An amazing route created by Ryan Shuller. Ryan and I rode it 5/19/2026 Ryans Description : This route is one of the cleanest coast-to-valley traverses you can do out of Portland without ever touching a car. Start by taking the #5 NW Connector bus from Sunset Transit Center in west Portland to Tillamook, then hop on Tillamook Transit Route #2 out to Oceanside. Total transit cost is only about $16. The route literally starts at the beach, so before heading inland you can roll down to the water and dip your tires in the Pacific. The opening miles waste no time. You’ll hit a series of short, punchy climbs as you work your way up toward Cape Meares Lighthouse, with big ocean views and classic coastal forest the whole way. After that the route settles into roughly 20 miles of more gradual climbing before things really start to ramp up. Around mile 20 through mile 60 is where the route earns its reputation, stacking nearly 5,800 feet of climbing through a full west-to-east traverse of the Oregon Coast Range. The main backbone of the route follows Trask River Road into Gales Creek Road before eventually cutting through Barney Reservoir and dropping down toward Gaston. The terrain constantly changes between dense old forest, logging corridors, river valleys, and long isolated gravel stretches that feel incredibly remote despite being relatively close to Portland. The gravel itself is surprisingly friendly. Most of it is extremely well compacted and at times feels more like “groad” than true gravel. Once you reach Gaston, the hard part is basically over. From there it’s about 28 mostly manageable miles back toward home through the valley. Food and resupply are straightforward. Oceanside has options before rolling out, Tillamook gives you a solid mid-route stop, and Hillsboro has food carts and cafes for the final push. I marked recommended cafes in Tillamook along with food cart options in Hillsboro on the route.