Last weekend was our annual mountain biking trip to Mazama, Washington. The forecast for the weekend did call for a little snow and rain on Saturday but Friday looked good. We loaded up the bikes, packed up some food and wine, and hit the road around 1pm. Mazama is about a 4-½ hour drive going over Hwy 20, the North Cascade Hwy, so we should get there before dark.
When we arrived, we found that we were the only guests at the Mazama Country Inn. Actually, we were the only people. The restaurant closed the week before (until Thanksgiving) and the front desk person had gone home for the day. This was fine by us, we setup up a table in the dining room, lite some candles, opened a bottle of wine, and reheated soup in the microwave. Added a little music and the night was perfect.
The next day was blue skies. We rented me a full suspension bike (Jim bought one while I was in Europe this summer) and headed up to the Buck Mountain Loop near Rendezvous Pass. It was still hunting season so Jim and I were in our high visibility clothing including Hunter-Orange bike helmet covers.
We really enjoy the Buck Mountain Loop. It starts with a hill climb on dirt roads, then a ridge run of up and down single track.
Then comes the long single track descent off the South East ridge. Seems to take 20 minutes to hit the trees.
About the time we hit the trees, I was pretty tired but the car had to be close. There was actually another 40 minutes of up and down single track before we hit the dirt road and flew to the car. Total loop took us just under 4 hours which included a minor repair to Jim’s bike and a few work phone calls (When did we start to get cell phone reception in the middle of no where. Jim got better reception on the Buck Mountain ridge than we did in the town of Mazama).
Our plan for Saturday was to bike into Winthrop on the Community Trail. We woke up to very wet snow steadily coming out of the ski. I quickly changed my plans to a bike ride across the suspension bridge turning around at Brown’s Farm and returning to Mazama via the Community Trail.
When we left the Mazama Inn, it was 33 degrees and snowing pretty good.
By the time we reached the Suspension Bridge. the ground was white.
As well as the trails …
This snow was very unusual for this time of year. Here is what the bridge typically looks like…
… And the Community Trail looks like this…
Even though we were in rain gear, I was getting cold. Didn’t help that somehow I was sweating. My core was warm but my feet and legs were freezing. I decided to turn around just before we hit the highway. Jim decided to continue on into Winthrop (it is very difficult to get him to change his mind once he focuses on something). We agreed to keep our cell phones on so I could track him on “Find Friends”.
The ride back to the Mazama Inn was so pretty. By now there were lots of joggers and walkers out enjoying the weather.
We woke on Sunday to 4+ inches of snow. The Mazama Inn had power but most of the homes and the Country Store did not. We heard that there were any known problems on Highway 20 so we ate breakfast, packed up , and headed for home.
Anyone that travels the North Cascade Highway know that it closes during the winter months. The road gets so much snow that the snow plows cant keep up. As Jim and I headed up to Washington Pass, the traffic came to a stop. They were closing the highway. Missed it by 5 mintues. Now we had to turn around and go back through Winthrop, Twisp, Wenatchee, and Cle Elem. Our 4-½ hour drive just became 6+ at least it was a pretty day. Blue skies and white snow.