New Skis

Just what I need is more sporty equipment - but of course I bought more. I went up to waterville valley and got cross country skis today, and then went for my first ski in the woods, and it was amazing! I checked online and the ski shop sells half day passes beginning at 12:15, which was perfect. I was able to sleep until my usual time, have some coffee and be lazy for a bit, and still drive the two hours up to NH and arrive at the ski shop by 11:30. The woman there was really helpful and I bought some fischer spider skis which are the widest skis that will fit in the tracks, and have metal edges to be more stable off track/backcountry if I ever am good enough to do that. With my new skis I also got a ski pass for the day - it couldn't have been more perfect out!

Parking for the trails is by the trailhead for mt osceola - one of my favorite 4000 footers. I was lucky and got a spot, and then sat in my car and ate a sandwich. It's so easy to put on cross country boots, and to walk in them! I was suited up and ready to go in no time. 

To get to the beginner trails you walk across a small bridge and then put your skis on on the other side. I was a little nervous starting out - I only had the one lesson and wasn't sure things would go well. But, it was pretty awesome! It started with a lot of uphill, but pretty gentle. I took it slowly and kind of walked, letting my heart rate go up and getting in a rhythm. I need to work on the foot positioning and the whole sliding thing, but there were a few points where I felt like I was gliding a bit. And, there were a few downhill bits. The trail there is groomed - I chose the green which was lower osceola, moose run and easy trail, and they were quite manageable. The only thing that was a little difficult was that the tracks ended abruptly on some of the downhills, especially a couple that had small bridges over a creek at the bottom, which just seemed wrong. But, the hills were small and I didn't fall in :). There were several areas that seemed kind of groomed, but didn't have the nice tracks in the direction I was going, but then I got to practice without tracks for a while. That was harder, but doable. The way back was so much faster than the way out since it was so downhill.

I got to the end of the trail and realized I hadn't asked the woman at the shop how to release the bindings. I tried all kinds of things - poking things with my pole, pulling, pushing, but nothing worked. Fortunately some other skiiers came along soon, and one told me that you rotate the thing - I never would have guessed that one. It's a good thing he knew because it was going to be hard to drive home with my skis still on :)

I looked at my apple watch after I skied - it said I went 4.35 miles with 279 feet of elevation gain in one and a half hours. My heart rate was in zone 4 for almost an hour of that, and in zone 3 for another 21 minutes! That's a good workout, and the best part is that it didn't feel like it was that hard of a workout - probably largely because I was trying to balance and coordinate my arms and legs, and to get a little slide in. Also, because it was so nice being out in the woods in the snow, just enjoying the view. 

According to weather underground it was about 30 degrees out - there wasn't any wind on the trails. It was sunny out, but I was in the woods and didn't even need sunglasses. I wore my purple ninja hoodie, a tshirt, little puff, my spandits fleece lined tights, wool socks and my thick heated gloves (not turned on) and I was kind of warm. I was wishing I had lighter gloves on - I tried taking my gloves off, but I didn't have anywhere to put them, so I unzipped my puff instead. I can see that it's pretty easy to over dress for cross country skiing. Also, I didn't bring a backpack or anything with water and I kind of regretted that. All and all, a nice day, and so glad that I decided to get my new skis up in NH!

Cross Country Skiing

I was looking at the cost of lift tickets this year, and they are so expensive! In particular I'm planning to go up to northern Vermont a day before the winter swim festival (they changed the festival to 2 days instead of 3 after I booked the airbnb, and we all decided to just keep the reservation as is and go skiing). The tickets for the mountain up there were $120, which is $35 more than I paid for a ticket, rental and lesson for cross country skiing today. If I buy skis, the trail passes are like $13, and I can stop at the ski area that's right on the way home from work and ski for an hour or two for next to nothing. I also like the idea of skiing being something I do for a couple hours instead of being an all day thing. And, it was fun and a good workout. Plus, if it's worth doing, it's worth overdoing :)

It was really cold out today, about 20 degrees without factoring in wind chill. I over compensated by layering up too much and was so hot during the start of the class, I had to take off things. I thought that might happen, but I guess it's better to have to delayer than be freezing. We started off the lesson learning how to do a basic stride in the groomed area. It was a little scary sliding at first, but then it was really fun. Once we added poles it felt a little like running - but in slow motion. After we were comfortable with that, the instructor took us to one of the "hills" (they were very very small hills, more like a little rise) and we practiced going downhill (super fun) and going up hill (good workout). Of course the hardest thing is stopping - it's always the hardest thing. It's weird because the skis don't have edges in the same way as downhill, so it's even more work to stop. So we practiced that for a while, and then learned some basic turn stuff. 

After the lesson we got to stay and play if we wanted to, which of course I did. I went around the track that they have there a couple times and learned that it's way harder to ski once the groomed part ends. I really enjoyed it, though. And, it's a really good workout - way better than erging (which is a good workout, but is kind of boring). A friend of mine told me that there's a place that sells skis in NH and has a good variety for regular folks who are not planning to race. I think I'll make a day trip of it, go up there, buy skis and ski for a few hours. Super excited!

 

35 degrees

It's christmas eve and I spent the morning doing things that are good for me including going to the gym and then doing a dip. Now I feel I can spend the rest of the day on the couch. :)

Since it's christmas eve I had to go early in the day before the gym closes. At the gym I've been doing a regular erg routine where I do a one minute warm up followed by 16 rounds of 40 seconds on/20 seconds off (double tabata) and then, in the spirit of parkour, I do one more. So my last round is 80 seconds, and then I cool down for a minute and a half. It winds up being 20 minutes and I typically do the bulk of the workout in zone 3 heart rate, or even zone 4 when I'm feeling froggy. After I lift for a half hour or so - doing a combo of exercises for my glutes, squats, arms and core, and now stretching my IT bands because the doctor says they are really tight.  I always feel good when I am finished, even if it's hard to motivate to start.

I met 3 friends at the lake for a nice swim. When I left home it was snowing out, and it continued to snow when we got to the lake. It was so pretty - they were those huge flakes that sort of dance around - the water was really calm, the sky was a hazy gray, and I even saw one of the bald eagles. I'd been really wanting to do a swim swim instead of just a dip, and decided it was a good day to go for it. It wasn't too windy and the temp wasn't that cold. I did bring along my thicker 5 mm swim gloves instead of the 3 mm ones because I've been waking up with numb hands at night, which I don't think is a good thing. And wow did they make the swim easier.

I walked into the water up to my waist and then just went for it. After I got in I realized that I forgot my ear plugs, but by the time that I had really thought it through my face was acclimatized to the water and I didn't want to stop. I've been counting strokes instead of just relying on the poles on the beach, I think in part because it gives me something to do. My first length I did 45, and then made up for being below 50 by doing 55 a couple times. In the end my watch said that I did .17 miles, which is 273 meters, so more than 200 meters. So, I know I can go a little less than 50 strokes per length and be fine.

As per usual, I started off too fast, but fortunately I quickly caught myself and slowed down so I could catch my breath and keep going. The water was obviously pretty cold (according to my watch it was 35, so it was really cold), but I didn't feel too bad. Amazingly, while I was swimming a patch of the sky opened up and the sun came out! Such a weird weather day. The whole thing, with walking in, swimming and walking out took me 10 minutes and 16 seconds, which I think we can all agree is more than 5 minutes. According to ai, I will be about 1 minute and 46 seconds over the time limit if I swim at that pace. Last year I was about 13 seconds over the limit. So, it seems I am getting slower. I could go to the Y and practice swimming, but I really don't want to. Next time I'm doing a trial run I will try to focus a little more on my reach and pull.

I was really cold and a little stumbly after the swim, even with the thicker gloves on. But then one of my friends was like "you stayed in for a really long time," so I had to act all cool about it. I was really cold, but once I got dressed I felt like I warmed up fine, and I was at like 80% warm by the time I got home. When I arrived here I took my boots off to avoid leaving sand on the floor and rushed to the bathroom to hang my things to dry. As I got close I slipped on the floor and almost fell on my butt on a huge pile of cat vomit. So gross. But definitely a good excuse to take a nice hot shower. Now I'm on the couch with my cats, feeling super warm and cozy. 

Swim swimming again

It's been a while since I did a swim as opposed to a dip. Today was gorgeous, with sun, about 40 degrees, and not much wind, so I did a late lunch and met some friends at the beach. When the time came around I was pretty anxious about it because I'd been dipping and it had been 36, so I thought it was going to be cold (spoiler alert, it was cold). We decided to go at 3:30, and the sun goes down at 4:12, but a little earlier at the lake because of the trees, so I wanted to be in the water at 3:45 at the latest. There was a certain amount of drama because there was ice at the beach - to be fair, that ice is sharp and you do have to be careful. But three of us were at the beach, and one at the docks, and so there was back and forth, until I was like "I have to get in," and so I did - at the beach. 

It was complicated to walk out past the ice, but I did big steps and made it. Then I just got right in and swam. My goal was to do 200 meters, the distance for the long swim at memphremagog, just to make sure I could still do it. Because I was all angsty, I started out waaaay to fast and could feel my heart pounding and was breathing way too hard, so I had to stop on the first length and catch my breath. There was a great blue heron hanging out by the side of the lake, just doing its bird thing, so it was kind of cool to check it out when I stopped. After I caught my breath I went back to it and was fine for the rest of the swim. In the end I went about 225 meters and was in the water for about 10 minutes - which again is longer than the five minutes that you are officially allowed for the 200 at the swim fest. Though, to be fair, it did take me a little longer than usual to get in and out of the water. While I was swimming the water felt fine. I think I had so much adrenalin going when I got in that I didn't even feel how cold it was on my face, so that was one positive. According to my watch it was 36 again. Which I think is only 3 degrees warmer than the temp I got at the swim fest last year.

Yesterday I went to the gym and did some ergging and lifting. I have my follow-up appointment with the knee doctor tomorrow. I can't believe it's been 6 weeks! And, I can't believe how amazing my knee feels ie it feels just like a knee, no pain. Not sure if its the strength training or the cortisone shot, but I am curious to hear what the doctor says tomorrow.

First snow of the year

Today we got about one inch of snow, which isn't much, but it's something. It was a really nice snow, not stormy, just gentle flakes coming down all day, sticking to the grass but not the pavement. I woke up at about 9 and thought what a perfect day it was for parkour because it's still happening across the street from me right now, but then it was so cozy in bed I didn't want to get up. By the time I bit the bullet and got out of bed it was to late for the 9:30 class. I sat on my couch and drank my coffee and thought about going to the 11 am class, which is a little more advanced and a little higher impact. I haven't been in a while because of my knee pain, but honestly my knee feels really good, and so I decided that I would go for it, and I was glad that I did!

When I got to class I realized that the snow was perfect for packing for snowballs, and there was definitely some snowball throwing through class. It was fun being in the slightly higher level - especially with the snow. We did a lot of exercises that allowed us to test the slipperyness of the snow (hint, it's slippery), but nothing that really bothered my knee. Yay! 

After class I had lunch, hung out for a bit, and then decided to go for a dip. It's been really cold out recently and today the lake was 36, which is pretty darn cold. Only another 4 or 5 degrees to get to the coldest, and the temp for memphremagog. Because I was by myself I decided to go easy, so even though it was during the daytime I just bopped around in the water for 5 minutes and didn't swim. After my hands were so cold, but the rest of me was fine. 

Yesterday was a big parkour day for me - I went to my usual class and then there was a parkour games at 1. People had been talking about the games being fun, and I didn't have other plans for the day, so this friend of mine and I wound up going for lunch after parkour, then hanging around harvard square, and then doing the games, which were a lot of fun. We did mostly tag, but different kinds of tag. One where you try to tag other people's feet with your feet, one where you tried to tag the calves with your calves, and one arms to arms. We also did this game where you did a forward roll and tried to tag people at the end. And then we played a really confusing game that was like half capture the flag that fell a little short. It was like 30 degrees out all day, and so by the time we got to the last game I was getting a little cold and tired, so maybe it was a "me problem."

Next week is the last full week at work before vacation. Things are slowing down and I'm looking forward to having almost two weeks off for some stay-cationing!

37

I can't believe that December is almost half way over! Though I haven't been writing about it, I have still been swimming/dipping, doing yoga, parkour, etc. I went for two dips this week - one at Walden on Wednesday after work where it was 41 and one today at lunch at the Mystic where it was 37! Crazy the difference. It's been so cold out lately, I drove past the Charles and it was covered with a layer of ice. It's been super windy the last couple of days, and the Mystic was actually pretty choppy.

The plan for today was just to pop over at lunch, do a quick 5 minute dip, and then come right back home. I wore my swim suit and dryrobe in the car so it was easy to get into the water - because of the wind I also wore booties so I could go up the stairs and stand where the boathouse blocked the wind after. And, of course, I wore gloves. The dip itself was pretty chilly, though once I got in it was mostly my hands that were uncomfortable. Just as I was getting out some guy came to chat with me - I was actually a little proud of myself for being like "sorry, gotta get out of the wind and get dressed" aka "I got a thing going on here, can't talk." Which is a little sad, because of course I can't chat when it's a feels like of less than 30 degrees and I'm soaking wet. Anyhow, I got dressed, got in my car and was just looking at my phone when I saw a state trouper car arrive in the lot, circle around to the top of the stairs, and stop. I think the tufts police may have called them because it seemed like they knew I was swimming...  That's not a positive development.

Skyline trail

It looks like the day after Thanksgiving last year I thought about going to the white mountains for a hike, but then didn't because the weather looked bad - instead I went on a Fells hike on that Friday, and did the entire loop. Which I guess I thought was a good idea, because I did the exact same thing today!

I was going to do jennings peak and sandwich, but it said it was going to be cold and windy, with gusts up to 40 mph. Nope. Also, no to getting up early for that. I slept a bit and then decided I would try to do skyline first, and if there was no parking I would do my usual rock circuit. For some reason there were a ton of spots open - it was kind of cold and it even snowed a few flakes. Anyhow, I decided to go for the longer hike. 

As in the past I parked in the sheepfold and went clockwise so that I would get the part that could be cut off done first - always an excellent idea because I was a little cold, tired and hungry as I got to the end of the hike and would have taken a short cut if I could. Last night I had a delicious dinner, including turkey and the stuffing from the turkey, and as usual I ate wayyyy too much and had regrets. Last weekend I ate bacon and it was delicious, and it's making me question this whole pescatarian thing. It's been about 5 years - I wonder if it's time to make meat a more regular part of my life again? Anyhow, I ate so much that I didn't need breakfast and wasn't hungry when I set out at 11 ish. Fortunately I still packed a granola bar, thinking that I might get hungry (I did).

It was a really nice hike, chilly but not cold - I was sweating but not too much. I did take my puffer off about a mile or so in and just hiked in pants and a smart wool top + t shirt. I was feeling pretty good, and my knee is feeling good as well, so especially during the flatter parts I moved a little faster, which felt nice. Because it's the long weekend I didn't really have any Dark Trail Thoughts or Other Angst to get out of my system, and it was a little difficult actually that I didn't have anything to chew over in my mind while hiking. I looked at my hiking time from last year and it was 3 hours 37 minutes - this year it was 3 hours and 16 minutes. Book time is 3 - 3.5 hours, so a little faster this year!

Although I haven't been blogging about it, I have been swimming. This week I did two quarter mile swims in 44 degree water, and it felt great! We've been swimming pretty regularly on Saturdays, so I went then. And then I had a little free time at lunch on Wednesday, so I went then as well. I intended to just bob around, but one of the women brought her family, and she was like "they will be so impressed if you swim" so I did (hint, they were completely unimpressed. But I was glad that I did swim, so it was a good motivator.) I've pretty much been swimming a quarter mile a week each weekend with the water getting slowly colder. Tomorrow is meant to be even colder out, but sunny, so hopefully it will be a good day for a swim.

I've also been doing the boring PT exercises and I think they are helping! Today my knee mostly didn't hurt during my hike. I think I might turn my left foot out a little, and so that may be part of the issue as well. I'm going to try to continue with the exercises and stretches, even though they are pretty boring.

Last Tuesday I accidentally stepped on my cat - she does this thing where she follows me around - it's kind of cute. But I didn't realize she was under foot until I felt a furry movement and heard a really angry yowl. She went completely kitty crazy on me and dug her claws into my leg. There was blood :(. After she was growly for a couple hours before she would calm down. Cats. I had to bribe her with a lot of treats, but she's forgiven both me and my other cat (who had nothing to do with the incident, but did get the bulk of her wrath.)

Half Mile at 51/Runners Knee

I've been mostly just bobbing around in the water these last couple of weeks, but today was beautiful and sunny, and I wanted to get in a good swim. I met a few friends a the beach, we chatted for a little bit, and then it was into the water. I've been wearing just swim cap and swim suit, but today I decided to go for the gloves as well, and it made such a difference! I got in and, memphremagog style, just went for it, with the plan to swim a quarter mile. The first length was hard as my face got used to the water, but from there it felt good. The sun was warm on my back and the swimming felt fine. After the first lap I started thinking about doing a half mile, and by the third I was sure I could do it. And I did!

With my apple watch on I've noticed a few times that I was just a little short of the planned length, so when I thought I was done I looked at my watch, and sure enough I was at .47 mile. The last .03 mile seemed the longest because I was just killing time waiting to be done. It was the slowest part of the swim.  In fact, when I look at the first split it was crazy fast, and then I realized that I needed to slow down, as I always do. I kind of stabilized at a 3'21" pace, which isn't fast at all - when I was pool swimming I was doing about a 2'25" pace - maybe I need to get back to the pool a little?

After it was so nice out still, we hung out and chatted and ate hummus with carrots. I got a nice chill going, but not to the point of being shivery. A really nice fall day!

My knee has been really painful lately, so I went to a sports medicine person who said that I have runners knee and need to strengthen my gluteus medius and stretch my IT bands and quads/hamstrings. Which means more boring PT exercises. She also gave me a cortisone shot in my left knee, and wow is it amazing. I hadn't realized how much I was just feeling this low level pain until it stopped. It's pretty motivating to actually do the exercises!

I though about the other PT attempts, and feel like it's the intense boringness of the exercises that keep me from doing them. So instead of going to a PT I did some research on what can help with these areas and wrote out a list of things that I don't totally hate. It may not be the 100% most effective exercises, but if I actually do them it will be better than not doing the perfect things. Today I wanted to take a kind of gentle day since I don't want to disrupt the cortisone from doing its thing, and so I did a 20 minute yoga for runners and a few leg lifts. I will keep doing this stuff, I will, I will....

First cold swim of the season

After my long dip yesterday I decided to go for a swim today. I met some friend on the beach and we all got in a little distance. My goal as I set out was to do a quarter mile swim - that's about twice the length of the long swim at the swim festival and also more than I've swum in a while. 

I got to the beach and it was so nice there - the sun is out and it's pretty warm feeling still. When the sun went behind the clouds it was a little chilly. We chatted for a bit before getting into the water, but soon it was time. Walking in it felt pretty cold, and I was dreading the swimming part a bit. The first lap, especially the first 30 or so strokes were especially challenging. But then my body got used to it and it was really nice. I could feel the sun on my back and swimming felt fine even though I haven't been swimming for a while. I got my 3 laps in and didn't feel a need to rush out. According to my watch the temp was 57, I went .23 mile and it took me a little less than 13 minutes. I definitely started my first lap a little too fast, and had to slow down as I went. Looking at my heart rate from my watch I was in zone 2 for over three minutes and in zone 3 for over 5.5 minutes, so good exercise! One of my friends did an a half mile, which was pretty impressive. After we got changed and didn't really need anything to warm up, though one person had brought tea, which hit the spot. 

There were a few other people there swimming, and so we tried to recruit them to the group. 

First Afterdrop of the Season

I went climbing today and brought my swim suit and dry robe with me so I could go for a dip after. Climbing was good - I did a few 5.10's, one of them clean :) There were some new climbs up and one especially was super fun, and a second pretty fun - excited to be able to do them again. After climbing I did go to the lake.

The plan was to go to the beach and bop around for 10 minutes and then go home. At 10 minutes I was like "I could stay in another 5" and then the same thing happened at 15 minutes. At 20 minutes I decided to shoot for a half hour, which is what I wound up doing. I didn't have my swim cap or goggles, and I didn't want to swimswim, so I walked back and forth, did a little chorus line kicking, sidewise walk like a crab, etc. There were a couple of people there who I knew, and one hung out with me for about 5 minutes. I didn't have booties or gloves, and I could feel my hands getting cold, by the time I got out they felt pretty chilly, as did all the rest of me. According to my watch it was between 56 and 57 in the water, so getting colder! After I changed and then headed right to my car, where I blasted the heat for the ride home. I actually did some shivering at the start of the drive, which felt kind of nice, but also really cold. When I got home I didn't want to get out of the car because I don't have my heat on in my place (which is just silliness on my part) and I knew it would be colder inside. Fortunately I have a really nice space heater which I turned on, and it's pretty cozy now.

Yesterday I had to go into work to give a presentation. I stopped at Walden on my way there for a short dip. I ran into someone I know in the parking lot - it's such a small world! It was so pretty at Walden - the leaves are changing and there was a mist coming off the water. I stayed in for about 10 minutes, and it was about 59 degrees. It was hard to make myself leave for work, but what can you do?

Tomorrow my plan is to go to join school of honk and bring a flute and play the flute, which I haven't done since middle school when my flute teacher made me cry all the time in lessons. I think this will be a lot nicer. 

Long weekend

This weekend was Honkfest - a weekend of street bands and activism. It was also my first time "performing" in a thing since like high school. I had a blast! I spent an hour dancing with school of honk on Saturday. I had no idea of many of the moves, but they are easy to follow, and I just did my best. After the performance I realized that the person on the ladder with a camera was a friend from parkour! It's such a small world. Anyhow, I went to dinner at a friends later that day and she plays flute really well, so I brought my flute for her to look at - she said a few of the pads needed changing and it needed an oiling, and gave me contact info for a grumpy man who has fair prices on repairs. In the meantime she also loaned me an extra flute that she had sitting around (a former student gave it to her), so I can try playing with school of honk. I'm gonna get my courage up and try it - I had a pretty awful experience in middle school with my flute teacher, but I can see that this crowd is very different. It would be so cool to march in a parade actually playing an instrument.

I was planning to march in the parade on Sunday, but we've been hit with a noreaster, and I just wasn't motivated to spend the afternoon in the rain, so instead I went on a hike in the fells and then went to the lake. The water was 62, I stayed in for 10 minutes and felt a chill after. 

We have this "walktober" challenge going at work, for the month of October - it's a step challenge and we have a few teams in the office. The highest level to get each day is 10,000 steps, and I am determined to reach 10K steps every day this month. Some days it's been really easy, like hiking days or dancing days, and some days, like today, it's much harder. The weather today is really nasty - rain, wind, cold. I spent the morning on the couch and then met a friend for climbing. After climbing I was only at like 2500 steps, so I decided to stay at the climbing gym and run on the treadmill. I did a short run one day last week, but today I needed a lot of steps, and so I did my longest run since I got my watch last year. It was actually 5K! I started pretty slowly, and soon bumped the speed up to 5 mph, which isn't fast by any means. I did have a few short breaks from running where I walked for a minute, and one short bit where I bumped it up to 5.5 mph, but mostly I stayed at 5. It look me 40 minutes, but I did it! Mostly it sucked and I had to push myself to stay with it, but after I felt amazing. The one thing that was really fun about it was that I could see these two little boys wrestling for about 20 minutes of it - they looked like they were about 4 or so, and they were cracking me up. One would knock the other down, and then vice versa, for a while one was pulling the other one around by a leg, and then there were all the ninja arm moves. It was very entertaining!

It's been really great getting back into climbing. I've been going with one of my swim friends, which has been really nice. At metrorock in everett I'm back to climbing 5.10's - today I started with a 5.8 then 5.9 and then 5 - 5.10's, though I didn't get up one of them. I did do this one climb I've been working on for a while clean - it's a 5.10b with these bubble holds that's pretty balancy and sequency. Lots of fun! The other climbs I had some falls and rests, but whatever, I got to the top on my own power. 

Mount Eastman

Eastman was the second hike of my weekend-during-the-week in NH. I went up on Thursday and hiked Thursday and Friday, with an overnight at the Coho Hostel in between. Mount Eastman is on the opposite side from the Baldfaces from Meader and Eagle's Crag, so I was familiar with the area and was able to hit the Emerald Pool after the hike again (part of why I chose it, of course).

My alarm went off at 6:30 and I was out of bed by 6:45. I started the coffee, used the bathroom, got dressed, stripped the sheets off the bed, put my lunch in my bag and was ready to hit the road by 7:15. I got to the trailhead at around 7:45 and headed out a little before 8. Which was pretty good, even though I had hoped to start hiking a little earlier. The drive over was really pretty, except there was one part of the road that was covered in fog - I could bearly see to drive! And then I came out the other side and it was really pretty again - cool and weird.

To hike Eastman you start on the same trail as for the Baldfaces for almost the first mile. It's a pretty chill start. When you first turn away from the Baldfaces onto slippery brook trail it's chill for a bit longer. There was a section of the trail that was almost like a dirt road - it looked like someone had been widening it - maybe a snow mobile trail for winter? After you cross a brook (which was really low due to to the drought, and almost nothing to cross) things started to get more intense. According to all trails, the hike was 8.86 miles with 2595 feet of elevation gain, which is no joke. But, the trail wasn't one of those white mountain trails that's just a pile of rocks. While it was pretty relentlessly uphill for much of the hike, it was also fairly easy to navigate and just hike, rather than having to climb up rocks and such. Kind of refreshing! It took me a little less than three hours to get to the top.

I didn't see anyone until I hit the ridgeline, and then I bumped into a couple with their two dogs (really cute dogs, really chatty woman). They had come up the other side and sped off to the top. I enjoyed the ridgeline, which was a really nice one - it was .9 mile from hitting the ridge to the top of the mountain, though probably half of that was uphill. 

I got to the top, tagged the cairn that is there, and found a nice rock with a view to sit on. The couple was sort of nearby and as soon as I took out my sandwich their dogs came over to say hi. Like I said, they were cute dogs, but there was no way they were getting my sandwich - I was so hungry!

I sat in the sun up top for about 45 minutes eating and admiring the views. The other folks left like 10 minutes after I got there - it seemed like they bushwacked down, because they headed off away from the trail. The weather again was perfect! Sunny and warm, but not hot. I had started the morning wearing a smartwool top over my tshirt, but had taken the smartwool off around the turnoff for slippery brook, and I didn't need to put it back on. The sky was blue, there were a few fluffy clouds, and the trees were so nice. I could see as far as Mt. Washington and over to Maine. I really didn't want to leave. But, finally I had to get up and head back down. 

The hike down was quite delightful. My left knee has been a bit sore, but because there weren't a ton of rocks to go down it wasn't a huge issue. The only thing that was a bit sketchy was that at one point I heard what I thought was a couple of gun shots and I realized that it must be hunting season. And I was alone on a trail in very neutral colors. But, hunters usually stay away from hiking trails and I did think they were kind of far away, and I didn't hear any more. 

I was pretty excited to get to the Emerald Pool, but as I got close I heard people. Of course, after seeing almost no one all day... When I got to the area of the pool, though, the people were sitting in the sun a little above it, and I got the pool to myself. I stripped down to my underware and stepped in. I will say that the water was a lot colder than the last two times - according to my watch it was 48. It felt so refreshing after my hike and a bopped around for a little bit, but since I still had .7 miles to go, and didn't bring a change of underware, I got out after about 2.5 minutes so I wouldn't get too cold. I dried off, put my hiking tights and shirt back on, and headed out. It only took about 15 minutes to get back to my car - my knee felt so refreshed even from that little dip. A trail runner had passed me on the way out, and he was sitting in his car right next to mine, so I went into the outhouse to change into dry clothes. I stopped for ice cream again on the way out, and then had the long drive home. 

I enjoyed this hike for sure, but I think if I went back I would do one of the other hikes there - either the two baldfaces or the meader/eagle's crag, just because the views from those were a bit nicer. Still, two thumbs up, really nice day!

Table Mountain

It's fall foliage season and so I decided to take a long weekend and head up to NH for Thursday and Friday, doing two hikes and staying at the Coho in between. It was a fun during-the-week-weekend. 

I started with Table Mountain on Thursday. It's a short hike with a really nice view - I would never drive all the way up to NH to do a 4 mile hike, but since I was up there it fit the bill perfectly. I drove up rt 93 and then took the Kancamagus highway across NH, which was really gorgeous with the trees all changing. The driving was a little tricky because I swear half the drivers were in slow mode and the other half were in crazy driving mode. But I made it.

Table Mountain is in Bartlett off Bear Notch rd. The parking lot is pretty small, but thankfully there was only one car there when I arrived, and a different car there when I left. I saw one person the entire time I was hiking - the people in the other car were just letting their dogs out for a break or something. So, one on a Thursday is a perfect time for that hike.

The hike is a little less than four miles with a little less than 1400 feet of elevation gain. So, it's not nothing, but it wasn't super intense either. It started with a gradual uphill on the approach and then only got steep close to the top. A bunch of people commented on all trails that the steeper areas were pretty slabby, with a skree on top of them, making it kind of slippery, and they weren't kidding! We are still in a drought here, so at least it was dry, but the way down was harder with trying not to slip (which I didn't). The top is viewless, but there is an amazing slab with a lookout just a bit below the top. After I'd tagged the summit I sat down with my cheese and avocado sandwich on durum bread, which was delicious. I got so lucky with the weather - it was sunny with just a few clouds, cool but not cold - just a perfect day. I admired the view for about a half hour, looking at all the taller peaks and thinking how I had hiked all of them. 

After I went to the Coho, checked in, took a shower and then went shopping in North Conway. I planned to go to the outlets, but they closed at 6. But, there's a sierra there, so I did a little shopping there. After, I returned to the hostel where I sat in the common room, played on my phone, and chatted with some of the other guests. It was so much warmer inside than a tent would have been, and they had the coziest comforters, but one woman in the shared room kept waking me up. IDK - it was way easier in the morning since I didn't have to pack up a tent, but I didn't sleep as well... I'll have to think about which is better for the future. Anyway, nice day, good hike, two thumbs up.

Knee pain

My knees have been really creaky lately and I realize I have to do more strength training to help them. I found a workout from the nytimes that is specifically for this and I did it for the first time today. Most of the exercises were pretty hard for me - a sign that I needed them! So, I'm going to try to integrate these into my exercise program a couple times a week, at least to start. I can potentially go to once a week if I get better at it.

It took me 20 minutes to go through all of them, and then I added some planks - a minute on forearms and a minute of high plank, and then dead bug when I dropped opposite arm and leg between them. After I did some bench presses, and a couple other arm exercises. Probably should look for a nice arm workout like this to complement the routine. 

I know I should be doing 30 minutes of strength training 2x a week faithfully, I'm really going to try harder to do it. Once I get going it's not really that painful. 

Meader, Meader Ridge and Eagle Crag

It's been a while since I got in a good hike, so I decided to take today off and hit the trails. I've been wanting to do Meader and Eagle Crag, which are the mountains next to the Baldfaces, since I did the Baldfaces. So, that was the plan for the day! An added bonus was that I was able to make the hike a loop with just a short road walk, and park by the Baldface trailhead. Which allowed me to hit the Emerald Pool for a little dip.

Wednesday was the first day back at work in person after a whole summer working at home. Re-entry is so hard. I decided that I would drive up to NH after work, camp at the Co-Ho hostel (but this time with the indoor access) and then leave from there to hike. There was a lot of traffic after work, and I thought about just going home, but I'm so glad I stuck it out. I got there a little after 8, set up my tent, used the bathroom and the kitchen, and then headed out to sleep. For August it was cold out! Fortunately I had my smart wool long underware, jams, wool socks and a sweatshirt, plus my down sleeping bag. I had to go all the way in the sleeping bag and pull the part around my face tight so only my nose was sticking out. Once my body heat warmed up the bag it was OK, though still a little chilly.

I set my alarm for 6:15, only hit the snooze once, and was on the road before 7. It's funny how it's so hard to get up at that hour for work, but so easy when it's for hiking. Anyhow, with driving and organizing and such I hit the trail a little before 8. I could have done the same if I'd left home at 5 am, but I actually slept pretty well in my cocoon, and was more rested than usual at the start of the hike. 

Because I did a loop, I started with a .6 mile road walk that was very easy - it was a little downhill and so I was able to get it done fast. Then the trail started on what looked like an old dirt road, with two lanes for tires, and that part was fast too. In fact the first 2.5 miles were pretty chill, a slow uphill, but not that tiring. When I got to the real climb I was psyched because there were switchbacks, and so that was fine as well. I was starting to get hungry - it was about 10:30 ish, and I thought I would sit once I got to the top of Meader and have a snack. There was an amazing view of the area from close to the top, but the actual top was viewless. It was also really nice, with pine trees and moss - it smelled amazing. But I decided to head on to the ridgeline before snacking because I thought there would be a view, and there was. I sat on a nice little rock with an obstructed but still amazing view and ate some not very delicious rice cakes. But I still ate the whole bag, so I guess they weren't horrible.

I continued on the ridgeline, which was viewless but still really enjoyable. There were some amazing mossy parts, with several different types of moss. There was a bit of up and down, but not too intense, and then I hit the top of Eagle Crag, which has an amazing view! I admired the Baldfaces, feeling impressed with myself that I'd hiked them, and looked around for somewhere to eat. There was a big boulder that looked so tempting - I was pretty sure it was a bad idea to climb on it because I could fall, and it might be hard to get down from. But of course then I climbed it, and it was fine. It was pretty sticky rock, so there were all kinds of holds to grab and my boots stuck pretty well as I went up and down. I had two bagels with cheese, and I ate 1.5 of them while I sat and admired the view - from my spot I could see the Carters, Wildcats, and a tiny bit of Mt Washington. And in the other direction I could see a lot of Maine. It was such a perfect weather day - there were some small fluffy clouds that were so close to me at the top of the mountain - I could actually see the top of the clouds from my perch. I thought about how ephemeral hiking is - I worked so hard to get up to the alpine zone, and I was just going to eat a bagel and then go down. 

As I started down I realized there was a hole in the butt of my pants, which I thought about worrying about, but honestly I had only seen 3 people all day - 2 hiking together on the ridgeline and one trail runner coming through when I was eating, that I decided that no one would see it. And I was right. The trail down started with a huge amount of descent at the top - I did some butt scootching, thinking how I was going to make my pants worse. The trail soon became more manageable and I was able to move reasonably fast for me, sometimes doing some rock hopping but mostly the trail was just a little root-y and soil with pine needles. 

I was so excited to reach the Emerald Pool, it seemed like it was faster than expected, but also my feet were killing me and my legs were tired, so it seemed like it took forever. Anyhow, I was psyched that no one else was there and stripped down to my undies and hopped in. Even though there is a drought and the water in the streams was low, the pool was full. It was so nice swimming around there - water temp was 57 according to my watch, and my feet throbbed in the cold. Just as I was getting ready to get out a guy who looked like he was in his 20 arrived to take a swim. Figures, three people all day and as I'm swimming around in my underware someone comes. But then he was like "sorry, sorry!!" and practically ran away, even though I was like "It's OK, I've got clothes on!" I thought maybe he was waiting for me to get out to come down, but I think he just left. Since he was gone, I changed into clean underware, a top and shorts, and sat with my feet in the water to eat my last half a sandwich. It was so good!

I finished up and reluctantly packed up my things, put my boots and socks back on and headed off for the last .7 mile, which went really fast. The last time I finished the hike I used a tree to pee instead of the smelly outhouses and some guy came biking buy just as I was midway through my business. Having already kind of flashed someone, I decided to use the outhouse. I got settled in my car and drove a bit to this country store that I'd seen on my way there that turned out to have ice cream! It was the best ice cream - I had a raspberry chocolate chip in a waffle cone, and got an apple cider. I got in my car and drove home - even though labor day weekend is coming the drive back was totally fine, and I got home without any problems. 

Interestingly, the all trails map I planned from said the hike would be 8.93 miles with 2779 feet of elevation gain. I did follow a short path that claimed to have a view (but didn't) but I'm 100% sure that wasn't over 1.25 miles. Curious. Anyhow, really good hike, two thumbs up, would definitely do again.

  

Denmark and Sweden

This year for my big vacation I went to Sweden and Denmark - Sweden for a couple days and then this creative movement event in Denmark called the international gathering. It was my first time to Scandinavia, and there were a lot of highlights. 

I went with a friend from parkour, which I was a little nervous about because, although I have always liked her, we have never traveled together, but it worked out really well. Another friend was supposed to go, but tore a tendon and couldn't come.  I also met a lot of really great people at the gathering, though after 5 days it became to people-y and I had to spend some time alone introverting. But, that's normal.

My brother was in Lund, Sweden for a conference - weird coincidence, so we met for dinner the first night. The food was so good - I had this fish dish that was amazing, along with some delicious apps and a couple drinks. We walked around town and I resisted getting a ton of souvenirs. 

We stayed in Malmo, Sweden, mostly because it was less expensive, but it turned out that Malmo was amazing. My friend actually decided to stay there after her trip, rather than in Copenhagen. We stayed at this old hotel that had a free breakfast buffet, and didn't seem to care if you made sandwiches for lunch - everyone was doing it. So we only had to buy food for dinner.

For the first full day we went to Copenhagen and rented bikes to go to all the mandatory touristy stuff = little mermaid statue, saw the royal guards, went to Nyhavn and Christiania. The best part, though, was we went to this restaurant in the meat packing district for dinner. They were full, except two seats at the bar by the chefs, so we sat there and got to watch them preparing the food. It was so cool watching them cook - we especially saw the raw fish chef, who was from England. We started chatting and he noticed our interest and wound up giving us a tour of the kitchen, which was really interesting. He said that they get two fish deliveries a day, but they vary based on what's caught, so people in that kitchen had to be flexible. Also, they were so busy that everyone was always moving - the chef said it was a rush working there because you never stopped. I noticed that he was really kind to everyone - always saying thank you and correcting gently, and he said that was part of the culture of the restaurant and why he worked there.

We were going to go to Copenhagen again, but my friend wasn't feeling well and honestly I was happy to stay in Malmo. I walked around town to the ocean, dropped my credit card in the park by accident and someone gave it back to me, and went to a couple museums. After, my friend was feeling better and so we went to the Swedish baths (I feel like one should do that in Sweden) and that was another highlight. The baths had three saunas and were built on the sea. They were separated by gender, and everyone just went around naked. At first it was weird, but then it was pretty freeing, and I even went swimming on the non-enclosed side of the building. If I lived there I would absolutely have a membership and go all the time. The water in the sea was about 68, so not too cold, but in the winter it would be amazing. For dinner the second day we went to another amazing restaurant and had pizza.

Our last touristy day we went to the Museum of Disgusting food where I sampled all the things. First you walk around and read about foods from different cultures, then you get to the tasting bar and can sample. They give you a little taste of things, and if you taste all of them you get to spin the wheel for a prize. I wasn't going to try everything, but the woman behind the counter was persuasive. It started with bugs - crickets, ant and mealworms, which tasted like sesame seeds, sour patch kids and rice puffs. Then there was durian, a century egg, some drinks and cheeses. Then stink bugs, surstrumming, hakarl and sauerkraut juice. After eating all that, I was all in, which meant eating four different hot sauces, one that was so hot they made you sign a waiver. After, I got a tshirt that said I ate everything at a 10% discount - apparently you can only buy it if you do eat everything. Then I went back to the hotel and had some diarrhea, ew. The taste woman said that the surstrumming is so smelly that they take the cans outside and sit under a bridge to open them - I can't imagine what the factory must smell like.

After, it was off to Denmark and the Gathering, which is a creative movement workshop week. I did the dance track - there was also parkour, crossfit and beach volleyball. It was a lot of fun! I was kind of nervous because I hadn't really done dance since high school, but there were other beginners there as well and no one cared what I looked like, including me. 

The first night of the event we had a Danish Games session, that included rock-paper-scissors. I was losing all the time, but then I noticed that everyone was doing scissors first and decided I should do rock followed by paper if there was a tie. So, when the championship came along, that's what I did, and I won! The way it worked, if you beat someone they had to become a train after you and shout your name to support you. So, but the time we got to the end everyone was shouting my name. It was really fun - it's so rare that I win at "athletics" that it was a refreshing change.

The dance sessions were really good - the teachers were amazing and I was happy with my ability to keep up with the pace of the classes. In terms of my abilities, I for sure wasn't the best dancer in the room, but it didn't matter. No one cared, not even me. We did contemporary dance every morning, followed by street dancing in the afternoon - there was house dance, an African dance style, hip hop, groove... Some of them we choreographed a dance, but others were more free form. 

There were some elective sessions as well, and I did beach volleyball for an hour and a half, went to the North Sea and jumped off a 4 meter high pier, did partner yoga (including the dirty dancing move) and did a strength training thing that I actually didn't love. They fed us delicious bread three times a day. There were a lot of beans, though, so so many beans. By Thursday I had to eat chicken because my stomach couldn't take the beans anymore. Friday they had this super intense conditioning class that had people pushing cars around, sticking their heads in water and then doing somersaults, and all sorts of other weird things. Unfortunately I wasn't feeling that great - I had a migraine, so I went to a yoga class, and couldn't even finish that. By Saturday I was pretty much ready to leave - my stomach was sad and I was peopled out, but still I'm glad I went. 

Kayaking for a swimmer

The kingdom games not only have their winter swim, they also have a summer one. I went last year with a couple friends, and then we signed up again for this year - I didn't actually swim either time. I mean, who wants to swim in this kind of weather? :) Last year I kayaked for a friend, and then I was signed up to kayak for her again this year, but she wasn't feeling well and decided not to go. So, I asked if anyone else needed a kayaker, and there was a woman who was swimming 10 miles who did!  So, I signed up to do that. And it was pretty awesome.

This woman is training to swim across the english channel - she's planning for next summer and has a boat booked and everything. This was her longest swim so far. She wasn't the fastest swimmer and it was kind of funny because she initially reached out and apologized about that, and said she didn't want to ruin my day. Ha! She didn't know what kind of swimmer I am - but I was like "I love that you are doing this for the sport and not to win." We met the day before just to chat and she told me about all the "feeds" that we were to do. After one hour, and then every half hour, we stopped and she had some sports drink and a little snack - sometimes a goo packet, sometimes a bite of a sandwich or some applesauce, or fig newtons. She also took advil and some anti-nausea meds which I had to put in her mouth. I dropped one of the advil down her swimsuit. Oops. Other than that it was just leading her around the route in as straight a line as possible and staying next to her so she could sight off me. 

The race started at 8, with kayakers going out on the water at 7:45. You kind of hang out by the first bouy, and the swimmer finds the kayaker (the wand finds the wizard, the wizard does not find the wand). Once she reached me, we were off. Because I was going at her speed, it was pretty chill in the kayak, I just paddled every now an then, kept on the correct course, and organized her food. I had a lot of time to look at the scenery, watch the birds, look at her swim technique, say hello to folks who were passing me, and think about life. I got a new she-wee so that I could pee while out there, and I used it twice, quite successfully. By the time I needed to use it the sun was pretty hot and I had dipped a towel in the water and put it over my lap, which had the added benefit of being a privacy screen. I sort of scootched up in the kayak so I was sitting on my knees, figured out the right place to put the funnel, and went for it. I brought a bottle to pee into, and then dumped it into the lake (really large lake, so not a problem, I swear). Then I washed out the shewee and put it back in its case. Super simple, and I was pretty pleased with myself. 

At some point I got hungry, and I had packed a sandwich - cheese and avocado on a delicious bread, so I had a snack, with some pretzels I brought. Then I ate some gummies for the sugar because it was getting pretty warm out and I wanted to make sure I didn't get sick (not the fun gummies, these were from trader joes). I found a few different ways to sit so my legs and butt weren't killing me - at first I was sitting correctly with my feet on the pegs, but we were moving slow for a kayak, so I realized I could sit with my legs crossed and be just fine. For a while I had my legs up on top of the food bag and was lounging. When we got to the furthest point away and started on our way home there was this older couple sitting outside with cow bells cheering, which was so fun!

In the end it took her 7.5 hours to do the swim. All the time I was snacking and checking the timer on my phone and organizing feeds and looking at birds and admiring the lake and reapplying sunscreen and dipping my hat in the water and putting it on my head, etc, she was just swimming and swimming. It looked really hard. We were third to last to finish and there was a crowd at the beach because it was awards time, so everyone applauded her as she came in. I was a little stiff and scrunched up, but I thought I would be fine, and I was. All and all, a nice way to spend the day out on the water.

We camped out up in VT because it's summer and we could. The weather was really good for camping. We did a fire and smores one day and went to a swimmers gathering the next. I brought my hammock and hung it up and sat in it and read, which was my favorite part. Once again, something bit or stung me and my ankles swelled up and itched like crazy. This time I was prepared with benedryl, which worked amazingly well - no idea what the cause was, but it was so itchy!

We were having breakfast Sunday morning and it started to rain. I took down my tent so it wouldn't get wet and soon we headed home. I had been thinking about stopping for a short hike on the way home, but with the rain and benedryl I didn't really want to, so I just came straight back. Two thumbs up, would definitely do again.

First Regatta!

Today was the pineapple regatta at the rowing club, and I participated in women's 8 and mixed 8. Spoiler alert, both the boats I was in came in fourth. Out of four. So, we lost. But not badly, just by a bit. And we did much better than the boat that capsized, had to be rescued, and then finished. So, there's that.

I was completely unsure what to expect from the day. The email said to get there at 6:30 am to help set up and that the races would start at 8. I just couldn't bring myself to get up that early, and since I'm a newbie I figured no one would be at all upset if I didn't. So, I left home at about 7:40, picked up some blueberry muffins, and got there at 8. And quickly realized that there was no need for me to be there since I wasn't racing until 2:45. 

So, I went to parkour (which was very fun - we're at a new park with all sorts of new places to play). After I went for coffee with a friend and had a really delicious pastry. When I returned a little after noon all of the muffins were gone, and it was lunch time. After lunch I chatted with the two people I knew and watched some races. It was pretty hot out - like mid 80's, and I got tired of sitting in the sun baking, so I went and sat under a tree and watched for a little over an hour.

When my race was called I got up and joined my group (I could call them my crew, huh?) and we had a strategy session with the cox, who was really great. About half of the other rowers were folks I knew, and the other half must have been morning rowers. Everyone was high 5ing me because it was my first race - it was a pretty chill group. We got in our boat (I rowed 5 seat), and headed to the start line. It took a while to line up and hit the right position, but we finally got it. 

When the horn went off, we were off! When you start a race you row from knees half bent for two, then three quarters, then full, then you do like 10 fast rows, and then you row at your race pace. Which is something we had practiced before, fortunately, or I would have been totally lost. The first few rows were a little tricky, but fine, and then when we got going I tried my hardest to be in sync with the person in front of me. Most of the other technique stuff went out the window. 

My main goal was to not catch a crab and slow the boat down, which I didn't. There was a woman in the boat who didn't have enough fluids all day, and was on the edge of heat exhaustion. And, one of the other boats had two guys in it (which is a little off on a women's boat race). I didn't realize the woman behind me (in the 3 seat) wasn't ok until the cox asked her to row, and people were yelling for me to row - and I was like "huh?" After, I looked back and was like "ohhh." (I saw her later and she was better hydrated and looked fine.) So, I didn't feel bad about us being last in that heat. 

Our mixed boat race was the last race of the day. Again, I knew about half of our boat, and people were super chill about if we won. Which was good, because we didn't. We had this really funny high school student who was coxing, and she was so excited because she already had two wins and a second place and she wanted another (but then she was fine with our 4th place). This race was a lot closer - they blow a horn when you finish, and it was four honks in pretty quick succession. The wife of one of the rowers took a video of it, and we looked pretty good, actually! In the video, because of the angle, it looks like we overtake and pass other boats, and are ahead (which actually never happened.) Since we were the last race, we had to put the boat away. After they gave out the prizes - fresh pineapple for first place, canned for second and dried for third. Since I wasn't winning anything and had been outside in the heat all day I snuck out early, went home, and took a nice long cool bath.

I would definitely do this regatta again. Not sure that I'm ready for less chill races, but maybe in a future year... I'm enjoying rowing a lot, and will definitely continue - it's such great exercise and nice people. 

5 seat!

Today I actually got to be in the front of the boat! I was the 5 seat, which is the last of the front, but definitively in the engine room. And, the coach and cox kept telling the bow to change things - not me this time. It was a really nice row, and fun to be in the wider part of the boat. I'm sure I will return to my usual 3 seat on Wednesday.

This weekend I'm participating in my first race - it's super casual and everyone says it's really fun. It's on the Mystic, from where we row - Blessing of the Bay. It's called the Pineapple Regatta because pineapples used to be a symbol of friendship and welcome :) Today someone told me that she caught a crab in her first race, so that's my kind of race. Still a little nervous. But they have promised super cute t-shirts, so I decided to try it.  

Early Roll-ups

Rowing is such a technical sport - one of the things you are meant to do is unfeather your oar as you are recovering from the stroke so that you are ready to drop it in the water and row as soon as you get to the catch. But, I have a hard time doing that. I swear today both the coach and the cox told me at least 10 times to focus on my early roll up. And the thing was, I was. I swear!!  And then they would compound it by telling me my timing was off, or that I should recover slower. Which, I definitely can't try to do two things better, my brain just explodes. A few times, though, I did get it correct I think and it felt good.

The raised garden beds at the school across the street from me were empty for so long this summer that I decided to buy a few plants and put in a little bandit garden. I did 4 tomatoes, a cucumber, and some herbs - basil, sage and rosemary. Today I went out and someone had staked my tomatoes! It was kind of cool of them, but also I hope they don't think they get to eat everything I grow. It's a risk with the bandit garden. I really mostly wanted the herbs because it's so easy to just go pick something when it's right across the street, as opposed to having to go a mile an a half through city traffic.

I got a FB notification that I started in my new field of work 12 years ago - crazy how time flies! I remember how nervous I was when I first started, but it seems to be going well now....

Charles Fourth again

Last year on the Charles was so fun, we went back and did it again, this time with a couple more people! And again, fireworks were amazing. It was easier this year because we had the whole scene sussed out, and knew what to expect from traffic and parking, etc. We wound up going all together in one car, and the woman who drove reserved a spot in a hotel parking garage. It looked like there was a wide open parking lot right across the street from the put it, though. 

Fireworks were earlier this year by 50 minutes, but also we knew that we could drop our stuff off and park, saving lugging time. So, the plan was to arrive at 7:30 and head up river. Well, they picked me up (last stop on pickups) at a little after 7:30 and we got to the river at about 8 ish. It was super easy to drop the stuff off, though, and one person went to park while three of us moved everything down to the water. We actually had 4 people and 4 oru kayaks, though two were already unfolded and went there on roof racks. It took me about 2 minutes to unfold and set up my kayak and another 2 minutes to put my stuff in it. And then I helped my other friend unfold hers. And then I watched as everyone took another half hour to putz around and do heaven knows what until I was about ready to scream. I finally just took my kayak to the river, got in and paddled around in a circle for a bit. That was the not fun part of the night.

Once everyone got into the water, though, it was a lot more fun! We paddled upstream to where we had been last year - it took about a half hour. It seemed like it was less crowded on the water - maybe more people when through earlier and went under the Mass Ave bridge? Anyhow, the spot before the bridge was pretty open. Two people had anchors that they dropped, we tied up together and hung out for a short bit listening to the music before the fireworks started. 

As always, it was an amazing show, and from our spot it felt like it was just for us. There were a ton of people lined up on the bridges and a few yachts, but from our spot we had a perfect view. They went on for about half hour at least, and we so good. Because of the two anchors we didn't turn in circles so much this year, which was nice. The water was so still and smooth, and it was really peaceful (except for the fireworks of course).

Once the fireworks finished we pulled up anchor (unlike the cinderblock last year the anchors came up without issue). There were so many people paddling back that the water got all choppy. Again, it was all kinds of traffic - canoes, kayaks, paddleboards, yachts - with all kinds of configurations of people. It took about a half hour to get back to the pull out. I was completely soaked because I was paddling so hard trying to keep up with one of my friends. We got out and I dried off my boat and folded it up while my friends did all their things in reverse (though I'm pretty sure it took less time than getting set up). 

While the woman who drove went and got her car and we waited with the stuff and watched some folks shoot off illegal fireworks. I have to confess I was a little nervous that they would blow off a finger, or hit someone with them - they seemed a little drunk and overexcited, so I was kind of relieved to see a police officer come over and tell them to cut it out. Once again, getting home was easy - all the traffic must have been to the east. 

Two thumbs up, definitely recommend. Next year I will be prepared with something to do while everyone putzes around... Or, maybe work on patience??? 

Short Row

All day today it was hazy, hot and humid, with the chance of thunderstorms in the evening. I was curious if we would even have rowing because obviously thunder + metal boat = bad. When the time came, we were on! It was actually a little cooler than its been some of the days, and with the clouds the sun wasn't as horrible. Coach kept saying that it was going to be fine and we should go to the smaller river because boats and jet skis would be out and heading to the Charles (boats to the Charles I assume). So, we rowed over to the furthest place away from the dock, over two miles away, and then he was like, yeah, there's a thunder storm coming, we are going to row back. Sigh. It actually wound up being a pretty good workout because we just rowed, took a short break, saw some lightening, and then rowed faster. We were going at a 26 for much of the row, which is a pretty big aerobic suck, but also I think easier than rowing at a 22. We got back to the dock, put the boats away, and then it didn't rain or really thunder. Ha!

I officially signed up to row in the pineapple regatta, which will be in a little over 2 weeks. I was kind of nervous about it because obviously I have no idea what I'm doing and don't want to get everyone in my boat all upset by messing up. But I asked a few people and they said it's super fun and chill and not competitive - I should just come and have fun. Also, there are supposedly super cute tshirts. It might be my last row of the season - I can't do the next session because of my vaca, and I don't see any sessions posted after that. So, a good way to end. 

I keep meaning to write about the sights on the river - it can be a little gritty on the Mystic, there are a few places that smell a little, and there can be trash in the water. But there are also a ton of birds, especially geese, ducks, swans and herons. There's one park that often has kids smoking weed :)  Sometimes on the bridges people take pics of us. There's a guy who rides around on his bike playing the saxophone, which has to require a lot of coordination. Sometimes there are jetskiers, and the coaches get really mad at them if they go too fast near us. There are three yacht clubs that we row past, and sometimes there are people on boats (though surprisingly not that often) - they are usually pretty good about going slow around us. Sometimes rowing back we can watch the sun set and it's so nice being out on the water watching the sky change color. 

Surprisingly I really like rowing in an eight and don't picture myself switching to a single ever. Every now and then I think that someone else is getting us off balance, but actually it's often me. So I am actively trying to let it go. It's such an amazing feeling when we all get into a rhythm together and the boat is moving fast. Also, when we are far from the dock it doesn't bother me, because I know I don't have to get back there by myself!

Rowing in a four

There were a lot of rowers today, so many that we had three 8's, but then three people got stuck in traffic/on the T and we wound up with only 5 for our boat so one person sculled and the rest of us were in a 4. I was back on starboard and was in the bow. 

The four is a little harder to set on the water and apparently I was making it wobble by lifting my oar too high - it turns out you can't just tap down to the same level every time, you need to pay attention to your oar hight? Well, I did sort of get it figured out and we did a lot better on the way back. 

We did some pretty long drills because we were all new to the four, and then after we did a long row which was pretty killer because it's still so hot out. Not 97, but still in the 90's. I had two streams of sweat running down my face, and had to keep trying to dry off my left hand because it was slipping as I tried to feather the oar. I felt like it was a little more manageable to carry the four and it was definitely easier to turn.  

It's supposed to cool off tomorrow finally! Yay! And then of course it will rain all weekend. 

Out of the 3 seat

Well, today I made it out of the three seat for rowing, but sadly I was moved to the four. I was just getting the hang of starboard and then I had to row port! I hadn't rowed port since the learn to row program and it felt so awkward. I kept getting my oar caught on my thighs or in the water and it was hard to feather with my right hand. Also, it was over 90 with a feels like of 97, which isn't really the best outdoor exercise weather, especially for me. Fortunately there was a little bit of a breeze on the water so it didn't feel quite so hot. Also, there was a group that rowed right before us, and they left the boat set up, so we didn't have to carry it down to the water.

As we were waiting to get started I realized that I forgot my socks. I was so bummed. But then our cox gave me his! They were a little gnarly, but it was so nice of him, and I'm sure I would have been miserable without socks (and on port in the 97 degree weather). I'm going to put some socks in the trunk of my car so that I'm ready next time.

Our workout was pretty chill because of the heat. Still, we went 8.8 km. When I left to go row I really questioned my life choices, but I'm glad I went! Tomorrow is supposed to be even hotter, though. I may not leave home.

Jim Doty Swim

After the Charles swim I swore I was done with swim races, but some of my friends were doing this 1 mile swim at Carson Beach. I just didn't want to pay more $ to torture myself, but when one friend bailed I asked if I could be her for the swim. And immediately regretted it when she said "of course!" But, it is good for me to exercise, and it's early in the day so I knew I would at least be all exercised up by 10, so I did it.

We are at the start of a heat wave, but you wouldn't have know that this morning. When I left home a little before 7 am it was rainy and cold. The water in the ocean was 61, which is also not warm. This race goes in a square, with 4 turn buoys, which means each length is .25 miles ish - a good distance to talk yourself through. I started swimming pretty well, but also just wanting to quit, which I didn't. After the first buoy things got a little wavier, it was a pretty quiet day in the water, and the area is pretty well protected, but still I could feel the ocean. The middle half I really questioned my life choices and thought about avocado toast. I got to the last buoy and was feeling pretty tired, I really wanted to stop. But I didn't. I did get pretty far off course, which was a bummer. Fortunately a kayaker pointed me in the right direction. The last quarter mile was definitely the hardest because I really really wanted to be done, but about half way I saw one of my friends, and a little competitive streak came out as I wanted to beat her :). I was so glad when I hit the last buoy and was able to walk to the shore. After all the waves there was definitely a little staggering involved.

I feel like I swallowed a bunch of salt and a little part of me wanted to vomit. But instead I took a shower and swished some water in my mouth. After I got changed I saw there was a snack table that had some coffee, bananas, and other treats. I had a little coffee just to get the salt out of my mouth and a banana and felt a lot better. 

We went to shy bird for brunch, but when I got the menu there was no avocado toast! It was tragic. We had the nicest waiter and I explained how the thought of avocado toast sustained me through the swim. I realized that they did have a traditional breakfast with toast, eggs, bacon and potatoes, so I just subbed avocado for the bacon and put together a thing ad hoc. And it was delicious! Now I'm home on the couch, the weather is heating up, and I have no intention of going anywhere else today. It wasn't really that fun when I was swimming, but the brunch and couch time do make up for it.

Hours later: Just saw the results posted and I was #6 of 10 in my division. I'm pretty OK with that.

Smarts Mountain Redux

Today was supposed to be a beautiful day, and then there is a heat wave coming, so I decided it was perfect for a hike. I thought about a bunch of different mountains, but in the end settled on Smarts because of my incomplete hike last fall - I really wanted to get back to it, and climb the mountain. Because it's the summer solstice today I knew I had a ton of time for the hike, and so I woke up at 7, drank my coffee, thought about if I really wanted to go, and decided that yes, I did. I had to pack all my stuff, but was out the door before 8. It's a 2 hour and 20 minute drive up there which actually wasn't that bad today, except there were a ton of motorcycles, some of them going really fast, must have been about 100, and without a helmet. It was so stressful with them riding around me. 

I got to the mountain around 11, put on some sunscreen, and headed out. I sort of remembered the start of the hike from fall, though it looked different with leaves on the trees instead of the trail. It's pretty steep at the start, 879 feet elevation gain in the first mile, which was a little brutal. I saw the place that I stopped the last time, which was most of the way up the first hard pitch. There was a little more of a climb after, but then there was a ridgeline which of course I enjoyed. The trail goes over some little peak and then it goes down again, so there's actually a lot of downhill on the uphill - stressful for the way back, except this was a loop hike. There was about a mile and a half that was pretty flat and not too strenuous. Then the last half mile or so things got real and it was pretty uphill for the last bit. 

I was expecting it to be much cooler today today, but it was actually pretty muggy and warm. There was definitely a lot of suffering. I got to the top and could tell I was running low on water. So, I went to the hiker campsite to see if there was any there (spoiler alert, there wasn't). Shortly after that I reached the top. This hike is on the 52 with a view list, but it turns out that the view is from the top of this somewhat sketchy tower with a heavy door in the platform floor that does not prop open. I started up the tower for the view, got sketched out half way up, and went back down. At the bottom I went to a little cabin that was up there, and a guy there told me there was a spring close by - of course it was down hill. Sigh. But I went and filled my smart water bottle to filter and then went back to the tower, determined to climb it, which I did. I did leave my hiking poles at the bottom and held both rails as I went up. There was a guy up top who opened the heavy door for me, which I was really grateful for. I walked around up top holding onto the sides like the chicken that I am, but I did stay up there for like a full 5 minutes - the tower is covered and it was actually pretty warm. 

I came down and there wasn't anywhere with a view to sit and eat, which was a bummer because it's supposed to be one of the 52 with a view! Also, I bought an egg salad sandwich on the drive up, but with the heat I wasn't sure that it would be such a good idea to eat it  - I was starving so I had about a quarter of it, but then I was just too nervous about salmonella, and didn't finish it. Fortunately I had a nut bar with dark chocolate, so I ate that and filtered some water. But, it was so buggy by this time that I didn't stay for long. 

The hike up actually wasn't too buggy - I guess because there wasn't much water, it was a little more open, and there was a little breeze. But, the way down was just swarming with bugs. The big descent is at the start, and then it gets more gradual and eventually pretty flat. There was a really pretty brook that I crossed several times, so I would have been fine waiting to get water, but you never know, and it's good to get some when you can. Anyhow, I was hot, covered in bugs and my feet hurt, so I booked it down as fast as I could. Some of the rocks were covered in moss and at one point my feet slipped out from under me and I fell on my hip and arm (good news, I was completely fine, just covered in muck. I haven't hit the age where falling is a thing). 

The last mile or so was just miserable, and I was so happy when I saw the parking lot. I got into my car as fast as possible, took off my boots and grabbed some water I had left in the car - it was so hot, I bet I could have made tea with it, and I spilled it all over the place. I was so glad to turn on the AC and head out. I stopped on the way back and got a gatoraid and some raspberry sorbet before heading home. I'm glad I finished the mountain, but I think it's a one and done. Also, reminder to myself for next year, June is buggy and not the best time for hiking!

Charles River Swim #3

Yesterday was my third time swimming the Charles, sadly it didn't go as I hoped. I blue biked there again, which is definitely the way to go - I took an ebike because it was 6:45 in the morning and I was already running a little late. But, I got there in plenty of time to check in and get my tshirt (black this year, boo, but I still got one because I guess I can own one black tshirt, and it is super cute). I met up with the merfolk + group, which was 6 of us, all gals. I even saw one of my students there!

The weather wasn't great and I think there were a lot of people from the "orange cap" group (the group that goes second) who didn't show up. The "yellow caps" are the faster, more competitive group, and there was a huge lineup of them - our group was much shorter. I got in the water early with my group and wound up treading water for a bit, but I was like "I belong here as much as anyone else, and I'm not going to wait until everyone leaves to get away from the hunger game scrum at the beginning." And I didn't. There was one woman who was smushed up against me at first, and I just kept swimming until eventually we parted. I got a tiny bit off track on the way to the first bouy, but nothing serious, and I was doing really well for me, going at a 2'43" per 100 yard ish pace until the turn around. Unfortunately my goggles were really uncomfortable and I knew if I messed with them I would regret it, but at the bouy I couldn't help myself and I tried to fix them. That was where things went bad. I could not get them on right for the way back and had to keep stopping so that my pace slowed down to as slow as a 3'29" per 100 yard pace at my slowest. At one point my goggles were on so tight I could feel them sucking my eyeball! My eyes were red and puffy for the rest of the day, and today I have a bruise around my right eye.

In the end I didn't pick up my time ticket because I think I was second to last again, around 53 minutes, which means the goggles costed me about 5 minutes. I was doing OK swimming wise, and a few times I actually picked up in speed on the way back, when the goggles were leaking a bit, but I kept my eyes closed. Anyhow, I have thrown away the goggles, and will be using a different pair in the future.

After the swim we went for brunch and I had the most delicious and pretty avocado toast. Then we went to the pride parade (aka no kings, yaas queens), which was super fun! It lasted about 2.5 hours, which I think is the longest parade I've ever been to. Four of the swim crew stayed for the first hour, and then after they left another friend came and met me there. When the parade finished we walked up to the common and then to the over 21 party, which we thought was a no kings thing, but when we got there was clearly a pride thing, because there was pole dancing and dudes wearing almost nothing twirking.  I had a delicious mozzarella pesto crepe and then we headed out. 

Walking to the blue bikes I was reminded of haymarket and the Saturday sale there. Sadly I had no cash, so I couldn't buy anything, but that might be a thing to do on a Saturday morning. It's so easy to bike there now. Anyhow, I was pooped by that time so I got an ebike for the ride home as well and enjoyed a quick ride back before sitting on my couch for pretty much the rest of the day.

Will I do the swim again? Probably, just for the redemption. But with different goggles for sure.