PORT ANGELES — Bicycle Rides Northwest’s Olympic Peninsula-wide cycling tour will bring more than 300 riders to the region from Saturday through July 16.
The fully supported event will begin and end in Port Townsend and follow a 435-mile-long out-and-back route that includes overnight stays in Port Townsend, Port Angeles at Salt Creek County Park and Forks. The tour also will visit La Push and the Hoh Rainforest. It will mostly follow the Olympic Discovery Trail.
The Olympic Dreams tour sold out its 300 total rider spots within 24 hours when registration opened in December.
A highlight of this year’s tour will be a free public concert at the Clallam County Fairgrounds in Port Angeles on Monday, featuring local musicians Kim Trenerry and Jason Mogi of Deadwood Revival. Donations accepted at the concert will serve as a fundraiser for the Olympic Discovery Trail.
One of the principal goals of this BRNW tour is to shine a spotlight on the work the Peninsula Trails Coalition has done in developing the ODT. BRNW has not previously been to the Peninsula in its 35 years of touring, because there had been a lack of safe riding routes for groups.
“The concept of the ODT, and in particular the completion of the Spruce Railroad Trail segment on the north shore of Lake Crescent, has changed the game for cycling groups coming to the Olympic Peninsula,” BRNW Executive Director Jim Moore said. “It’s a world-class resource that allows us to see this incredible landscape in a safe way, and we couldn’t be more excited to bring our event.”
BRNW provides community grants to each host community. Grants from this tour will support the ReCyclery in Port Townsend, the PCT/ODT, the Forks Food Bank and other local causes.
People can find the full route and activities at www.tinyurl.com/OlympicTour2022.
