this past sunday mel and i went for a ride about 30 minutes from our house, which isnt our custom, normally we leave right from the front door. but she wanted to go this amish leather seller place, which gave us an excuse to get off our beaten path. the ride started with about 1500 feet of climbing in about 4 miles. it was steep, and it just got steeper. it was spitting rain, with wind gusts up to 35 mph, but we didnt feel that, wrapped in the woods as we were. as soon as we summited the ridge, it was straight back down again, on wet roads with a blasting headwind that cut right through my windbreaker, (guess it wasnt members only) sweater, and short sleeve jersey. the decent had some nice views, the photo below is from the climb back up. the decent lasted much longer than the climb, and took us past a gorgeous river, surrounded by boulder fields and moss and dark pine trees. we eventually missed a turn we were looking for, and dumped out in a valley full of farms on the far side of the gap we had ascended. we rode into a headwind so strong that i rode one gear harder than my granny, ie 46/30 going down slight hills. we ate a good lunch, and got passed by an amish couple, then rode back, not having a map, needed to make it a loop. on the climb up, it started to rain, then it started to pour. then we got passed by another amish guy, who was pushing his horse hard up the mtn. it was a good ride, but i wish the weather had held, and we had found that turn.