Bike on Inn… to Clatskanie

Photo by Kris Lillich

Bicycle touring, especially in Oregon, means exposing yourself to the elements on a regular basis, either while you’re riding or in the camps you set up along the route. And withstanding a little rain and weather can be just a part of the game when you tour this state on a bike.

But every now and then, it’s good to step indoors for a hot shower, some clean clothes and a short rest from the road. That’s the experience Kris Lillich wants to provide for cyclists at the Bike Inn in Clatskanie, along Highway 30 between Portland and the coast. For $20 a night per person, you get access to a warm bed, a washer and dryer, a hot shower and space to store or work on your bicycle.

Kris opened up the Bike Inn two years ago after chatting up cyclists staying in the Clatskanie City Park campground, a popular place for cyclists to overnight on their way to or from the coast. Cyclists talked about their needs and wants and Kris, a former cyclist herself, listened.

“One of the main motivations for opening the Bike Inn was to raise awareness of the bicycle culture,” she says. “The cycle crowd is a neat crowd.”

Kris enjoys talking with the cyclists who come through her inn.  She likes their enthusiasm and zest for living life, and she thinks they’re just a smart group of people.

Bike Inn visitor Terri Wortman. Photo by Kris Lillich

The Bike Inn has hosted all kinds of cyclists in the past two years, including cyclists traveling the Lewis and Clark Trail from the east coast through to Astoria. Many of these cyclists like to take a day off to do laundry and relax before moving on to the coast.

The Bike Inn is located in downtown Clatskanie within easy walking distance of restaurants, the city park and the library. It’s also along the Clatskanie River; guests can opt to sleep on the inn’s covered deck extending over the river or take one of Kris’ kayaks on the water.

Kris is as much a booster for Clatskanie, a place she’s lived for 20 years, as she is for cycling. “It’s been really good for the community to see the cyclists come in,” she says.

She encourages cyclists to explore Clatskanie and the surrounding areas, including Beaver Falls Road, a kind of back way into the town that takes cyclists down an original section of the Columbia River Highway.

For more information, visit the Bike Inn’s website at www.bikeinnoregon.com or call and make a reservation at 503-369-6502.