Today’s ride over Old McKenzie Highway was one of the most dramatic rides I’ve ever had. The climb starts gently in Sisters, Oregon and proceeds through ponderosa pine forest. Then, as the climb intensifies, the forest abruptly turns into jumbled, jagged lava with only scattered vegetation. At the summit is the Dee Wright Observatory, which affords views of the devastated landscape. But on the descent, the lava suddenly turns into the forests I am used to from the Pacific Northwest: Dense trees covering the sky, and ferns covering the ground. The Old McKenzie is just spectacular!
