HOOD RIVER, Ore. — Here's one more reason to love the beautiful Columbia River Gorge.
A brand new biking and walking path from Cascade Locks to near Hood River is just a little over a week away from opening.
It's a $21 million project that crews have been working on for years.
The brand new three-mile stretch of the Columbia River Highway State Trail runs on the south side of Interstate 84 and comes close to connecting to the Historic Columbia River Highway.
That stretch was demolished when the interstate was built. But this rebuilt section is, sorry drivers, car-free.
"The new three-mile segment is just for people who choose to walk, bike or roll and this is one of many segments that we have that is a car-free area," said ODOT spokesperson Kimberly Dinwiddie.
Currently, cyclists must ride along the shoulder of I-84 the entire way to get between Cascade Locks and Hood River. But this new stretch of state trail will change that.
In fact, even those who don't often cycle want to try it out.
"It just looks so amazing through the trees," said Kurt Althen, who was visiting the area from Colorado. "That would be so fun to ride through there."
When the section of the trail opens a week from this Saturday, ODOT will have reconnected 65 miles of the 73 miles of the Historic Columbia River Highway.
The remaining five miles is in the Hood River area.
ODOT said that stretch will be a challenge because it will require cutting through rocks and building new tunnels.
But when that is completed, the trail will stretch from Troutdale all the way to The Dalles.
Related content