Riding The Hanford Reach

Sunrise Chorus

As the sun was rising above the Saddle Mountain foothills I was enjoying a morning chorus of red-winged blackbirds.

I was headed out for a mountain bike ride along the Hanford Reach section of the Columbia River.  Of course, I was on the east side of the river.  Unauthorized visits to the other side of the ‘creek’ usually result in an all expenses paid vacation to a federal prison.  But, one can certainly get a nice view of the Hanford Nuclear Reservation, and a new appreciation for just how expansive that giant land mass is, from my side of the river.

My route followed a crumbling abandoned narrow roadway that used to run up river to the tiny hamlet to White Bluffs (now-a-days, the town is also crumbling and abandoned).

Springtime in the desert

U.S. Fish and Wildlife sign

The area is now under the control of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and is closed to motorized traffic… Perfect for Rockhoppers!

The beautiful bright blue sky and the rising morning sun did little to warm up the day.  A chilly breeze and temperatures on the bottom end of 40 degrees kept me pedaling along whenever I wasn’t stopped for photos or filming.  Speaking of filming, how about a little video:

Jimi Hendrix – Angel.  Man what a great tune.

The Hanford Reach

This marvelous view high on a hill was my turn around point.  From here it was mostly down hill and totally down wind.  Nice!

A drive-by geology lesson

Hey one last thing.  Here is a link to a cool little video explaining some of the interesting geology associated with the White Bluffs area.  Ok, that’s it for now.  I got another week to spend here in the desert, then it’s back to the coast.

Thanks for following along, Kat