From a dusty shoe box forgotten in my basement these photos from the very FIRST Hells Canyon Motorcycle Rally were just discovered by my wife. That she didn’t just throw them away is a miracle! Captured by a disposable camera and in hiding for eight years – the first Hells Canyon Rally.

Flash back to June of 2000 and my desire to escape from the rat race of the Portland area and get out on the bike. After some phenagelling rooms were secured at the Geiser Grand Hotel. Now I rounded up a few of my buddies and we were off to Baker City. We arrived after dark on Friday and made our way to the Geiser. Paradise found! That night we walked two blocks north to Barley Browns Brew Pub. After a Flat Iron steak and LOTS of beer it was decided that we would ride the Hells Canyon Scenic Byway and make our first stop at the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center. Just 7 miles east of Baker on HWY 86 the center has everything relating to the Oregon Trail, including covered wagons. We spent way more time at the center than we should have but finally got on the road to Halfway. Back then it was called Half.com as part of some internet scam. The town got a little bit of money and we got some trivia. It’s Halfway again and for all you Harley riders they do have PREMIUM gas.

Now we were scraping floorboards all the way up to the Hells Canyon Overlook. The view from here is rivaled only by the view of the canyon from the river itself. You should be sure and see both before you are all done in. Across the canyon, but out of view in the picture at the top, are the Seven Devils Mountains. Next stop on our big adventure was Joseph. This little town is well know as home for artists and artisans like the ones that made this bronze horse on Main Street. This type of sculpture is on virtually every corner. We had a fantastic lunch in Joseph, there are plenty of great places to eat, but one I always hit is the Hydrant, 100 Main Street in Joseph. A biker friendly place with great food!

From Joseph to Enterprise and on toward La Grande the road is a little more relaxed and you can really soak up the view and scenery. This part of Oregon is so beautiful that I have been making plans to move here in retirement! As we made our way back to Baker everyone was thirsty and hungry. So after a few beers in the Geiser Saloon we made our way across the street to the Main Event. Now this is a biker tavern if I ever saw one. Great burgers and stiff drinks. Once you get east of the Cascades, some how the drinks just get better.

Someone in our group said they thought we should go home on the freeway. What the hell? Not for me! So my brother-in-law and I got up super early and took the back way home. There was no way I was going to be talked onto the freeway. The ride home turned out to be just as good as the other rides we took that weekend. We stopped at the Elkhorn in Sumpter for breakfast and headed west past Prairie City, John Day, Mitchell, Prineville and home.

That’s how it all began. Now eight years later, with thousands of bikers converging on Eastern Oregon, you too can discover the motorcycle magic of the Hells Canyon Motorcycle Rally.

Rally Founder

Hey Steve and Eric,

Just got my registration packet in the mail today and because I’ve never been to this rally didn’t know what to expect, after looking over everything thought I’d offer this.

The last couple of bike runs that I have attended went something like this: Show up, register, get photo copied instructions, year bar or pin and go on the ride. Sure there’s a lot of hangin’ around with other bikers and such, but basically that’s it!

I was almost shocked when I opened my packet and saw the full color poster, the full color tourbook, with no advertising I might add, wristband, bike show entry and a personal welcome letter from Steve. This is nice! I haven’t even been to the rally yet and I already feel like I got more than I paid for. I’ve already read the tourbook twice and feel like an expert Hells Canyon rider.

I can hardy wait for June and hope to see you guys at the rally.

First Timer

After two of the best days of our riding lives, Pam and I left Baker at 08:30 on Sunday. It was obvious that we were headed into weather as we retraced the tour route, but we buckled down and adopted a less aggressive line on the corners up to Sumpter. However, the elevation played a greater part in our discomfort than the driving rain as we went into the Malheur. Cold, we stopped at Austin Junction for coffee and breakfast. We couldn’t have asked for a better rest stop. The food and service were excellent. We met a couple of fellow bikers there, plus an old rancher from Long Creek who expressed a certain incredulity that we were into another 300 miles of this before reaching home. I think he found some black humor in it all!

We had finished our meal and were bracing ourselves for the next section when the rain shifted gears and we could hardly see across the road. It suddenly eased though, and we were off again. On the way down the hill we met a couple of bicyclists fighting their way up the grade from Prairie City – there’s always someone worse off then yourself! Further down towards Prairie the sun peeked out through the clouds and we actually started to warm up. Through John Day, Dayville and Spray we had great motorcycling weather and cranked it up through the deserted valley road. We met some guys at the road works in between Spray and Fossil and followed them for a few tens of miles into Fossil.

At the gas pump in Fossil, I promised Pam we would stop for a Pepsi in Condon but somehow we just kept going after we got to the top of the hill. Then things got really hairy. I suppose the fact that they built a darn great wind farm up there should’ve told me something but I was kinda surprised by the ferocity of the wind on the plateau – it almost seemed that it had it in for us on a personal basis. Right near the bottom where you cross over the John Day again, I almost got knocked sideways and from there until Wasco we slacked off to about 50 and spent many anxious miles coping with the hail, rain, cold and gusty wind. Getting into Wasco we went right over to the Wasco Grill and found a totally warm reception, hot coffee and kick-butt biker chilli. Just the ticket! By the way, these guys were totally supportive and prepared for a crowd on Friday but I guess few of us stopped by. I know from our own experience that we had to gas up in The Dalles and then pressed on through Wasco and didn’t feel like stopping. Wasco, unfortunately, doesn’t have a gas station.

After Wasco we got back on the I84 at Fulton Canyon but then deviated from the route by running across to Dufur. We allowed ourselves the ultimate luxury of a hot spring bath at Carson – believe me, the aches, pains and bone chill of the previous several hundred miles were well taken care of by the mineral water!

From Carson it was a pleasant, stylin’ blast home to Ridgefield stopping only for some chicken to grill and one last bottle of red wine to cap off this fantastic weekend.

To Eric and Steve, thanks for putting together the framework for the rest of us to flesh out in our own way as riders; to the people of Baker City, your hospitality is now legendary as far as I’m concerned; and to our fellow riders, all I can say is that I was proud to be in your company.

Hells Canyon Rider

I would like to start off by saying thanks to Baker City for letting all us bikers take over your town. You made us feel at home and everyone that our small little group met was, not only polite but also, helpful when we really needed them. Such as, directions or suggestions of best steak in town.

This was my wife’s and I first rally, and thanks to the experience of this one, there will be many more to come. Even it is only this one year after year.

Once again, thanks to all for making this a time to remember and an event I want to celebrate more than X-mas. Can’t wait to see you all in HELL in 07.

Steve E (on the FJR) … No not Steve F LOL! … I can’t help it if Steve and I have great taste in bikes.

Hells Canyon Rider 2006

Hells Canyon, where to start? Well….wanna get your bike outa third gear? This is a great ride to go on! I get SO sick of riding in town. First….second……clutch, brake.. and wait. Yeah it’s ridin, but not how mother nature intended it. Ok now imagine fifth gear, open road… u fill in the blanks! This rally was obviously well planned out. Baker City offers great small town hospitality, and some of the most scenic riding in the state. And that’s just the riding part.

Baker also offers a wide variety of “waterin holes”. If you stay at the Geiser Grand, the Main Event is directly across the street. This is a good place to “contemplate greatness”. This is one rally I plan on attending for years to come. If you think this is for you, you’re probably right!! Be sure to bring long sleeves and sun screen. See you in Hell, Hells Canyon that is.

Hells Canyon Rider in 2001-2005