lodges of the American West."

Day 7: Monday. Crater Lake to Sisters (170 miles)

We'll start the day with a scenic ride along the rim of Crater Lake before turning north towards central Oregon. We'll ride the eastern side of the Cascade Mountains including the Cascade Lakes Highway toward the town of Bend. The Cascades form a scenic backdrop to our destination of Sisters Oregon, a very cute town with a distinct western theme.

Day 8: Tuesday. Sisters to Timberline (170 miles)

We'll head into the heart of the Cascades by riding McKenzie Pass and its huge fields of lava left behind by a volcanic eruption 10,000 years ago. We'll also ride a portion of Santiam Pass as we continue north through the Cascade Mountains. We'll cross Blue Ox Pass on our way to Government Camp at the base of Mt. Hood, the tallest mountain in Oregon. Our destination is Timberline Lodge located high on the flank of Mt. Hood (as you guessed, it's at timberline). This is yet another beautiful historic lodge, also featured in "Great Lodges of the American West". Tick another box off your bucket list.

Day 9: Wednesday. Timberline to Paradise (185 miles)

We'll ride along the eastern side of Mt. Hood before crossing the mighty Columbia River near the town of Hood River. We'll cruise the Washington side of the river before turning north into more of the Cascade Range. We'll get great views of Mt. Saint Helens, the volcano that erupted explosively in 1980. Our destination today is the fantastic Paradise Inn located in Mt. Rainier National Park. If you've been reading along, you've probably deduced this is yet another lodge featured in "Great Lodges of the American West" and offers fantastic views of majestic Mt. Rainier at 14,888 feet, the highest in Washington.

Day 10: Thursday. Paradise to Seattle (135 miles)

All good things come to an end (so I'm told) but we'll have this last day to enjoy the natural beauty of the Cascade Mountains before finding our way back to Seattle. The ride down Mt. Rainier and along the east side of the mountain is incredibly scenic.