Can anyone let me know if they have ridden gravel around the Malhuer National Forest? There is a lodge in the Malheur National Forest (Silvies, OR) with access to all these trails around Silvies Valley Ranch.
It sounds like this lodge has stay options to run straight out of. The large central area in the center of the map. Stock photos of the property. Just trying to learn some more details before our trip.
by GuiltyUse5952
13 Comments
Dirty Freehub has some rides there: [https://dirtyfreehub.org/gravel-search/?center=Oregon](https://dirtyfreehub.org/gravel-search/?center=Oregon)
There’s also a race [https://www.adventureharney.com/](https://www.adventureharney.com/)
I don’t know if the gravel is all ‘well maintained’, but there are some good routes I’m sure. It’s all extremely remote, so plan accordingly.
Place made national news about a decade or so ago.
Nice area. Remote and can get very hot in the summer.
The general surrounding area is high desert, so hot in the summer and cold in the winter. Beautiful and sometimes stark landscape. As a previous poster said, look at the routes on Dirty Freehub and the Skull race.
Be careful about water! A lot of creeks on a map are completely dry by now in normal years, and this one was especially dry. Also lots of large forest fires in this part of Oregon in the last couple of years, so I’d try and verify the roads you’re planning to take are actually open. Having a real map with you and not just a route in a GPS is a good idea if you have to change course on the fly.
Anyway, scary stuff aside this is a great region to ride. Have fun!
It is beautiful country when you get in the hills between Burns and John Day.
Many of these “roads” wee just bulldozer tracks to reach the trees for harvesting. The roads went back to nature. Some have had trees planted in them.
I’ve ridden around the area. It is a fun place to explore. Many abandoned mining outfits dot the area also.
Beautiful area, very remote and will be hot and dry in the summertime. Tons of places to explore
I’ve camped and ridden out that way. It’s very nice and remote and can be really hot. Aka the big empty.
Some super rough roads some pretty nice.
The Alvord desert and steens mtn are super cool just to the east. You can ride around on the dry lake bed. Some nice hot springs too.
Nationally, There are more gravel forest service roads than interstate miles.
Don’t be surprised when you arrive and find that many of these areas are locked behind gates, the roads are tank trapped and decommissioned
It’s also home the worlds largest and most massive organism, the Humongous Fungus. It’s a network of *Armillaria ostoyae*, a root decay fungus that infects nearly every coniferous tree in the PNW, spanning over 2,000 acres. *A. ostoyae* only spreads around a foot a year, so this thing is ancient. The fruiting bodies, commonly known as honey mushroom, are delicious if you find some while cycling.
Well maintained and untouched have completely different meanings fyi
Malheur and harney county are extremely remote. Bring extras for everything