At last! The snow is in retreat and the woods can be accessed. I called up my friend yesterday expecting a No answer to the question but was surprised by a Yes. The question was, "Wanna go see if we can ride on the North Summit road tomorrow." No hesitation, no discussion of an infectious virus. We were going.
Bike loaded, dog loaded, and then we picked up friend and bike and motored up the pass. My driving felt rusty. I hadn't been on a highway for 2 months or however long (seems like a real long time) we've been staying home. We made it. The preferred parking spot was on Warshington State land so we could not park there. It had a barricade and a CLOSED sign on it. I drove down to the gated entrance to the ski area and parked in a wide spot on Forest Service land. Whilst unloading bikes and loading bike bags the Demon Dog was madly at work, chasing smells at high speed. We had a safety meeting. My friend had a heart incident and I needed to know the procedure if something should go wrong. Then we left.
The sun was out but the wind was blowing and we were somewhere around 4000 feet in elevation so I put on a sweater. We expected to be blocked by snow at the usual, chilly shady spot but SURPRISE! it was melted out. Not even a berm of snow. No ice. So, we were able to ride a dog's length of road. This dog starts slowing down at 9 miles so we rode 5 miles in and 5 back out. I rode my Gazelle and my friend was on her Radmini.
At the start, I made the statement that no way no how did I want to ride The Road again for a long time. Friend agreed. This was the area where The Road takes off. Last year she had trouble with the mini and we'd ride up the road to test it and try out stuff. I think we were up and down it 4 or 5 times trying to trouble shoot and trying out fixes that were suggested by Rad, and parts sent by Rad to try. In fact, I could see that Road being a good try out road for bike companies. We would not ride it today.
I did not have to carry water for the Demon Dog. This time of year, there are puddles, and creeks, and patches of snow and The Pond. The pond sounded full of frogs today. Demon dog went in and cooled off. A game warden drove by. We continued on. It was good to be in the woods.
The ride was uneventful. The Demon Dog ran all over. You'd get a glimpse of a black streak running on one side of the road and then blink and she would be tearing along on the other side. That's how the Demon Dog rolls.
We had a "picnic in the woods" and then rode back. I was thinking at the start that the Demon Dog might not be in very good shape and would tire out quickly. At this point, I was wondering if we should go further up but reason prevailed. We headed back. This time, the Demon Dog went in the pond for a longer swim. I couldn't get the camera out in time, but it would have been a poor picture. A black dog swimming in a black pond. Oh well. At 9 miles, just like usual, the Demon slowed down. I slowed down. We got back to the truck and the Demon flopped down in a shady spot and stayed put. After the bikes were loaded, she slowly plodded over and got in.
It was a beautiful day to be back in the woods. It was most enjoyable and the goal of having a tired Demon Dog was achieved.
This area is the North Summit road off Hwy 20, Loup Loup Pass. It's a mountain pass between the Methow and Okanogan Valleys. There's a ski hill with one chairlift that operates when the snow is deep enough. It's a great little hill. There are also cross country ski trails and a Luge run. We ride some of the ski trails when things are a bit drier.
Some trivia. We were eating today and watching the Demon digging and snuffling after something. We both had the same thought. We hoped an angry squirrel was not in the hole. A couple of years ago on the South Summit area, the demon went digging and a squirrel glommed onto her nose. I was behind and heard the painful yipping. My friend was ahead and witnessed the dog head come out of the hole with a squirrel attached. There was frenzied shaking and yelping and finally the squirrel released its hold. The Demon was angry and managed to catch the squirrel and.....well, the squirrel went to heaven that day. The Demon had puncture wounds but survived.
Bike loaded, dog loaded, and then we picked up friend and bike and motored up the pass. My driving felt rusty. I hadn't been on a highway for 2 months or however long (seems like a real long time) we've been staying home. We made it. The preferred parking spot was on Warshington State land so we could not park there. It had a barricade and a CLOSED sign on it. I drove down to the gated entrance to the ski area and parked in a wide spot on Forest Service land. Whilst unloading bikes and loading bike bags the Demon Dog was madly at work, chasing smells at high speed. We had a safety meeting. My friend had a heart incident and I needed to know the procedure if something should go wrong. Then we left.
The sun was out but the wind was blowing and we were somewhere around 4000 feet in elevation so I put on a sweater. We expected to be blocked by snow at the usual, chilly shady spot but SURPRISE! it was melted out. Not even a berm of snow. No ice. So, we were able to ride a dog's length of road. This dog starts slowing down at 9 miles so we rode 5 miles in and 5 back out. I rode my Gazelle and my friend was on her Radmini.
At the start, I made the statement that no way no how did I want to ride The Road again for a long time. Friend agreed. This was the area where The Road takes off. Last year she had trouble with the mini and we'd ride up the road to test it and try out stuff. I think we were up and down it 4 or 5 times trying to trouble shoot and trying out fixes that were suggested by Rad, and parts sent by Rad to try. In fact, I could see that Road being a good try out road for bike companies. We would not ride it today.
I did not have to carry water for the Demon Dog. This time of year, there are puddles, and creeks, and patches of snow and The Pond. The pond sounded full of frogs today. Demon dog went in and cooled off. A game warden drove by. We continued on. It was good to be in the woods.
The ride was uneventful. The Demon Dog ran all over. You'd get a glimpse of a black streak running on one side of the road and then blink and she would be tearing along on the other side. That's how the Demon Dog rolls.
We had a "picnic in the woods" and then rode back. I was thinking at the start that the Demon Dog might not be in very good shape and would tire out quickly. At this point, I was wondering if we should go further up but reason prevailed. We headed back. This time, the Demon Dog went in the pond for a longer swim. I couldn't get the camera out in time, but it would have been a poor picture. A black dog swimming in a black pond. Oh well. At 9 miles, just like usual, the Demon slowed down. I slowed down. We got back to the truck and the Demon flopped down in a shady spot and stayed put. After the bikes were loaded, she slowly plodded over and got in.
It was a beautiful day to be back in the woods. It was most enjoyable and the goal of having a tired Demon Dog was achieved.
This area is the North Summit road off Hwy 20, Loup Loup Pass. It's a mountain pass between the Methow and Okanogan Valleys. There's a ski hill with one chairlift that operates when the snow is deep enough. It's a great little hill. There are also cross country ski trails and a Luge run. We ride some of the ski trails when things are a bit drier.
Some trivia. We were eating today and watching the Demon digging and snuffling after something. We both had the same thought. We hoped an angry squirrel was not in the hole. A couple of years ago on the South Summit area, the demon went digging and a squirrel glommed onto her nose. I was behind and heard the painful yipping. My friend was ahead and witnessed the dog head come out of the hole with a squirrel attached. There was frenzied shaking and yelping and finally the squirrel released its hold. The Demon was angry and managed to catch the squirrel and.....well, the squirrel went to heaven that day. The Demon had puncture wounds but survived.
