Mettle Sunrise - SOLSTICE RIDE TO VISTA HOUSE

A few weeks ago, I had a friend and his wife visiting. Avid hikers from Colorado, my girlfriend planned a sunrise hike for them out in the gorge. I hate hiking. I hate running. My legs just aren't made to tolerate walking on declines. I told them to have a good time while I slept.

After realizing what a dick move that was, I decided to ride out to Angel's Rest (their chosen hike) to meet them as they finished up. That required departing from NE Portland around 3:45am to make it in time to see the sun peak through at 5:27am. Deserted streets, dark roads, relative silence. It was apparent this was a tiny adventure worth sharing and bonus, it could be done on a weekday before work.

Mettle sent out the call a few days before and we rounded up the participants with working alarm clocks and set out on a completely amazing ride for 10 minutes of impressive scenery in the Columbia River Gorge. 

The smiles were prolific and so were the good vibes. Several times I saw stress-free bliss covering the faces of all the riders. I was honored to share that time with everyone that came out. Thanks to them and Jake Szymanski for some additional photos for the collection below: