The Pacific Northwest Dual Sport Riders Facebook group ride #3 was this weekend. A lot of the group camped out Friday night in Arlington, WA on a fellow rider’s property to be well staged for the weekend’s ride. Kevin and I trailered up to meet up with them on Saturday morning.
The general outline for the weekend’s route is the Mountain Loop Highway, of course we branched off onto other Forest Service roads to go over the hills and through the woods. To my dismay, on the first leg of the trip it started raining and it was socked in so you couldn’t see any of the views. Luckily, as we came down out of the hills at the Sauk River it had let up. By the time we had finished our lunch at The Burger Barn in Darrington, it had cleared up and became mostly sunny!
With stomachs and gas tanks full, it was back into the hills. It is just so great! The greenery of the vegetation, the mountain, valley and river views, and the sound of gravel ricocheting off of metal should be a definition of happiness. As the day moves on, we discuss and eventually find a fantastic area for our group to camp. The sight of bikes, tents and hammocks add color contrast to the earthiness of the forest. With a lot of hard work by some determined volunteers, a campfire was made to add the perfect touch. Libations were consumed, things were said and done, as all had a very fun night (and that is all I will disclose on the matter 🙂 ).
Sunday has us finishing the loop after one last ride up to a viewpoint overlooking the valley where we had been below, while offering a view of Mt. Pilchuck across the valley. On a ride like this, on a weekend like this, you get to know your group and your fellow riders much better. Hopefully, we’ve made some long term friends and riding partners.
leisure time larry 