Down in the sprawling Seattle suburbs, about this time of year, we tend to forget that it's still winter: the rain hasn't gone away, but it's not crazy cold anymore, we get sunny days thrown into the mix every now and then, and there's certainly no more ice in the mornings. Folks, I'm here to tell you, winter's not gone quite yet.

Yesterday I took advantage of the seemingly bright day to get out of town on the bike again. Consulted my copy of Destination Highways, and wanting to just get on the road as soon as possible, I turned to the first entry in the Puget Sound section - DH46: Granite Falls to Barlow Pass. I knew that the pass would be closed, and that I'd only be able to go part of the way, but figured that was fine for a quick trip.

Basically, this route is straight east out of Granite Falls, into the Mount Baker - Snoqualmie National Forest, and following the Stillaguamish River for much of its run. I don't have much to say about it; the scenery was hidden behind layers of fog and rain, there was snow on the ground and slush on the roads, and no traffic to speak of. I had a few exciting moments with the slush and the less-than-perfect pavement, finally turning back when I realized I was getting a bit cold for comfort and the rain started to intensify. I was followed most of the way back to civilization by a State Trooper in an SUV, who no doubt thought me insane to be up on those roads on a cycle at this time of year, and figured if he waited just a bit longer I'd gun it up to 80 and earn a ticket. No such luck.

This looks like a really fun ride in the summer, and I guess turns into a nice long loop trail if you're willing to brave the 14mi section of gravel road in the middle. Maybe I'll give that part a pass, for now.

...and if I keep up with this sort of thing, I really need to invest in an electric vest. Damn, but it gets cold fast.