Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/162450
e With a population of 10,000, Cottage Grove is a mellow, pedestrian-friendly town – a place where tree-shaded streets and restored historic brick buildings of the National Historic District reflect the fleeting affluence of the early 20th century. Main Street today is a destination on its own, lined with antique shops, restaurants, e e n n e s . s Nik Wheeler/All Canada Photos p20-23_OregonBridges.indd 21 bookstores, gift shops, art galleries, boutiques, museums and murals. Tour maps of Lane County's wineries, bridges and the 60-km Covered Bridges Scenic Bikeway are free from the visitor centre in the downtown library (541-942-2411). Rent your ride at the Rainy Peak Bicycles on Main Street (541-942-8712). There are live performances at the Cottage Theatre (cottagetheatre.org), but if you prefer something less social, ask at the Bohemia Gold Mining Museum downtown about tours to the mines and the area's ghost towns (541-942-5022). But you came here for the bridges, so start out early for a drive around Dorena Lake to access five of the most famous. Grab breakfast at the Backstage Bakery and Café on 7th Street (541-767-0233). And if you are planning a picnic basket, the tasty sandwiches (on homemade bread) and award-winning pastries at Main Street's Fleur de Lis Patisserie & Café will fill it deliciously (541-767-0700). Once amply fuelled up, start your drive at the western end of Main Street where timbers from demolished bridges were recycled to make a display covered bridge at the riverside park entrance. Drive across the Willamette River and turn onto South River Road to the newly renovated Chambers Bridge, beloved by railway buffs due to its status as the only surviving covered rail bridge in Oregon. Built in 1925 to carry a spur railway across the river to a sawmill, it was in use until 1951, and was so badly storm-damaged in 2010 that it needed dismantling and reconstruction. Today, as part of Cottage Grove's circuit, the bridge is open for pedestrian and bike use. From here, loop back via River Road and old Highway 99 to the end of East Main Street, duck under the freeway overpass and join Mosby Creek Road along the Row River. Built in 1920, the Mosby Creek Bridge is the oldest in Lane County, sitting near the intersection with Layng Road and a couple of kilometres from Stewart Bridge. Just beyond Stewart Bridge, take Garoutte Road across to Dorena Lake. This area of the Willamette Valley used to be subject to yearly intense floods due mostly to the Row River, so in the 1940s it was dammed. The dam also created a lovely 6-km lake that filled the valley behind it, drowning the circa-1899 pioneer community of Dorena but providing the area with one of its finest summer recreation destinations. Baker Bay County Park, about 2 km along the lake, is a popular camp and RV spot, with lakeside picnic tables, a concession stand and various summer amenities (541-682-2000). Along the road here is an incredible shop for crafters: Baker Bay Beads sells beads of all kinds, mostly by mail order, and specializes in supplies for First Nations dance regalia (541-942-3941; bakerbay.com). Near the lake's end, the sole relic of old Dorena is another covered bridge, now leading only to a small chapel, a favourite photo spot for weddings with the bridge as a quaint backdrop. Past the bridge, turn back towards Cottage Grove via a sharp turn onto Row River Road and follow the lake's north shore, parallel to the Row River Trail, a paved bike path on the old Oregon Pacific rail bed. This railway started in 1902 and only lasted long enough to carry out most of the nearby timber from Umpqua forests. If you are picnic prepared, there are several bike-trail access points and picnic stops along the lakeshore. Row River Road leads back to Cottage Grove past Currin Bridge. Plan to stay a couple of nights in Cottage Grove and you'd be hard-pressed to do better than the Village Green Resort, set in large beautifully landscaped gardens with a pool. There's also plenty of value here, in the allinclusive deals that include breakfast and dinner at the resort's "Seasons on the Green" dining room, as well as fly-fishing and golf packages (542-942-2491; villagegreenresortand gardens.com). For a more intimate stay, check out the White House B&B, a renovated 1890 farmhouse on North River Road by the golf course, within walking distance to downW e s t wo r l d >> Fa l l 2 0 1 3 21 13-08-19 2:06 PM