Riding to Cannon Beach

[drosen]

I'd like to bike to Cannon Beach. I've ridden part of 26 but not all the way to the beach. Is it safe to use? Any other way to Cannon Beach is way too many miles for me in one day. Anybody take that route? What are your thoughts? Thanks

DR

[jeff]

Drosen, haven't ridden west beyond Jewell Junction/Elsie. It's got a decent shoulder that far, tho heavy traffic. The new ODOT bike map shows it as having a less than 4' shoulder from Jewell Junction to about 10 miles west, then 4 foot + to hwy 101.

An alternative, albeit a considerably longer one, would be to use 26 to Jewell Junction, take 103 north to Jewell, then 202 west toward Astoria, then at Olney take the Youngs River Loop Rd. to Tucker Creek Rd., then south on Lewis & Clark Rd. to Seaside, and there to Cannon Beach.

Here's some maps - see Astoria to Vernonia detail section map 4 in particular:
http://www.portlandonline.com/transp...ex.cfm?c=36638

offhand I'd guess it adds about 20+ miles or so, but much more pleasant and very low traffic compared to hwy 26.

[pcrx]

I am not sure I would ride on 26 - cars are moving VERY quickly on that road and there are a lot of blind areas.

[Jeff Wills]

Originally Posted by pcrx

I am not sure I would ride on 26 - cars are moving VERY quickly on that road and there are a lot of blind areas.

Actually, the shoulders are pretty wide at least as far as Elsie. The Elsie-Timber Junction-Vernonia-Mist loop that we do in September rides Highway 26, albeit pretty early in the morning.

A much longer alternative would be to cut off 26 on 53 south to Nehalem, then north to Cannon Beach. That adds about 35 miles to your trip, plus you'll be spending a lot of time on 101. 101 is worse than 26.