Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1919-05-17
FIVE HOUR DRIVE TAKES
SALEM MOTORISTS DEEP
INTO M'KENZIE REGION

if you can call the concentration Of a
hotel. a postoffiee and general store,
school house and a few dwellings town
is the natural and logical "base Of OPP
erations" for the sportsman. Or tourist
who invades the Mckenzie country.
Trip Real "JOy-Eide."
Considering the ssenie beauties, the
good fishing and hudting and other rec
reational attractions it offers in con,
neetiOn with its easy accessibility from
Salem by auto. the fact that the Ne
Kenzie country is so little visited by
motorists of this psrt OF the state Is
little short of amazing. Even at the
risk Of being branded "trite" | would
describe the country between the little
town of Walterville, 2l miles above -.
gene and Mckenzie Pass, as vaes
ZIONIST s paradise, and the drive 20 uau
from this city as & real "ioy-ride" for
motorists except for few miles Of road
in the heart of the Willamette valley
between Salem and Albany.
With Lee L. Gilbert, Elgin distribu.
tor, driving one Of his "peppy" little
Skies, / went over the route last ~e.N
in company with Z. W. Hazard, cashier
of the United States National bank of
Salem, and Mr.. Gilbert 3 brother, Chas.
Gilbert, of MeMinnville.
Valley Roads Worst.
Pulling ut of Salem at ! clock p. m.
Saturday we covered the 1927 miles
to the Blue River hotel in 4 hours and
56 minutes, running time. 1t was nine
o clock at night, however, before we got
there. At Albany we spent more than
two hours Gnd at Eugene we took more
than an hour for supper. The average
motorist would probably consume from
five and half to six hours in making
the trip and show wisdom in taking a
slower pace. While we were not trying
for n record, Mr.. Gilbert was J.,
ping' on the Elgin pretty consistently
after we left Albany eha "
travelling with the particular idea Of en-
ioying the scenery.
From Salem to Albany, 3O1 miles, the
roads generally are bad. The first ter
miles, to Turner, we made in slightly
better than q minutes of comfortable
riding. But from Turner to within
about two Or three miles of Albany Il
and Is miles an hour is the prevailing
rate of speed except for a few shorl
stretched. Added to the ruttod condi
tions of the roads, there are four bad
railroad crossings to be navigated IN
the four miles between Marion and JEFF
ferson. From Jefferson to Albany the
road showed no Improvement, except
that the activities of road crews, which
are surveying, slashing, grading and
otherwise preparing the road for paw
ing this summer gave promise of relief
before another year.
Independence Detour Bad.
AT Albany, however, our troubles
ended. They were not real troubles, at
that. just little personal grievances
against the "powers that be" in the
matter Of road construction that had
been acceptuated by an occasional shock
along our spinal columns, in spite Of the
bump absorbing qualities of tne Elgin
This strip Of road can be avoided BY
! taking the West Side route out Of Salem
to Corvallis, via Independence, which /.
also o short cut in the matter Of miles
but the "cure is worse, etc. Return
J ing down the valley Monday evening W.
took the "short cut" and spent just
bours in numbering over the 1925 miles
about 10 miles Of which reminds one
Of a deserted skid road in a logging
camp. Besides being rough, few hour.
Of rain makes this road dangerous OF
account of the stick clay surface.
30-Mile Roads Travelled.
When the last legislature raised the
speed limit on country roads in Oregon
to 30 miles an hour, each member that
voted for the revision must have had q
mental picture Of himself skimminl
over the miles Of highway we cate up
in the Elgin last Saturday between Al
bany and Vida, 80 miles above Eugene
There is scarce mile Of road between
Albany and Blue River where the speed
limit cannot be maintained, Or excclled
if the "speed cop" is mapping, as oui
log for this leg Of the trip will show
as follows.
Town Miles. Running Time
/ Albany .......---......,... w
I - "