Aufderheide Drive finally gets its due as one of the best bike routes in Oregon

It’s shocking it took this long but I’m happy to say Aufderheide Drive is now an official State Scenic Bikeway.

As expected, at their meeting Wednesday the Oregon Parks and Recreation Commission approved an application to make Aufderheide Drive, also known Forest Road 19) the 18th official Oregon Scenic Bikeway. The Scenic Bikeway program began in 2009 and this is the first new designation since 2017.

The 60-mile route through Lane County winds along two rivers deep in the Willamette National Forest. Unlike other routes in the catalog, this one requires no turns and there are no intersections. Just stay on NF 19 and you’re good. And there’s even a wonderful lodge and covered bridge to explore at the southern terminus in Westfir (near Oakridge). The route passes by hot springs, old growth forests, meadows, and abundant wildlife. If riders want to pack a sleeping bag and explore further, there are five campgrounds and more than 25 trailheads along the route.

“With minimal traffic and few man-made features, no other route immerses riders in nature quite like the Aufderheide,” wrote Oakridge-Westfir Chamber of Commerce President Michelle Emmons McPharlin in a support letter.

The route received widespread support from throughout Lane County, much of it from chambers of commerce and business groups that understand how cycling can hasten local economic development. Even the Oregon Department of Transportation wrote a glowing letter of support. “We have observed how the scenic bikeway program serves as a significant economic driver, drawing cycle tourist to communities,” wrote ODOT Region 2 Manager Savannah Crawford in a letter to Travel Lane County. “Adding a scenic bikeway in the southeast portion of our region will attract more cycle tourism to Oakridge and Westfir. These communities have face considerable challenges from the decline of the timber industry to extreme weather events. A scenic bikeway could provide much needed economic support.”

Aufderheide Drive has been a magnet for road cycling for many years, and this new designation will only fan the flames of its popularity. In addition to its natural splendor, the route is a perfect out and back with its highest elevation of around 3,700 feet right around the mid-point (see elevation chart below). That means you get a nice ratio of 2,500 feet elevation in about 30 miles of riding regardless of which end you start from.

While Scenic Bikeways include only minimal infrastructure upgrades, they are only selected if they are considered safe and attractive for all levels of riders in their current state. ODOT will add green “Scenic Bikeway” route signage and the designation gives the roads a higher priority for safety improvements like wider shoulders, and rumble strips.

Since it began as a collaboration between the Oregon Department of Transportation, Travel Oregon, and Cycle Oregon, the Scenic Bikeway program has been beset by delays from administrative and staffing changes, wildfires, and the pandemic.

In this case, a statewide committee first received an application to designate Aufderheide Drive in 2013. The plan never made it through all the hurdles in large part due to delays mentioned above. Cycle Oregon came in, dusted off the plan, and made it happen.

Then in 2022, Oregon Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD) contracted management of the program out to Cycle Oregon, a nonprofit with deep roots in rural towns that organizes large group rides all over the state, so they have a vested interest in developing and marketing attractive cycling routes.

Cheers to everyone who didn’t give up on this route and thanks to all the volunteer committee members. Now let’s get more great routes into the catalog. I’m still waiting for an unpaved, gravel route!