How to tell Oregon what you think of Scenic Bikeways

The folks at the Oregon tourism department came up with a great idea a few years ago when they developed the first of 12 Oregon Scenic Bikeways.

It’s the first, and still the only, such program in the US. The routes are created with the help of local riders and range from a morning’s ride of 25 miles to multi-day overnight adventures of 134 to 173 miles.

One of the goals to the program was to promote cycle-touring in the state. Travel Oregon figured that giving bicyclists well-researched and easy to follow routes through rural areas would boost the economies of small towns along the way.

Now the agency wants to study the impact of the program that was launched in 2011.

The 2014 Oregon Scenic Bikeway Study entails use of an online (or snail mail) survey and Scenic Bikeway Trail counts.

The goal of the survey and bike count is to determine the economic impacts of the bikeway program and how to improve the routes, as well as learn more about those who use the routes.

Online survey

To help, you can follow this link to the Scenic Bikeway Survey. It takes about 10 minutes to fill out. [You can also fill out a postcard version of the survey.] Tell them what you think of the program.

Trail count

Also, the agency is looking for volunteers to help with the Scenic Bikeway Trail Counts. The counts will be made on one weekend day and one week day over a four hour period. Here’s a copy of the survey count form.

Volunteers are still needed for the Tualatin Valley Scenic Bikeway, Twin Bridges Scenic Bikeway, and the Willamette Valley Scenic Bikeway. For more details, go to the Scenic Bikeway Study website and scroll to Scenic Bikeway Trail Counts at the bottom of the page.

Oregon Scenic Bikeways

12 Oregon Scenic Bikeways

Here’s a list of the 12 Oregon Scenic Bikeways. You can follow the bikeway links.

1. Metolius River Loops Scenic Bikeway

   Length: 24.3 miles | Origin: Camp Sherman

2. Madras Mountain Views Scenic Bikeway

   Length: 29.3 miles | Origin: Madras

3. Twin Bridges Scenic Bikeway

   Length: 36.4 miles | Origin: Powell Butte

4. McKenzie Pass Scenic Bikeway

   Length: 36.9 miles | Origin: Sisters

5. Sisters to Smith Rock Scenic Bikeway

   Length: 37 miles | Origin: Sisters

6. Covered Bridges Scenic Bikeway

   Length: 37.3 miles | Origin: Cottage Grove

7. Tualatin Valley Scenic Bikeway

   Length: 50.4 miles | Origin: Hillsboro

8. Cascading Rivers Scenic Bikeway

   Length: 70.7 miles | Origin: Estacada

9. Willamette Valley Scenic Bikeway

   Length: 101.4 miles | Origin: Jefferson

10. Blue Mountain Century Scenic Bikeway

    Length: 109.3 miles | Origin: Heppner

11. Grande Tour Scenic Bikeway

    Length: 134.5 miles | Origin: La Grande

12. Old West Scenic Bikeway

    Length: 173.8 miles | Origin: John Day