Going to the Sun

Big DAY In the cycling touring world. This is the day I rode the Going to the Sun Road or otherwise known as Logan Pass in Glacier National Park. Somebody asked me what I thought of it, I said "as hard as I thought it would be, but wished it wasn't"



Sleeping was ok, but cold! It was hard to get out of the sleeping bag and move forward, but there was a schedule to keep -- cyclists have to be up to Logan Pass by 11 a.m. because the road is so skinny and curvy and lots of cars, and cars and bicycles don't play well together. I got going at 7 and the first part wasn't too bad, up and down, but the grades were very rideable, I knew it would't last long. Finally there was the sign "Logan Pass, 12 miles." What a 12 miles it was -- an even 6% grade for the whole 12 miles and a few before the sign too. Now 6% isn't bad, but for 12 miles it was a grind! The scenery is amazing! Taking photos is always a good excuse to stop and rest. There was also road construction with flaggers and pilot cars, another nice excuse to rest when it worked out, but I also couldn't stop when I wanted. Besides the scenery there were also a few animals to entertain me and the many other tourists in cars who created animal slowdowns and stoppages -- that's when you know there's something to see.


Finally I was at the top! Barely within the time limit, but I didn't care, I'm really slow carrying all my gear, but I did it!

There were still 20 more miles to go, but generally downhill -- yea! The couple of little uphills were quite a shock to my legs, they said "No! We're DONE!" but they did their duty and got me into St Mary.