Paisley Resupply Guide

Best ride ever! Bear Creek loop finishing at Pioneer Saloon. Serving since 1883! Photo by Daniel Sharp

For OTT riders, the resupply is not guaranteed, so if you find things open and you get a beer and a hamburger at the Saloon, then it’s your lucky day. The two big draws, the Paisley Saloon and the Paisley Mercantile are both up for sale. So, I can’t tell you what to expect for your resupply next year. Word is that they’ll stay open until they’re sold. It’s best to check in with some phone calls right before your trip. Anyone looking to invest in a town along the Oregon Timber Trail, get on that!

Need a ride or some intel? Michael Norris, OTT volunteer extraordinaire and owner of Paisley Adventure, will probably be around, ready to help however he can. He’s good like that. Life isn’t easy in these small towns, but they’re charming and often very welcoming, so as you approach the Chewacan river and you feel like you need a break or a solid meal, check out Paisley and see what’s happening on that day. We asked our local guide, Michael, for the rundown.

9 questions with Michael Norris:

Michael Norris, OTT volunteer extrordinaire and owner of Paisley Adventure. Photo by Gabriel Amadeus

Tell us about your move to Paisley. How did you choose Paisley?

We moved to Summer Lake first in 2010 to be the on-site Facility Managers of Playa, the Art/Science residency program. I moved here with my wife Kris and our daughter Priscilla who started the 8th grade at Paisley School. We moved into Paisley in 2012 for the high school social scene.

Favorite thing about Paisley?

I love how quiet it is.

What do you do for fun?

There are very few things we do without our bikes, but in the immediate area with the proper credentials, one is able to hunt, fish, hike, backpack, mountain bike, camp, ski, or snowshoe. I always enjoy visiting a new (to me) petroglyph site by bike if possible and we also love to ride out to Summer Lake in the winter with our ice skates and find a miles-long swath of super smooth undulating frozen lake to glide across.

Could you share a couple Paisley rides with us?

I’m more than happy to share any of my routes with anybody who’ll listen.

A couple of my favorites:

Mill Creek loop, about 10 mile round trip from Paisley up gravel and down an old logging/jeep road that has been recently deemed off-limits to motor vehicles. Mill creek drains into the Chewaucan River about 3 miles from town and you ride back along the river.

Chill riding to Loco Lake. Photo courtesy of Michael Norris

Loco Lake is an out-and-back, about 20 miles round trip, into the desert. The only route passes the Paisley Caves and is a great sampler of what the desert has to offer. I often see wild horses out there in the summertime.

(See more ride suggestions below)

What should visitors know about the area?

There is no tow service. If your vehicle breaks down in this part of the Fremont-Winema forest or desert to the east. There is no “overnight” FedEx.

Best spot to experience Paisley history?

The Paisley Caves (or five-mile caves) are five miles from town and currently the archeological site yielding the oldest evidence of humans living in North America.

You've been an avid volunteer on the OTT. Why do you attend stewardship events?

I had been trying to ride the Bear Creek drainage of the OTT for several years before I first saw mountain bike tracks that weren’t my own. My wife Kris and I could only clear so much trail and clearing was only sometimes able to happen. We were so excited to know that somebody else out there was using it too. Having an organization like the OTTA come in with an instant support team gave us a renewed excitement in mountain biking in our own backyard. I volunteer at the stewardship events to try to give back a little to this great organization–and be able to ride sections of trail without picking up the bike too many times.

Michel Norris and his full service shop at Paisley Adventure is open for business! Photo by Gabriel Amadeus

What services does Paisley Adventure offer to support Timber Trail riders?

I’m a mechanic with a small, back-of-house, full-service shop.

I’m available for shuttles in the region. I can shuttle up to four riders with loaded bikes and have limited but growing outfitting ability (fat bike with bikepacking setup). I’ve done some short overnight gear transfers as well, allowing riders the freedom of not having to carry any gear. I’m familiar with the OTT and all of its tributary roads between Moss Pass and Silver Lake and learning more and more about other parts of the Fremont section and access every season.

I offer some dehydrated meals and snacks, occasional sundry items, Nalgene bottles, but most importantly this season I intend to always have some high-quality chocolate available.

One fun fact about Michael Norris that most folks don't know

I used to teach structural design to Chilean Architecture students at La Universidad Austral in Valdivia Chile. At Paisley School I teach the woodshop and AUTOCAD.

Between the Paisley Caves, Summer Lake Hot Springs, and all the bike riding there is to do, Paisley is worth a detour. If you’d like to come to check it out, my suggestion is to sign up for one of our Watson Fire Rehab May 27-30 and July 1-4 (or Brattain Fire Rehab June 10-12) trail stewardship parties and plan an extra day for exploring caves and soaking in hot springs. If you’d like to make a weekend of it, come and book a room at Paisley Sage Rooms or set up camp along the Chewacan River, Marster Spring Campground and Jones Crossing Campground are just down the road. There are some excellent rides that you can do from camp without having to get in your car.

The Rides

From there, for a sweet (up to 21 mile) out and back to Morgan Butte lookout, try our Chewy Valley Ride or for a compact 9 mile ride, try Michael’s Mill Creek Loop. For those wanting an all-day affair, check out our Bear Creek Loop, which clocks in at 47miles and 4860 feet of elevation, or give Michael a call for a shuttle to the top of Government Harvey Pass. With a shuttle, the ride is only 23.7 miles and 1,180 feet of elevation gain.