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The North Cascades Highway is a very popular route for motorcyclists seeking curves, scenery and small towns to eat in. Relatively few riders from the west side of the mountains venture off the Cascade Loop route. That, my fellow riders is a shame.

This article is part of the BestScenicRoutes.com effort to get people to explore the great areas near and along SR 20. The series is called North Cascades Connections.

Sign says "leaving" however, I was just entering the Okanogan National Forest for moments of motorcycle zen

The ride starts in the town of Winthrop. This is a motorcycle destination for most riders. The North Cascades Highway terminates here, but SR 20 continues on for many miles. We follow it south through Twisp, WA passing many food, lodging and fuel options. In Twisp, the road turns east and meanders through the Okanogan National Forest. As soon as it turns east, it begins climbing to 4,020 feet in elevation at Loup Loup Pass.

On most days this would be superb riding. I was not that lucky. Rain that started back on Rainy and Washington Passes had gotten heavier and turned to marble-sized hail. The every frozen marble that hit me at 60 miles per hour felt as I would imagine being hit by machine guns wearing some sort of bullet-proof vest. The Aerostich Roadcrafter performed well, and allowed me to duck in behind the windshield to keep moving. From time to time the hail would let up. My spirits would rise and I found joy riding through the moderate condition of the paved roads through the Okanogan National Forest.

A soaked leather riding glove with melting hail. Not perfect riding conditions.

There are a few places where the road winds near Loup Loup Pass inviting Zen. Luckily the hail let up to allowing me to enjoy these stretches of road. Highway 20 is wider in this area than you’d expect. It is actually nice because it allows a view into the healthy forests for searching for deer. The four-legged creatures with a vengeance for motorcyclists are thick through this area.

In Omak, Highway 20 continues north while I shoot onto Highway 155 heading east and then south. The road twists, turns and climbs up to Disautel Summit. The hail returns. It dumps on me until I can’t take it anymore. The sign for the summit approaches. A pull out allows me to rest my wet, tired and cold bones. The rain has soaked through my worn out boots and summer leather gloves. I tried to catch the hail in the photo, but it melted rapidly and only a small portion remains sitting on my soaked glove.

The plan was to find a camp spot for the night. With this weather, those plans to rough it turned to a desire for a warm and dry hotel room. That was found at the Coulee Inn and Suites at the base of the Grand Coulee Dam. It is pure happenstance that I find the room. Their no vacancy sign is lit up the same as all the other hotels that I have passed for many miles. I stopped in to the office to see if they would help me locate an open room nearby. It just so happened that someone had cancelled their reservation for a single king room. A bit of negotiation knocked the price from $96 to $70 for the night.

My riding gear was soaked and my camping gear was damp. I was happy to be in a warm dry room.

Grand Coulee Dam

The Grand Coulee Dam is the largest hydroelectric gravity dam on the Columbia River, the largest electric-producing power plant and largest concrete structure in the United States. Also according to Wikipedia.org (the always correct online encyclopedia) it is the fifth largest producer of hydroelectricity in the world.

It is quite the site to take in. The structure is as the name says, grand. The nearly mile-long spillway holds back an enormous amount of water. The giant spillway provides a backdrop for nightly laser light shows. Since there is little else to do in Grand Coulee, it would be worth taking in. I opted for sleep instead.

It is only 100 miles (two hours) to Grand Coulee from Winthrop. It is an easy addition to a ride over the North Cascades Highway.  Be prepared for all types of weather. Riding up the North Cascades drops the temperature 20 degrees. On the east side of the mountains the mercury climbs to 90 or more degrees. As my ride exemplifies, this convergence of air temperatures often cause summer storms.

The next article will cover a loop from Grand Coulee to Kettle Falls and back to Omak. This ride hit dirt roads high above the Columbia River, two ferries and roads as close to Canada as you can get without a passport.

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The next morning we head back to Hwy 101 via NP2880. This road offers great views down the steep cliffs above the Dungeness River. We dismount in Sequim to find treats and coffee. We find both within a short stroll. The coffee joint could have been found on any Seattle-area street. The treats on the other hand, were quite scrumptious. Bell Street Bakery (173 Bell Street, Sequim, WA or 360-681-6262) has their won grain and flour mill. All of the ingredients are grown locally and milled in-house. Their pastries provided the local flavor that we look for during our trips.

Interesting driftwood on Dungeness Spit

With pleasantly full bellies we ride back to the Dungeness Recreation area via the old Olympic Highway. The Dungeness Spit is a more than five-mile sand spit that juts out into the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Near the end of the spit is the New Dungeness Lighthouse, circa 1857. The lighthouse has been updated to an automatic light and is now operated by the New Dungeness Lighthouse Organization, which took control from the U.S. Coast Guard.

We enjoy a long stroll down the spit looking over the Strait of Juan de Fuca. It would take a couple hours to make it to the lighthouse. A walk that would be well worth it if we had the time. After taking several photos we continue down Hwy 101 to Port Angeles.

The ride from Sequim to Port Angeles is relatively undramatic. It is a wide, fast and indifferent road from any other get-there-fast highway. Luckily, the destinations are worth the few minutes of boredom.

The Olympic National Park Visitor Center is located on a hill in Port Angeles. Just follow the many signs. The visitor center offers the typical gift shop, but also ha a very nice exhibit area about the park. This is valuable infomratio nthat keeps you informed as to the geological and climatic uniqueness that is visible from the road.

Turning right from the visitor center is a park entrance and Heart O’ the Hills campground. This is one of the larger campgrounds in the Olympic National Park. We find ample available sites. We stake our claim and set up camp.

The damp and socked in skies clear as we finish setting up camp. After a brief run into Port Angeles for dinner, we decide to forgo our evening planes and head up Hurricane Ridge.

Sun sets over the Olympic Mountains viewed from Hurricane Ridge

Hurricane Ridge Road climbs quickly. It rises up from sea level in Port Angeles to approximately 5,200 feet at the top. The road itself is worth the trip. Even on the cloudiest of days it twists and turns with a rockwall to the right. On the opposite side of the road is a small shoulder and steep drop off. There isn’t much room for error. An abundant wildlife population and park rangers eager to snag speeders means that motorcyclists should be mindful of the posted speed limit. That is completly alright as the views deserve every bit of attention that the road affords.

After passing through a couple tunnels and leaning through countless turns, we arrive at the Hurricane Ridge Visitor Center.

The area is aptly named for unpredicable weather that rolls over the Olympic National Park. With clear skies, Hurricane Ridge Road and the views from it are suberb.

The view from the Hurricane Ridge Visitor Center

We arrived to the top as the sun hung low in the sky. The visitor center was closed, but a Kingston-area school teacher was setting up some sort of contraption. Being the curious person that I am, I enquire for more informatin. The contraption is actually a project that he built with his students. It is a very high power telescope that is self-contained for transport. Throughout the summer he holds stargazing sessions from the top of Hirricane Ridge. The surrounding mountains block any light pollution and on clear nights (on which the program only runs) the stars move quickly, but clearly past its lens.

It was total happenstance that we stumbled upon this program. It doesn’t have to be a chance encounter for you. Plan to arrive just prior to dusk to take in the mountain views. Then after the sun sets you can take in the astronomical views.

We ride very slowly back down the mountain to our camp site at Heart O’ the Hills. After failing to get our damp wood to catch fire, we retire to teh warmth of our sleeping bags. At least we’ll have wood to burn to cook breakfast. As long as we can get it lit.

As peninsulas go, there are three options for day trips (west side, north side and east side.).  This trip is being split up into separate articles by day. This allows you to pick and choose which parts best fit with your schedule and what you’d like to see. Time didn’t allow us to make the western Pacific Ocean portion of the Olympic Peninsula. Stay tuned for the next article on the section of our trip through lavendar farms and Port Townsend.