Presidential Traverse - Day 1

I completed my 4 day-3 night hut-to-hut Presidential Traverse yesterday! 22 miles, 7-4000 footers, about 10 blisters on my feet, an amazing and exhausting journey. One that I am very impressed with myself for doing, and plan to never do again :)

I stayed Sunday night at the Highland Center which is an AMC hostel. I didn't want to have to wake up at 5:30 am to catch the 9 am hiker's shuttle to the start of my hike. Really glad I did that, it made it so much easier on the first day and it was a super cute place. They have shared rooms, but I was really lucky to be paired with a super chill woman who was exhausted from her hike and was out like a light. Monday morning I caught the AMC hiker's shuttle from the Highland Center to the trailhead for Madison Spring hut. I decided to do my best to make things easy on myself, so I hiked the "easiest" hike up, the Valley Way (3.8 miles, 3550 feet elevation gain). It was a tough one! 

The weather was pretty bad on the first day, the mountains were covered in clouds and it was windy. Below the treelike it wasn't too bad, but it was still wet on all the rocks, so I didn't really want to sit and rest. There were three other "groups" on the shuttle with me - this one guy from Europe who was planning to trail run all the way back to the Highland Center that day, three girls who had tents and were doing a two day traverse, and an older couple from Kalamazoo Michigan who were doing the same hike as me. Trail culture is so interesting! The guy was off once we got there, never to be seen again. The girls and I were passing each other off and on during the day. And the couple from Kzoo and I got to know each other some during the few days.

I started out feeling pretty good, breathing hard but moving steady. As I got closer to tree line I got more and more tired. I stopped to have something to eat, but was still moving pretty slow. After a while, I was just talking myself into moving to the next blaze and then the next, etc. Once I got above tree line the wind really picked up. There's a sign as you get to tree line that says something about how unpredictable the weather is, how people have died as a result of bad weather, and how you should turn around now if weather doesn't look good. I was like "it doesn't look good, but I'm still going to the hut." I later heard it was 78 mph gusts at Mt. Washington (hurricane force is 74 mph). I don't think it was quite that strong where I was, but it was pretty powerful. Visibility was also awful, due to the cloud cover - I was so glad when I got to the hut!

Inside there were a bunch of people, fresh baked bread, hot chocolate, and no wind!  I chose a bunk that seemed nice, which I later changed when I realized that the window didn't close all the way and it would be freezing. 

After resting for a while, I tried to summit Madison, which proved to be a crazy idea!  From Madison Springs Hut to the summit of Madison is .5 mile and 550 feet of elevation gain. A lot of the summit is a pile of rocks dumped by a glacier. The trail is marked well with huge cairns, so I decided I would try it, and see how it went. I decided if I couldn't see 2 cairns back I would turn back (it was so foggy).  I think I made it about half way up. The wind was so bad that a couple times it almost knocked me over.  I can't imagine what it was like on top, I thought I would have to crawl if I wanted to get up there.  I've never turned around on a hike due to weather, but it was clearly the smart thing to do. I spent the rest of the day hanging in the hut, reading, eating a delicious dinner prepared by the Hut Croo, and then going to bed at like 8:30.

Huts are an interesting place - it was really expensive to stay there - like $110 per night. So, I guess that limits who's going to be there. At Madison there was a group of boy scouts and their dads. At first I was nervous that they would be really loud and bratty, but they were actually really good. I accidentally sat at a dinner table with all the dads (and a couple moms) for dinner, and they were pretty funny. At the end of dinner this one family came in - they had hiked over from Lake of the Clouds with mom, dad, and a girl who looked like she was like 8 in the wind. Really impressive!  Mom said it took them 11 hours.

Anyhow, even though it's August and I felt funny packing my ninja hoody, patagonia long underwear, down puff, wool hat and gloves, I was so glad I had them that night! Because, I wore all of that, plus my two shirts, a pair of Athleta pants, wool socks, buff around my neck. I slept in my sleeping bag liner and had three wool blankets on top of me. And it still took about a half hour to get warm in bed! It was cold. Once I fell asleep, I slept like a log until they woke us up at 6:30 with guitar music and singing for breakfast.

Ran two miles!

I have to put it out there that I ran two miles, because I really wanted to stop and walk for a bit, but I kept reminding myself how happy I would be when I finished, and could blog about how I ran two miles!  And, I am pretty psyched about it right now. It was hard.

This week I have my very first classic migraine aura. Not an exciting first. I was at work chatting with my boss and it suddenly felt like someone was squeezing my head like a tube of toothpaste. My ear got all fuzzy and everything felt weird. When the squeezing stopped, there were all these zig zag neon lights, it was a little like looking through a kaleidoscope. I thought it was probably a migraine, or maybe a stroke, so I was trying to act like nothing was happening, and at the same time not freak out. I called my doctor and set up an appointment and snuck out of work a couple hours early while my boss was in a staff meeting. She didn't say anything about it, so hopefully she didn't notice.

My doctor wasn't there, so I saw one of her colleagues who is on the admissions committee at Harvard (along with 160 other people!) He said that they don't care about MCAT scores, though I don't totally believe that one - he doesn't look at them, but I bet someone does. Anyhow, he practically clapped his hands in delight at my aura and how classic it was. Somehow that was actually reassuring because I don't think he would have done that if I was having a stroke. Anyhow, he had someone give me a shot of toroidal (which hurt more then the headache - it wasn't actually that bad a migraine) and I came home. The next day I felt like I had been hit by a truck, and then yesterday I wasn't feeling so great either; which is to say I only did crossfit once this week. But I think it's justified.

WOD:
800 meter run
20 back squats (I lifted 55 pounds)
20 pull ups (I didn't them without bands, and didn't get all the way up)
800 meter run
15 back squats
15 pull ups
800 meter run
10 back squats
10 pull ups
my time 26 min exactly!

We ran 800 meters in the warm up, which is what brought the running to two miles. My first 800 meters took about 4:45, which is a 9:30 min mile! The second one was about 5:15 I think. And the third one I had given up counting.

This coming week I'm on vacation and I'm going to do a hut-to-hut presi traverse!  I'm pretty excited. I'm headed up to NH tomorrow, staying at one of the lodges, so I can take the 9 am hikers shuttle to Falling Waters trail, and hike up to Madison. I'm staying at Madison Spring hut the first night, Lake of the Clouds the second night, and Mitzpah the third. From Mitzpah it's a short walk back to the lodge and my car. Total distance of the hike is 22 ish miles, with 7 4000 footers! (If you are thinking this is a good time to rob the house, don't. Really, there's nothing to take of value except two punk cats.)

Endurance

Today's WOD was listed as "endurance" on the calendar. It kicked my butt!
WOD: 3 rounds
20 power cleans (I lifted 55 pounds)
20 toes to bar (I didn't even bother kicking my feet up)
30 burpees (yuck)
30 kettlebell swings (I used the second smallest the first round, then the smallest)
60 double unders (I did singles)
2 minute rest

I felt pretty good about lifting 55 pounds, but I gotta say that it may have hurt me in the rest of the WOD. My toes to bar were pretty awful, and I didn't bother going all the way down on my burpees for the second round. By the end I wanted to throw up, so I guess I tested my endurance.

It's summer olympic time. Wow, those athletes are amazing. I was watching the men run the 400 meter - it takes them less than 50 seconds!  I think it takes me twice that long. They just had women's steeple chase - it's like hurdles, but the hurdles don't fall down if you make it over. In steeple chase the hurdles don't move so you fall over. And, one of them has a big puddle after it, so their shoes get wet! I can't wait to see weight lifting, and what they lift.

shopping

Didn't get to hike last weekend again! It was rainy and there were thunderstorms predicted in NH. Not fun hiking weather. Instead of climbing a 4000 footer I sat on my butt on the couch all day and did nothing. Not totally nothing - I finished my final project for class pretty much, and did laundry, caught Pokemon... It's such a relief to have the class pretty much done, and the next one doesn't start until Sept 6! I was hoping to hike this weekend, but it's supposed to rain again :(  I'm on staycation after that, so I will def get some hiking in then. Maybe the Owl, since I'm so obsessed with it.

I went to Crossfit today - it was so humid in the box that we were all sweating like pigs before the warmup! Daniella taught, which meant a killer warm up, too. We did tabata jump rope and abs. Ouch. Then we did front squats. I got up to 85 pounds! So - we started at 65 pounds, and then everyone did 85 for the second set of three lifts. And then I just stayed there for the rest of the lifting. So, I front squatted 85 pounds 12 times, but probably 9 good ones. Not bad for me!

WOD: AMRAP 14 minutes

15 toes to bar

20 wall balls

60 double unders (I did singles)

I either did 3 or 4 rounds, and I totally forgot which. I think it was 4, but I could be wrong.

I took my mom shopping on Sunday. It actually wasn't that bad. She got new shoes at New Balance Outlet - this really sweet kid helped her find what she wanted. It's one of those stores where you just find it yourself and try it on, but he found the shoes for her, told her all about them, and helped her put them on and off. He had all these big tattoos and looked all tough, but looks are deceiving. My mom got a pair of pinkish shoes, and she bought me these retro blue ones that you can't use for running but are super cute! And, she got me some shorts and a tank, and some socks. Ironic that now that I can finally buy my own she decided she will treat.

Dean sweat

Today's WOD wasn't too bad, lots of rowing, but I like rowing. At least, in theory. We started with back squats and I got up to 90 pounds 3 times. I thought I could do more, but then I remembered that we had 50 thrusters in the WOD, and decided to stick to 90 pounds. I think that could be a new record for me, though I would have to check.

WOD:
1000 meter row
25 thrusters (I lifted 35 pounds)
50 kettle bell swings (I used the smallest one)
25 thrusters
1000 meter row
my time: 18:35

By the last of the thrusters I was really struggling. I started the first round of thrusters by doing 10, then 8 then 7. On the second round I did 5 sets of 5.

My dean friend was there. It is a little hard to feel like someone is totally deanly when they are wearing hokey striped shorts and US flag socks. We high fived at the end of the WOD and I got some dean sweat on me. He should totally accept my students now, right?

I'm thinking that I may do a hike this Saturday - it's looking like a nice day, and it's been a while. I'm thinking about Cannon Mtn. It's supposed to have an amazing view. Of course, it also has a tram, so it will be full of people in flip flops and high heals...

The final project is progressing. Once this is done I will only have two more discussion board postings and the class will be finished. And then, no more summer classes. Ever. They suck!

I'm back!!

I was having this awful neck pain, every day I was waking up with a headache. And my neck didn't turn as well as it used to. I decided I didn't want a repeat of the tendon thing, where it never really healed right, so I took a couple weeks off crossfit. I also got a massage and did this neck yoga. So, that's my excuse for no crossfit. It was super hot out on my birthday, like 95! So, I decided it wasn't a long hike day. My plan was to go on Sunday instead, but then I wound up walking around the city with a friend, playing Pokemon Go. A little lame in some ways, but on the other hand we did walk over 8 miles according to my fitbit, and it was pretty fun!  At one point we were walking through the Boston Common and there were so many people outside playing that I heard a dad say to his daughter "you really have to watch where you are going because everyone is playing Pokemon, and they aren't paying attention." We played until our phone batteries died!

The next day I went on a Pokemon Go walk, and then wound up sitting below this hot spot. There were two guys there initially, then this other guy came by - all like 20 somethings. Ya, and me. So, the last guy to arrive sits next to me, and we are just chatting about Pokemon. Next thing I know, he's flirting with me! I mean, he could have been my child!! You catch Pokemon in balls, and that was a whole conversation. And then he was like "I like wine. Do you like wine? I have some wine at home..." and he invited me to his place! I declined because, well, I'm not a pedophile. Still, it was a nice ego boost. And a good idea for meeting boys. Except that not as many people are playing any more, including me.

This past weekend my friend from Mexico and her daughter were here. We were total tourists for the day on Monday - we did a duck boat ride, walked around on Newbury Street, and ate lobster at the barking crab. It was so fun!  They also went to the new Harry Potter book release party in Harvard Square (Hogwarts Square for the evening). I had a bachelorette party to go to so I couldn't go - I'm too old for bachelorette parties, but my friend invited me and I wanted her to feel the love, so I went. Now, though, back to reality....

It was a tough WOD for the first day back - a benchmark one named Kelly. I had to scale seriously. I thought that my legs were going stop working.
Kelly: 5 rounds (I only did 4)
400 meter run
30 box jumps (I did 20 box steps)
30 wall balls (I did 20)
My time: 23 min, 23 sec

My dean friend was there, so I really wanted to be impressive, but I wasn't. I didn't want to be impressive so badly that I was ready to hurt myself again. That would suck!

I'm midway through a big paper for this class I'm taking. It's a summer class, so it's shorter than the regular classes. They are usually 12 weeks, but this one is only 8. And the big project is due after week 6. It's a bummer now, but when I have a full month off I'm going to dig it, so I don't mind too much.

Summer in the City

I wound up doing crossfit only once last week. On the other hand, I went climbing three times. My plan was to go to crossfit after climbing on Saturday, but it was 92 degrees and humid out, and the WOD had over a mile of running, and was a partner workout. I just couldn't bring myself to do it! I bet it was like 100 degrees in the box. Today, I didn't want to go, but I had no excuse. It's only in the mid-80's. And, I want to do a long hike next weekend, so I have to get my crossfits done.

We started with push jerks. I was able to get a little higher than push presses - 75 pounds 4 times. But then that was way too much and I bobbled. I went back down to 70 pounds for the last set.

WOD: score = total moves + calories on bike
3 minutes: sit ups
2 minutes: goblet lunges (I used the smallest kettle bell)
1 minute: assault bike
1 minute rest
3 minutes: goblet lunges
2 minutes: assault bike
1 minute: sit ups
1 minute rest
3 minutes: assault bike
2 minutes: sit ups
1 minute: goblet lunges
my score: 275

The goblet lunges are what killed me. My legs felt like jello by the end. For some reason I have this image of Harry Potter in my head for goblet lunges - maybe it's because of The Goblet of Fire? Legs are on fire doing the lunges. I hate them!

Saturday is my birthday! I will be entering into my 50th year. Wow. I'm planning Owl's Head. Given my obsession with it, and uncertainty that I can actually do it, it seems like a good challenge to myself. I'm suspicious that I will question my judgement at least once on the hike. Of course, if it's 95 degrees, I'm going to revise.