It first glance, it seems unlikely that timber harvesting and mountain biking would have much in common. However, there is one very important connection between the two: back roads. Most of the back roads of Lane County were built for logging. These back roads are part of a federal system that is the largest network of roads on earth.
The architect of this immense system is the U. S. Forest Service. Where you would expect no road to go, a road can be found. No river, no cliff, no mountain has impeded the advances of the federal forest road builder.
Much of this road system accesses many beautiful areas of Lane County. The mountain bike rider will find roads that follow along side clear running streams and through ancient forests. Lakes, meadows, mountain passes, lava flows, glaciers, mountain peaks all pass before the wandering cyclists.
These roads will never again experience the endless parade of log trucks, as they have in the past. They will slowly assume the new role of taking people into the heart of wild Oregon, into the same majestic spaces that lured countless generations before. For an ever increasing number, the choice of travel will be the mountain bike.
Many of the rides described in this guide use these federally managed logging roads. Several of the routes use roads to reach the upper end of a trail. The rider must realize, however, that these roads were built for logging and many are still used for this purpose. Commercial logging and recreation are not always compatible. When bike meets log truck on one-lane roads, the outcome can be tragic. Fortunately, in most cases the rider can hear logging trucks approaching in enough time to stop and pull off the road. On weekends there is generally little logging activity, so roads are normally free of trucks. The real hazard is cars full of excited mountain bikers driving the road like they are riding the trail: fast. When driving or riding these roads, slow down and stay far to the right especially when approaching corners. On particularly narrow and blind corners use your horn to warn possible oncoming traffic.
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