Nehalem, Oregon is another small community up the coast from Rockaway Beach. This little corner is on the gorgeous Nehalem River. The river is 118 miles long with the headwaters way up in Tillamook forest and ending at the Pacific Ocean. There is a great gravel ride along the Nehalem River that goes forever.
On the way to one of the rides we stopped and took some pictures. Nehalem was named for the Nehalem tribe of Native American Indians, also known as the Tillamook People, who traditionally inhabited the area. In the native Salishan languages, Nehalem means “place where people live. Not very many people though…the population is less than 400. The town was largely closed on the Monday we were there but we’ll be back to try some ice cream and chowder from Buttercup Ice Creams & Chowders.
We rode this as an out and back to explore the area. The ride follows Foss Road/Lower Nehalem Road along the Nehalem River and it is so pretty and peaceful. It does get chilly in the shady sections even in the summer. The “truck trail” was built starting in 1935 by members of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) to improve vehicle access for firefighting and forest management following the devastating 1933 Tillamook Burn. It rolls along with some steep climbs but is one of the ore mellow gravel rides in the area. These back logging roads can be fairly steep!
