Sunfish, have a good read up on the joys of flying in severe mechanical turbulence, mountain waves, valley flying and will your light aircraft really be able to handle those conditions. A Cessna C172 or a PA-28 with a couple of blokes on board at 5000' has stuff all performance combine that with severe downdraughts with give your undies a good workout.
Plenty of good articles in the old DCA crash comic and various flying magazines but more importantly talk to an experienced pilot that operates in the area.
Don't get your ambitions mixed up with your capabilities when it comes to flying in mountainous and rugged terrain.