New Washington County bike map worth a look

If you haven’t explored the Washington County by bike yet, you’re really missing out. From scenic bikeways to a state park and miles of beautiful rural vistas, the riding is world class.

Now, just in time for the start of spring, the Washington County Visitor’s Association has released a brand new map that puts all the best routes at your fingertips. Sure, GPS devices are swell, but — as we learned recently — there’s no substitute for an accurate printed map that never needs to be recharged.

We got a few copies of the new map here at the office and it’s very nice. The thing that stood out to me was the addition of the Tualatin Valley Scenic Bikeway, a 50-mile route that starts southeast of downtown Hillsboro and meanders its way up to Vernonia via the Banks-Vernonia State Trail.

Allison George with the WCVA says their map is the only place where you can see the bikeway route overlaid with road characteristics such as traffic volume, presence of bike lanes, and so on. Here are some other upgrades George highlighted in the new map:

• It’s been updated to reflect recent road improvement projects (paving, bike lane additions, etc.)
• The “Bicycling Resources” section was totally overhauled to provide more useful cycling resources than what we had before- for example, we’ve listed some cycling groups that offer regular rides.
• The front/back cover artwork of the map is totally different…the green is gone, replaced with a photo that gives a better sense of what our destination actually looks like for cycling.

And here’s a detail:

If you’re in Portland, you can grab a free copy of the map at River City Bicycles, Bike Gallery or Metropolis Cycles. You can also request a map online, download PDFs on the WCVA website, or call the WCVA and order one at (503) 644-5555.