For his seventh birthday, Micah Saugen decided to bike up Logan Pass.

“We asked him what he wanted to do, and he said he wanted to bike in Glacier Park,” explains his mother, Christie Saugen, seated at the dinner table of their Kalispell home.

On Sunday morning, powered by a birthday breakfast of bacon, eggs and a pancake “shaped like a puppy dog,” Micah hopped on his seven-gear Specialized mountain bike (with Sid, a stuffed sloth, prominently displayed on the handlebars) and started the 15.5-mile journey from Avalanche to the pass. 

That represents an elevation gain of 3,216 feet on Going-to-the-Sun Road.

A fan of the park’s many waterfalls, Micah says he was determined to get to the next waterfall and then the next one. He wasn’t certain he would make it to the top until he hit the Triple Arches portion of the road.

“That’s when I knew I was going to get there,” he says, grinning.

For the Hedges School kindergartener, the weather provided some help — on the way up, at least.

“There was a wind right when I was going up and I didn’t even have to pedal. It was pushing me along,” he explains. “But on the way down there was a huge rainstorm. My shoes had tons of water, my pants were soaked, and then there was a hailstorm. When I got to the bottom I was soaked.”

Along the way, Micah got encouragement from strangers who were also biking the road. After counting 34 waterfalls, he finally reached the pass, where a group of people had gathered, cheering him and offering congratulations.

“When I got to the top, they kept taking pictures and it was awesome.”

He was also cheered on by his father, Dave, his mother, older sister Serenity, 8, and little brother Kyler, 4, who all made the trip. Like a typical brother, though, Micah doesn’t necessarily return the favor when he broaches his next goal of biking all 50 miles of Going-to-the-Sun Road.

“My sister might make it, I don’t know,” he says, receiving a swift reply from the living room: “I’ll make it!”

“Micah was quite the little celebrity up there,” adds his mother, beaming proudly. “We wanted him to feel like he succeeded wherever he decided to turn around. We were saying, ‘Hey buddy, this is great, you can turn around anytime you want,’ but he just joyfully pursued and never complained at all.”

She adds that on the way up, her son kept saying, “God is giving me strength!”

Micah — who also enjoys skiing, swimming and gymnastics — has been biking since before he was 3 years old, and it’s his favorite thing to do.

“I like biking because you can go lots and lots of places and do lots of tricks,” Micah says.

He’s also a fan of the park’s wildlife, particularly caterpillars (one of which made the trip up the road with him) and the falcons.

“I love the peregrine falcons; they’re awesome,” he explains. “I love the way they dive — they’re the fastest divers.”

Asked what challenge he would like to take on next, it doesn’t take long for him to transition out of the realm of cycling.

“I want my dad to teach me ice climbing,” says Micah. “I also want to build a jet someday.”

More short term?

“I want to go to St. Mary’s next time!”

Reporter Samuel Wilson can be reached at 758-4407 or by email at swilson@dailyinterlake.com