Date Reviewed: 08/29/2008

Length: About 30 miles.

Technical Difficulty: Easy to Moderately Difficult.

Location: The report begins on the south end of the route at the junction with Hwy 7 at N44° 43' 07" and W118° 09' 42" and ends at the junction with FR73 at N44° 54' 50" and W118° 24' 03".

Connects With: Hwy 7, FR 73 and FR 52.

Amenities: Full amenities in Sumpter, food and groceries in Granite.

Places of Interest: Historic Sumpter, Granite, Sumpter Valley Railway, Sumpter Gold Dredge and The Blue Mountains.

Review: Hwy 220 is the western section of the Elkhorn Scenic Byway. This route takes you through some of the most productive gold producing country in Oregon's history. Gold was first discovered here in 1862 by a party heading to the California gold strikes. The boom began in 1895 and continued, in various stages of profitability, until 1953 when the dredges were finally retired. It is worth a stop in Sumpter to see the last huge gold dredge, and if you have the time, ride the Sumpter Valley Railway.

The road itself is varied, from adrenaline pumping fun (if you want) over Blue Springs Summit to mellow corners through a forest/prairie mix on the north end of the route. Getting to the beginning of Hwy 220, a couple miles south of Sumpter, is half the allure. Hwy 7 is beautiful! The junction to Sumpter, off Hwy 7, is about halfway between Austin Junction and Baker City.

The first couple of miles to Sumpter is uneventful and flat. After Sumpter, the road begins climbing Blue Springs Summit fairly rapidly. The road up the south side is mostly good pavement, but beware the cracks running parallel to your travel and the ubiquitous tar snakes. Not generally a problem, but caution is advised in hot weather and rain.

Once you reach the nearly 5700 ft. summit, the pavement turns to smoother asphalt and a less rapid descent into a valley where Granite (barely) exists. The south side has an elevation difference of a little over 1,000 ft. in about four miles. The north side elevation difference is also about 1,000 ft., but it runs out in about 10 miles. If I were to ride this road just for the summit traverse, I would want to go north to south because of the better pavement, longer approach and more friendly curves.

After the descent into Granite, you again climb nearly 1,000 ft. in about five miles, but it doesn't seem like it because the road is not nearly as curvy. This section is through mostly new forest growth and meadows that break the monotony.

Past Granite, the road gets narrower and is less maintained. As of this report, the centerline and fog lines are mostly gone and there were a lot of potholes, probably the result of frost heaves. They were all circled with paint and hopefully will be fixed by 2009.

Hwy 220 is part of a fantastic web of great roads in the Blue Mountains. It is not as fun as FR 52, or as beautiful as FR 73, but it is a worthy gateway to these roads and more. If nothing else, Sumpter is worth a vist. Hwy 220 is accessible from all directions and is an important link to an incredible area of great motorcycling.