No Risk, No Story: WA, OR, and Idaho
Story and Photos by Matt Boedecker
Where do I begin? I guess I could start by saying I am not a writer. I’m just some guy who wanted more. A summary to quickly catch you up, I got to the point where I needed change; I needed adventure. So, I decided to quit my job, sell my house, and hit the road full-time in my ’95 Toyota Land Cruiser. Just my dog, Ashes, and me. Although I have met some amazing people along the way. Let’s begin the journey.
I’m from the Puget Sound area in Washington State. My goal is to make it from the most Northwestern corner of the country to the furthest Southeastern point you can take a vehicle before looping back and making my way to Alaska. Taking the long way, of course, with as much dirt as possible. I have been to Neah Bay in the PNW already, and with the tribe still having the area shut down due to Covid, I decided the Washington Backcountry Discovery Route (ridebdr.com) would be my “start.” I will say that when I finally said all my goodbyes and hit the road, it was rough. The reality of what I was doing slapped me in the face, and I second-guessed everything. Did I pack enough parts? Did I forget anything? Am I losing my mind by doing this? Will I see everyone again? But I told myself this is something I’ve always wanted to do, and if I back out now, I will never go. So, to the Canadian border, I went.
I’ve lived in Washington my whole life. Seeing Mt. Rainer, the Olympics, and the Cascade Mountains is a daily occurrence. But the views from the BDR absolutely took my breath away. It is well mapped and, with a bit of planning, can be done in a mildly built 4×4. Travelling solo, I can make great time. I ran from Canada to Oregon in 3 days while still stopping for pictures and letting the dog out to run. I would recommend planning for 4-5 days to take the time and enjoy all there is to see and explore. You go from mountain tops to deserts to forests so thick you can’t see 100 feet. It was a great start to the adventure.
After crossing the Bridge of the Gods, the beginning/end of the BDR, I met up with some friends at the PNW Overland Expo in Redmond, Oregon. As much as I prefer to be by myself on top of a mountain, it was nice to see friends and share tips with others who enjoy getting out and exploring. The best way I can describe my route after this moment is a 3-year-old with a crayon and permission to draw on the walls. I was all over Oregon. From the Pacific coast to the desert, then back to the beach. Meeting up with friends in Bend and Seaside, then to little one-building towns out east, off to the top of the Steens Mountains, and down to the Alvord Desert. Oregon has so much to offer as far as land to explore and a variety of different landscapes. If you aren’t happy with what you find, there is something completely different just a few hours away.
While I was on the coast, I found an amazing river to camp on. It was the weekend, so it was getting full, but I met a nice group to camp nearby. If you’re out travelling and find yourself close to someone else, introduce yourself and see if it’s alright to camp close. A little kindness goes a long way, and I ended up making friends and getting some great tips and was told I could run dirt all the way up and over the mountain. This tip led me to a fire lookout that overlooked the Pacific Ocean and dumped me back on the 101 about 50 miles north of where I had started. I told myself I wanted to drive on as many beaches as possible, so I started looking up which ones were legal to drive on. Oregon offers many beaches you can drive on, but always verify beforehand. This decision introduced me to some adventure riders starting their way east on the Trans-America Trail (TAT). One had sucked water down the intake, and I had the tools to help, so we talked for a while and fixed the bike. They sent me the GPS tracks for the entire trail to thank me.
After a few weeks in Oregon, I headed toward Idaho. I needed to meet up with the guys from Long Range America in Boise for some new parts and much-needed rig maintenance. My Land Cruiser has ARB air lockers, front and rear, and the front locker had developed an air leak. Thank you to the guys at LRA and Todd Young at Top Line Truck for helping fix it. The guys at LRA have been a massive help during my travels, and I honestly can’t thank them enough. The parts I was waiting for were coming from Australia and sitting in customs, so I had a week to kill. With some suggestions from my friends, I headed out into the mountains. I was amazed by what I found. Not far outside of Boise, it offers hundreds of miles of dirt roads to explore. The weekends left me a little sad as I cleaned up a lot of trash left behind by others, but it was truly beautiful in those mountains.
A tip led me to a little mountain town of maybe 20 people. Main Street was a dirt road. When was the last time you saw that? And the views of the Sawtooth Mountains looked like a painting. I did so many miles in those hills that I broke the exhaust on the Cruiser from vibration. After a few days back and forth in the mountains, the parts finally arrived, and we got to work installing the new Radius Fabrication intake, snorkel, and some new KC lights. All I have to say is they know what they’re doing down in Australia with that intake. The quality is incredible. With the weekend here again, I gathered some friends, and we headed to another spot on the far side of the Sawtooth Mountains for the night. It was fun meeting and camping with new people. It’s nice to sit around a fire and chat. After that final night, I said my goodbyes for now and set my sights south. Utah, here I come…
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