[363ny]

Looks like an amazing trip and your photos are superb!

[raysspl]

What an awesome road trip! I enjoy my times in Oregon

[marcva]

Question: 425 boring miles through the desert @~60 mph? (Just doing the math). Deserts tend to be the place with room to run.

[3tekcorps]

Originally Posted by marcva

Question: 425 boring miles through the desert @~60 mph? (Just doing the math). Deserts tend to be the place with room to run.

You can do 70 now. They finally raised the speed limit on rural highways.

[KevinM]

Great drive, great photographs, great post.

All of a sudden, I just want to take an impulsive long drive this weekend...

[PARTS@STBMW]

These are some phenomenal photos, thank you for sharing!

[BOhio]

Originally Posted by bwhip

Thanks Chris!

Most of these were taken with my Canon 5D Mark IV, with 24-70mm f/2.8 lens. First one in the series was with iPhone X, on the third I used my 16-35mm f/2.8 lens.

Third-to-last one is actually a Photomerge panorama of 28 individual images stitched together in the computer.

BWhip, have you ever had your M2 at the Sawtooth/Stanley/Redfish Lake area? Our friends from Europe would be impressed with that scenery too. But I was only a passenger way back when we visited that area, and can't recall if the roads can measure up for the fun factor.

Thanks for the pics and story, and sorry that California's issues have again spread out beyond its borders. We got out (after growing up and living there all our lives) before they put the wall up -- to keep taxpayers in!

Friends fled to CDA, Post Falls, Meridian, and soon Boise for another youngish family.

That LBB with the PO in the background is a beautiful image. Man and nature.

[uniqueMR]

[bwhip]

Originally Posted by marcva

Question: 425 boring miles through the desert @~60 mph? (Just doing the math). Deserts tend to be the place with room to run.

Speed limit through most of that boring part is 70 now. Truth be told, I might have gone just a bit faster - probably had cruise control set to about 78. Usual stops for fuel and a snack. I save the super aggressive driving for the twisty bits, which are a lot more fun than just putting the pedal down on long, straight stretches of road.

[bwhip]

Originally Posted by BOhio

BWhip, have you ever had your M2 at the Sawtooth/Stanley/Redfish Lake area? Our friends from Europe would be impressed with that scenery too. But I was only a passenger way back when we visited that area, and can't recall if the roads can measure up for the fun factor.

Just a month or so ago, actually! And was out there again this past weekend on the bike with a group of friends. Love that area!

[BOhio]

Nice!! Glad to see you drive and enjoy the car, even though -- mein Gott!!! -- you're putting miles on it. We have friends who have told us, on numerous occasions, that they just feel better knowing their cars are in the garage, rather than risking who knows what on the road. OTOH, his wife doesn't play her Steinway piano because she doesn't like to see fingerprints on the keys. Seriously!

Back to you: do you get out and take all of those pics, or do you have a drone that can fly along and do some photography while you're at the wheel?

[bwhip]

Originally Posted by BOhio

Nice!! Glad to see you drive and enjoy the car, even though -- mein Gott!!! -- you're putting miles on it. We have friends who have told us, on numerous occasions, that they just feel better knowing their cars are in the garage, rather than risking who knows what on the road. OTOH, his wife doesn't play her Steinway piano because she doesn't like to see fingerprints on the keys. Seriously!

Back to you: do you get out and take all of those pics, or do you have a drone that can fly along and do some photography while you're at the wheel?

Yeah, I hear you - but I bought it to drive, not to show (or as investment, per se).

I do get out and take the pics. I haven't yet found a drone that could keep up.

[Destroya]

Great photos! Unfortunately we are blanketed by wildfire smoke right now. The Oregon Coast is spectacular and most of the roads from the coast inland are fun twisties.

[iZord]

Such a great post!! Thank you for sharing.

[bobert]

Absolutely killer pics, once again. FFS, I am on the wrong coast.

[TrueToBMW]

Great photos and what an amazing looking road trip. Definitely jealous and I'm really liking that color on the M2, solid choice.

[caustics]

Awesome! If the fun per mile is worth it, who cares for the miles. Thanks for sharing!

[sharkbite]

Sometimes one needs to just get out and drive , glad you did ! Thanks for sharing your pics and adventure. It's probably been 25 yrs since I drove through that area of Oregon but it is stunning out there. Roseburg,Florence and Coos Bay were my faves.

[bwhip]

Originally Posted by sharkbite

Sometimes one needs to just get out and drive , glad you did ! Thanks for sharing your pics and adventure. It's probably been 25 yrs since I drove through that area of Oregon but it is stunning out there. Roseburg,Florence and Coos Bay were my faves.

Thanks! It really is a beautiful area, and there is such an abundance of amazing roads for driving/riding. I stayed in Florence on a motorcycle trip last year, and this was the view from my hotel room back door in the morning.

[Teutonic]

Yeah, I am nuts like you. Yet, I have very little time later...
These small things are making our life and we should wake up and do it more often.
I am happy when I see this kind of trips and the excitment that come with the experience.
Good for you!
Wonderful pictures, wonderful machine.

[heavystarch]

I get it - very clever.

[Spritztour]

Originally Posted by bwhip

It's been terribly hot and smoky for what seems like months in our area, mostly due to the fires in California. I spent last weekend trimming trees in a 45' boom lift at our place, which was a ton of work. At one point when I was up in the sky using a chainsaw on some dead limbs (probably as they fell and hit me on the head), I found myself thinking, "I really need to go for a drive. Maybe next weekend!" Of course, most anywhere I'd want to go to get some blue skies (rather than brown) and cooler temps would be pretty far away! And I knew I didn't have a ton of time, particularly since I have an upcoming three-day road trip with friends on bikes. But, as the week went along, I hatched a plan to drive over to the Oregon coast. There would be a lot of miles required to get to some fantastic scenery and fun roads once I got there, but I felt like I just had to do it.



Friday afternoon I left the office around 2 PM and drove 7.5 hours to Eugene, where I spent the night. About 425 mostly very boring miles through the desert, with ugly brown skies. Temperature in Boise when I left was 108, and it stayed that way until I started to climb the mountain outside of Bend, OR. As sunset approached, the smoky skies created a strange effect ahead of me.



As I got to Eugene, I looked up at the sky and could see three distinct lines - brown to the east, blue directly above, and then some light gray clouds over to the west. I was glad to have reached the edge of the smoky skies, and looking forward to blue skies and ocean breezes on Saturday.

Saturday morning I left early, knowing that I had 500+ miles to cover on my intended route, which would include gorgeous ocean views, along with some super twisty tarmac that would really allow me to have some fun in the little M2.

The first beautiful and fun road of the day was Hwy 36, which is a nice back country route to the coast, which loops around Triangle Lake. As the road got more remote and curvy, I picked up the pace a bit, loving hearing that motor sing under acceleration and downshifts. So nice! I hadn't fully realized that I was doing 85 in a 55 - until I passed a police car going the opposite direction, that I didn't see until he was practically right in front of me. That's when he turned the radar on - and I finally got a warning. Too late! I hit the brakes, looked in my rear view mirror and saw him first put his brakes, on, then turn on his overhead flashing red and blue lights. NOOOOOOO!!!! I'm such an idiot. I started to look for a safe place to pull over, looked in my rear view mirror again, and saw him turn his lights off and keep going! Huh? Wow!! Just a warning (I didn't deserve), I guess. That would have been expensive. Thanks, Officer!

I pulled over for a couple of early morning photos along the way, but mostly was just eager to get to the coast. I was really enjoying the cooler temperature and clean, fresh air.





I arrived in Florence and turned south to drive to where I knew the great ocean views are, through a bunch of cute little seaside towns, which are now becoming familiar as I've been this way a few times on my bike.

Port Orford is where the first really great views are found on this route - and as usual they put a huge smile on my face.





The color of my car is called "Long Beach Blue" by BMW. Seems appropriate!



I soaked in the ocean breeze, and cherished every moment of driving along this incredible stretch. One of the few places where I don't mind actually going the speed limit!









I stopped for lunch at a little fish-and-chips cafe in Gold Beach, then quickly finished up and got back in the car, eager for some of the amazing tire-testing roads I was heading toward. Most notably, Tyee Road near Roseburg, and my favorite - Siuslaw River Road.

Here are a couple of views from a bridge along that route. So beautiful, even when the flow is low.





I was trying not to go too fast, I really was. Not easy with roads like this.



Siuslaw River Road is just the best. Always empty, always incredibly fun. Super tight and twisty. Not the best for photos, because the trees are so dense that the photo would really just show the one corner in front of you. So, I mostly just drove. Hard.

In a few spots it opens up and provides a little better photo opportunity. This part is a favorite, but requires a pano-stitching of about 30 individual frames to fit it all in!



A couple more from Wolf Creek Road, which takes you back toward Eugene from Siuslaw - also brilliant:





I slept quite well on Saturday night, then got up early (4:45 AM) on Sunday, watched the MotoGP race from Austria, then drove the 7.5 hours home - back to SmokyAndHotville.

Almost 1400 miles of driving in two and a half days? I must be nuts. A little. And completely grateful.

Great pics thanks for sharing and now I want to do it too!