(Photo of a 2023 WLF ride by Dylan Evanston.)
After several days holed up at home and frozen, the thought of biking through the city with friends, gazing at creative light displays, and being entertained by people holding fire sounds mighty fine right about now.
If that sounds cool, you’ll be happy to know that the program for the annual Portland Winter Light Festival (PDXWLF) was announced today. What is PDXWLF? The nonprofit Willamette Light Brigade, the organization that hosts the event, puts it like this:
“PDXWLF brings art, technology, and inclusivity together, invigorating Portland in the winter. With free admission, the festival fosters community and showcases captivating light installations, projections, and interactive displays, creating an immersive experience for all attendees.”
The event is a collection of over 200 illuminated art displays throughout the city — and a bicycle is the best way to see them all! In fact, cycling is such a good match for this festival that organizers have released seven routes curated specifically for riders, put together by ride leader and BikePortland contributor Tom Howe.
The seven bike-friendly routes that take you to illuminated art installations. Get links to maps on RideWithGPS here.And because many folks prefer to illuminate their bicycles as a way to connect with the event, there’s an event before the festival opens to help get you and your bike ready.
This year, the Light Your Bike event is one of several official pre-festival workshops. Show up to Lloyd Center on Saturday, January 27th, to sparkle-up your rig and get it tuned up to make sure you can enjoy as many installations as possible. Expert illuminologists will be on hand to help and a limited number of lights will be available on a pay-what-you-can basis. Learn more about the event on Facebook.
The fest begins February 2nd and runs through February 10th. Watch our Weekend Event Guide and social channels for upcoming ride details and check out PDXWLF.com to plan your attack.
