It takes something extraordinary for a route to be designated an Epic Ride by IMBA (International Mountain Bicycling Association). There are three in Oregon, and fewer than 35 in the entire U.S. So when we mention that Waldo Lake Loop is an Epic Ride, you should start craving to ride it… as soon as possible.
This is another classic Oregon route, circumnavigating a pristine Cascades lake with pure water that no gas-powered boat gets to touch. The 21 miles of buff single-track offers plenty of challenge – that’s a lot of mileage – but there’s not a lot of elevation change, so this is a good alternative to some of the massive climbing on other trails in the region.
The winter snowpack is usually gone here by June, but the lakes and ponds throughout the area breed a strong contingent of mosquitoes. The best riding is therefore in the late summer through late fall.
You can start this ride from several points, but the North Waldo Lake campground is the most popular choice. Now, the concept of whether you should ride the trail clockwise or counterclockwise is a matter of endless debate, but we can tell you that either way is good fun. But for what it’s worth, our advice is to head counterclockwise if you’re starting at the North Waldo Lake campground.
Warm up with a couple minutes of pedaling, and then you’ll enter the site of a former forest fire, where ghostly gray trees emphasize the otherworldly natural beauty of this route. Mixed among the burnt trunks are wildflowers and younger trees, growing amid the destruction and providing a vivid lesson on the ever-changing landscape of the Pacific Northwest.
Once you’re riding on the western shore, the trail casts up and drops down in quick succession. On this section you never leave the lake shore for long, but the views change as the forest grows deeper. You’ll curl around the southern end of the lake about two-thirds of the way through the ride, heading back north for the final stretch.
Along the way you’ll come across a bunch of spur trails that spoke off the main trail to campgrounds or boat launches; don’t be distracted by them – unless, of course, it’s a toasty day and your legs are starting to tell you this would be a good time to hop into the lake for a refreshing dip.
That’s because, just when your mental calculations start concluding that you must be all the way around, the trail begins to climb through the sparser forest of the eastern shores. But have no fear; after you crest you get paid back with 3 miles of fun, flowing descent back to the trailhead.
If you’re smart and patient enough to take photos of just some of the great scenery along the way, you’ll have visual evidence for friends and family that you experienced a truly Epic Ride. But even if you don’t have the pics to prove it, you’ll know.
