DNFd a 600k (for a multitude of reasons) at the ~300k (189 mi) mark on saturday.. even though we didn't complete the ride it was still a lot of fun, so i thought i'd share.

we did the first two of these passes (the Paradise climb at mt. rainier, and the Windy Ridge climb at Mt. St. Helens):


my friend and i decided to call it a day 17 hours into the ride, since his ankle was hurting, and my motivation was gone (htfu, yeah yeah). it was night (9 PM) and we still had a pass and 60 miles to do for the day, which just didn't sound fun in the dark. of course i regret the decision, but oh well..

anyway, on to the photos. (apologies for the blurry pictures, there was condensation inside the lens or something.. also threw in a few photos from others)

the start at 4 AM in Eatonville, WA:


my friend riding up to Paradise, on the base of Mt. Rainier:


that's me on the left, working my way up to 'paradise':


now on the way down from paradise; one of the tunnels we got to zip through at 30-40 mph:


riding up to Windy Ridge, in the Mt. St. Helens blast zone:


the road was closed to cars; we had to walk around the washouts:


a washout on the Forest-Service Road (26) we were riding on. note the rider on the right, walking his bike around the obstruction. There were 5-6 of these along the way! this road was pretty steep (i'd guess 7-10% for about eight miles or so)


one of many cracks in the road near the Windy Ridge view of mt. st. helens:


a few more photos are on flickr (and here)

i'm sad that winter is coming, and many of these roads will be closed soon!! if anyone gets a chance to ride out in seattle during the spring/summer, these climbs are highly recommended.