About This Event
Explor(ing?) Oregon . . . . and Washington and Idaho! This is a FOUR day driving adventure to revel in the beautiful landscapes of the Inland Empire of the Pacific Northwest on some fantastic twisty and winding scenic roads. The drive will focus in the region where Oregon, Washington, and Idaho converge. It encompasses the Spiral Highway near Lewiston Idaho, the Clearwater River canyon and surrounding plateau, Rattlesnake Grade, rim-to-river views of North America's deepest river gorge in Hells Canyon, the roller-coaster Little Alps west of Baker City, and a thrilling dash over the lonely Blue Mountains and sun-baked Columbia Basin back toward home.
What to Expect
Prepare yourself for a vigorous endurance drive and some substantial milage. In order to reach these incredible stretches of pavement we'll need to drive back and forth across Washington and the trip needs to stretch to four days to make it worthwhile. Seat time for the middle two days will be approximately 8 1/2 hrs with added breaks, dining stops, refuelings, and so forth. The focus is the drive but we'll probably want to check out some overlooks and viewpoints along the way. The first and last days will be our longest but they'll also have some highway driving to get in and out of Washington.
Caveats
Given the distance from home this route will not be pre-driven. About half of these roads I have experience on. The others? Bring your sense of adventure! But they are all paved.
Organization - Lodging, etc.
Minimal. While there are planned lunch stops mid-day and we'll know what towns we'll be in come evening (and I'm planning to get us into town in time for dinner), that's the extent of the planning.
EACH OF US IS RESPONSIBLE FOR OUR OWN LODGING AND DINING ARRANGEMENTS.
This will be early September so temperatures should be pleasant with warm days but cooler evenings and we'll be off-peak travel / vacation season
You will need to make arrangements for lodging in the following locations and dates:
Friday - 9-11-2026
Grangeville, ID
Saturday - 9-12-2026
Ontario, OR
Sunday - 9-13-2026
Baker City, OR
Itinerary
For each day, be ready at the meeting point with a full tank of gas for the Miata, top off yourself with breakfast or wake-up juice (coffee), a charged radio, and any beverages or travel rations you'll want for the day.
Friday - 9-11-2026
Meet at Valley Mall, south corner of parking lot at intersection of Valley Mall Blvd and Main St.
2529 Main St
Union Gap, WA
9:00am Meet
9:15am Drivers meeting
9:30am Departure
Saturday - 9-12-2026
Meet at the NomNom gas station
901 W Main St
Grangeville, ID 83530
8:00 am Meet
8:15 am Drivers meeting
8:30 am Departure
Sunday - 9-13-2026
Meet at McDonalds near Walmart/Home Depot
1690 E Idaho Ave
Ontario, OR 97914
8:00 am Meet
8:15 am Drivers meeting
8:30 am Departure
Monday - 9-14-2026
Meet at Bi-Mart parking lot, near McDonalds
700 Campbell St
Baker City, OR 97814
8:00 am Meet
8:15 am Drivers meeting
8:30 am Departure
If you can't make the full four days you can meet us at one of the morning start locations. The easiest would be to meet us Saturday morning in Grangeville by coming out Friday after work.
Route Handout and Rever Links
A more detailed route directions and Rever mapping app links will be available at the first driver's meeting and / or via just before the event. One note on Rever, we'll be out of cell reception a good chunk of the time so use offline mapping if you can.
Please see the Club website under Document. Official Club Documents > Rever App How To for a reference PDF help setting up the Rever app if you wish to use it.
Special Notes
Bathroom / stretch breaks are planned for about every 1.5 hrs, however, the route goes through some remote areas and public restrooms may be few and far between. I will endeavor to verify restroom stops will be open as we get closer to the drive.
Bring a FRS compatible radio set to channel 5.
Bring extra cash "just in case"
Event Contact(s)
Jay Greening
jay@jay-greening.com