Thank you for humbling me dear brother. So, in summary, I believed (note the past tense) that having 5 years behind me of boarding, not being afraid to fall, experiencing a variety of conditions, etc. would make it easy to keep up with my bro who is relatively new to the sport. Not so, I was SCHOOLED....and was sore for several days...but happy! What else...good lunch...still want to post the picture, Sharad...why did I say I wouldn't? :) Again!
Showing posts with label active. Show all posts
Showing posts with label active. Show all posts
Jolyn was game for a hike and so we tried one close to Seattle: Cougar Mountain Wilderness Peak Loop. This is us at the summit. No view. Hence, no sense of achievement. And then we read in the hiking book:
"The high point is where the trail dead-ends at a bench in a circular grove of tall trees. Lacking a view or even a single exposed rock, Wilderness Peak hardly passes for a summit, by most definitions of the word."It's about the journey, Kateen...not the destination. Really???
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The Upper Enchantments via Colchuck Lake and Aasgard Pass is a decent hike to glacier-polished rock and ice, sparkling lakes, and the jagged edge of the Stuarts range. Notably Aasgard Pass with 2,300 feet elevation gain in 2/3 of a mile is a bit challenging if one's hiking boots aren't fitting so superbly...but anyway.
GLORIOUS day!
Thanks Justin for the panoramas! I do need an iPhone 4.
If only these goats....mountain sheep...whatever they are...were just a little more friendly. Curious creatures. Hanging out up there rain or shine.
Twelve of us ran the Cascade Lakes Relay: 216.6 miles from Diamond Lake Resort (almost Crater Lake) to Bend, Oregon. Quite a deal. 2 vans. 33 hours, 7 minutes, 9 seconds. Average time of 9:22. Not bad considering elevation and temperature and slower team members...me :) Most didn't get too much sleep on the gym floor...next time we're bringing WD-40 for the squeaky gym door :) Thanks to Callie and Justin for multiple emails which we all just skimmed believing that they had it under control. They did :)
This for me was testament to the power of peer pressure on adults. Peer pressure to join...well not too much...people are fairly optimistic 6 months out. Peer pressure when you see the van in the distance and you're slogging. Peer pressure when your team drops you off and says "See you in 2 miles. Run hard!"
Anyway, more pictures on other blogs/FB. I think I'd do it again :)
I see Mt. Rainier several times a week and think: "I'd love to stand on top of that." Training hikes have been gratifying, but only as a temporary appeasement. 
Weather on the way up was unexpectedly warm, though forecasts and foreboding by the guides led us to believe it would be less than pleasant. As if coping with heavy packs, thin air, uncomfortable boots and the unknown wasn't enough? Smile. As eager and able as I felt, hourly breaks to acclimate, eat and drink became more and more welcome!
The next crest always looks so close. Foreshortening doesn't help this perpetual optimist. Just keeping eyes on the boots in front of me was easier. There is a lot to be said for just taking one step at a time and not stopping. No matter how cheesey or how repetitive that concept is, there is wisdom there.
One of our guides had a guitar. He'd play on a steep slope as we were trudging slowly up. The most notable time I recall was directly below Camp Muir. It was a bit foggy, but here he was, with some tune/lyric to cheer us. Reminds me of a verse: "Help us sing along the pathway when the deeper cost we meet." Or he'd play it in camp as something to bring the group together. Inspires me to work on getting some guitar skills!
This is the outhouse at Camp Muir. One of the guides got on a tangent about how Muir wasn't wilderness anymore...it is an urban civilization. Perhaps the outhouse complete with a toilet seat helps his point.
Meals were good and hot drinks were plentiful in camp. Simple pleasures. Alpine Ascents does a fine job. Breakfast on day 1 was on the way at a restaurant ran by sherpas. Day 1 dinner was chicken burritos complete with fresh guacamole. Day 2 breakfast was Blueberry pancakes, bacon and eggs and dinner was pasta. Day 3 breakfast was more pancakes, bars and oatmeal. The rest of the time, we had our fill of whatever we could make ourselves eat...sugar, nuts, jerky, bars, whatever...just something for calories and to get immediate fuel. Fascinating how the body works. Who would have known that a Snickers bar could be a preferred fuel...immediate sugar and slow burning protein. Hmmmm....about that sales tax on candy...
And so...attempting the summit, the guides were leery as we've had lots of precipitation...rain and snow (and nearly 2 feet of new snow at that). Avalanches were the concern, and so we'd go a ways and they'd dig a pit to test what it was doing. This process gives a climber time to analyze the desire to summit and evaluate the risk in such. Being goal-oriented (read summit-oriented) doesn't necessarily play to the survival-of-the-fittest concept...assuming the climber wants to be part of the "fittest" group :)
In any regard, learning about the rest step, the German step, the French step, to self-arrest, to walk with a rope, fear the crevasse, respect the power of nature, understand that success isn't gauged by reaching the summit...is good, but only makes me think about the next summit attempt. Soon, I hope.
Want to join?
6/7/2010 Since it's close to our climb, I was interested to read of an avalanche that 11 people were caught in and 1 died this weekend on Mount Rainier. Yikes. Here's the link: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2012041683_climbers06m.html
Boise, ID...what a charming berg. And only made better by good company.
To start with, I should confess, flying over Rainier made my heart beat...2 weeks to go! Anyway...speaking of heart beats, here is a picture of a Turkish coffee that several of us enjoyed (post race)...delish.
Boise again is quite cute. The downtown has multiple restaurants with outdoor seating and locals seem to prefer bicycles to get around. Feels good. Should have taken better/more pictures.
Secondarily, I post this picture as I believe it is the first time in my life that a photographer has happened upon me looking like I'm enjoying myself in a race. This picture lacks the traditional scowl and look of discomfort. Progress?
Sunday was also a highlight, for multiple reasons. Hanging out in a coffee shop was good...more coffee...there's a theme here. Oh, but one should note: 2 packages of oatmeal in hotel coffee consumed on the race bus en route to the start is a bad idea. Ah well.
Happy thoughts to you, fast runner friend.
So...for the Seattle traveling running contingent's trek this year, we went to Indianapolis. Dave introduced us to Paul and Cheryl...an awesome couple...and a definite highlight. The Indi-Mini Marathon is the largest half in the country and the fifth largest running event.
The course for the Mini-Marathon is like a tour of downtown Indianapolis, beginning near Monument Circle. The route passes by the Indianapolis Zoo, White River State Park and IUPUI, and includes a full lap around the track of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway...which is about where I was when the first finisher crossed the finish line...depressing?
We were also tourists and took in the historic sculptures, towers, museums...and even the public library. Actually fascinating. They had a room titled the "Think Tank" which had white board walls, good lighting and a table. I'm sure I could solve more problems if I had access to a room such as this. Right.
Good group. Good fellowship.
One of the later things we did was go to a Lincoln exhibit. This quote was interesting.
Anyway, I'd gladly go again...wonder where next year? And if you're reading this and you're a mellow traveller and female, Angela and I would enjoy your company :)
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