Santa Barbara to Portland

[Big-D]

I have a daughter that has recently moved to Hillsboro (near Portland) Oregon. Now she wants dad to come and visit and see her new place. I wanted to ask, if I rode this trip in either December or February, would it be a wet, cold and miserable ride, or could I expect a seasonally cool but acceptable ride? Or should I just take my truck?

My plan of attack after leaving Lake Havasu would be to by-pass the L.A. area and cut over to Santa Barbara, then ride up the coast as much as possible. I've ridden from Seattle to San Francisco staying on Hwy 1 most of the way before heading to Sacramento and Hwy-50 across Nevada on my way back to Colorado years back. Of course that was during the summer months.

 

[GalaxyBlue]

You will have the Shasta mountains and Grants Pass to worry about snow. Other than that, It will be wet AND cold.

If timed right with the weather channel, It could be a good ride. You could always ride 101 up the coast!

 

[ponyfool]

It's hit and miss depending on the day/week. The mountain pass at the Cali/Oregon border is frequently closed due to snow/ice. Regardless of snow/ice, EXPECT rain and lots of it....it is Oregon after all.

 

[ShinyPartsUp]

There are two viable options that can work.

I personally would not chance I-5 over the passes in winter. The weather is too variable, and the grades on descents too steep for me to chance it. ODOT does have a good website with cameras in key places you can SEE the weather online.

Route 1 to 101 to 199 (Redwood Highway) is not as steep, but runs through forest with two lane twisties following a river. Think black ice. I have ridden it at night in 40 degree weather and it is not my favorite thing to do. The transition from route 1 in California over to 101 is also forested and can be tricky in cold wet conditions. IF timed so the rough spots are done in some sunlight and the weather is good, I'd consider it.

The route I took in April this year (I'll reverse it so it makes more pertinent sense coming from the south) is to take 1 to 101 (remember the tricky transition in forest) and then run 101 over a smaller coastal pass into Oregon and continue up to the Oregon 101. Once you hit Oregon you quickly hit a banana belt area around Brookings up to Gold Beach with generally good weather. However, winds in winter on the Oregon coast can sometimes gust to 90mph. Yes -- I've seen it. Winds of 40-60mph and heavy rain are not uncommon.

So, FWIW, if you decide to do this I recommend building in some time to wait out a storm in worst case scenario. I would also loop over to 101 earlier north of San Fran if the weather looks dicey and haul ass to make any hoped-for windows over to Oregon easier. I'd head up 101 into Oregon (I used heated gear in April and it was still "brisk") and continue on 101 north to Bandon, then take 42 east to I-5 and continue north on the highway, thus avoiding most of the worst coastal winds(you can head east at Reedsport for twistier blacktop, but there are more mud slides each year and deaths in winter on the two lane blacktop). Route 42 has it's own pass going over the coastal range, and that gets cold and slick at night in the twisties. Weather is the key. I've ridden 100+ miles in sunshine on the Oregon Coast (I didn't say warm -- just sunny) in winter, but I always get skittish going over the bridges in blustery winds. A guy in town stopped riding bikes after going over a coastal bridge and his Harley two-up was blown across the lane and over onto it's side.

Others will say differently, but I would carefully plan it if I were you. My thinking on this issue has been to rent a truck/van in Redding or someplace in fairly good weather, haul the bike over the passes to Ashland or Roseburg or someplace, turn in the truck and continue riding. More hassle and money, but safer.

Hope some of my musings help a bit.

 

[Roy Epperson]

+1 on ShinyPartsUp's comments

We used to live West of Portland and when drove (pickup truck) to Santa Barbara for Christmas with the family. Most of the time, we would drive 101 of avoid the passes on I5 who passes can change for the worse in just hours. But then would have driving rain, high winds and some black ice.

 

[blufjr]

I have a daughter that has recently moved to Hillsboro (near Portland) Oregon. Now she wants dad to come and visit and see her new place. I wanted to ask, if I rode this trip in either December or February, would it be a wet, cold and miserable ride, or could I expect a seasonally cool but acceptable ride? Or should I just take my truck?

Everyone is so negative. I did two trips last winter to California. One in November (Perfect) and one in January (Escape). Both were sunny and dry, and cold and wet but they were both planned around dry weather. If you have the time to plan the trip ten days in advance, you can find 4-5 days of sunny weather all the way from Lake Havasu to Portland in the dead of winter. Look for 4-5 days of sunshine in Portland. Now if you plan on making it a 7+ day trip, you will get wet, might not be too bad, hard to determine. The Coast route up Hwy 1 is the best and 101 across the border into Oregon is most likely only going to be wet vs. ice and snow over the Siskiyous. Go for it. :yahoo:

 

[Big-D]

Thanks for all the info that has been provided.

My daughter just got married this past June and they wanted to get out of the Arizona and move to where "people their own age move to where the communities are younger and hip". I told them to think of rain, lots of rain and possibly snow. They didn't listen as usual, so now I have to ride in rain and possibly white stuff because of their decision. Unless I take four wheels or wait until the weather gets better. They moved there from Flagstaff, which they said they were tired of shoving snow off the driveway and always being cold. That sounds a lot like the descriptions I just received from many of you about Oregon in the winter.

Why is it that every time our kids make decisions, it ends up costing us (the parents)?

I'll wait until after Death Valley DAZE and see about heading up that way! Thanks again!

 

[ShinyPartsUp]

I have a daughter that has recently moved to Hillsboro (near Portland) Oregon. Now she wants dad to come and visit and see her new place. I wanted to ask, if I rode this trip in either December or February, would it be a wet, cold and miserable ride, or could I expect a seasonally cool but acceptable ride? Or should I just take my truck?

Everyone is so negative. I did two trips last winter to California. One in November (Perfect) and one in January (Escape). Both were sunny and dry, and cold and wet but they were both planned around dry weather. If you have the time to plan the trip ten days in advance, you can find 4-5 days of sunny weather all the way from Lake Havasu to Portland in the dead of winter. Look for 4-5 days of sunshine in Portland. Now if you plan on making it a 7+ day trip, you will get wet, might not be too bad, hard to determine. The Coast route up Hwy 1 is the best and 101 across the border into Oregon is most likely only going to be wet vs. ice and snow over the Siskiyous. Go for it. :yahoo:

Polyanna!

 

[sin_loki]

i think we got all the rain we are going to get.

if where not the fact i have an cold and pumped up on meds more than usual I would be riding today

 

[ShinyPartsUp]

i think we got all the rain we are going to get.if where not the fact i have an cold and pumped up on meds more than usual I would be riding today

I can tell you are pumped on meds. What does that have to do with the OP? Just sayin'...

 

[BIODSL]

Big-D...if you have the luxury of being able to take off with short notice, this is very do-able even up the I5 corridor. We very often have a nice little break in our weather in January or February with a few days in a row of sunshine and warm (60-ish) temps. Keep an eye out and make a break for it when the weather permits.

 

[ShinyPartsUp]

Big-D...if you have the luxury of being able to take off with short notice, this is very do-able even up the I5 corridor. We very often have a nice little break in our weather in January or February with a few days in a row of sunshine and warm (60-ish) temps. Keep an eye out and make a break for it when the weather permits.

True. I tend to be negative on the idea because I have to give long notice (weeks) before I can just take off from work and commitments. In the above scenario (call me a worry-wart), it would be the return that could get dicey if roads get socked in for a week (that happens too). I think the most viable option for non-retirees would be renting a van to get the bike over the passes, have some fun after ditching the rental, then hire it back for a day to get the bike back into Cali. Guaranteed (within reason) to be able to keep a schedule while minimizing risks. The van might even be considered ATGATT... :lol: