Wednesday, March 20, 2024

Mid-March 2024 update

Hope everyone is having a fun winter!

Pippin and I have had a lot of adventures in the month since the last update.

***

In mid-February, in between snowstorms, Pippin and I had a long day in the mountains.

It was a clear and nice day, and we made it up past our usual overlook.



Way up on trail 667, the snow began to get very deep, and we were following the trail gully that was trekked in by others, but it eventually became too time-consuming and we had to turn around.


We still made 10.3 miles and almost 4200 feet of climbing on this nice day!

***

One evening in February, we went to Cripple Creek to see the lighted ice sculptures.


Another evening, we had a family walk in Larkspur along the railroad tracks, and the train conductor waved to us as we watched the sun disappear behind the Rampart Range.


And we attended the Carnivale Parade in Manitou!


***

One day, I didn't have Pippin with me and I decided to run an out-and-back on Rampart Range Road.


It was then that I discovered that it was far harder to run without a dog! I've had Pippin on every run this year prior to this.

The muscles and balance involved in canicross are slightly, yet in a significant way, different. Pippin is so strong and such a good teammate that he contributes more working force to our combined effort. Maybe I'll have to look for some canicross races so I can bring him along!

***

A few days later, we took a day trip to Denver with the family, visiting the Denver Zoo and the Rocky Mountain Arsenal Wildlife Refuge.


This little prairie dog was a curious fellow!


***

After another round of snow fell on the mountains, I took Pippin to our usual snow run in Bear Creek Canyon.

I love snow days in the canyon, and this was another picturesque foggy day.




We wound our way up through the foggy hills towards our overlook.


Above the junction of 776 and 667, the snow was completely untouched!

Pippin was pretty great at breaking trail for me.


We made it to our overlook, and climbed up and down the rock outcropping in the deep snow.




On our way back down High Drive, I met some folks who I'd passed earlier on the uphill. Jeff was kind enough to snap a photo of me and Pippin cruising on the downhill!


Pippin is determined and stoic; meanwhile I'm a goofy looking human! But I'm so thankful to have this photo of me and my adventure buddy on this snowpacked day.

***

Our next run, quite the opposite of our snow day, was filled with blue skies and dry trails.

I took Pippin for the Section 16 loop from 26th Street.





Pippin was enthusiastic as ever, zooming on the beautiful trail as we completed this classic trail loop with a lot of newer singletrack at the beginning, getting 9 miles for the day.

***

Before the biggest snowstorm of the season, Pippin and I topped out on a small hill in Palmer Park and watched the calm sunset (upper left in the photo collage.)

Then it snowed and snowed for several days. When the clouds finally parted, Pippin and I returned to Palmer Park to a very different magical landscape.


The clouds rolling off of Cheyenne Mountain were just the tail end of the cold front, ushering in warm days to the Front Range once again.


And now it's officially spring in Colorado, so the erratic weather will probably continue! But that's the beauty of spring in the Rockies - blue sky days followed by big waves of the white stuff.

***

Saturday, February 24, 2024

First half of Feb 2024 - snowpacked runs and tons of elevation gain!

Whew, what a great start to the month!

I have been pretty active this first half of the month, and I feel good about my training.

Despite an everlasting lack of speedwork, I've done a LOT of uphill running and elevation gain.

And it's been a very picturesque few weeks.

***

A nice snow run in Palmer to start the month, watching small cold fronts roll in over the mountains.



***

A few days later, we went to Rampart Range Road and did the Gate to Gate twice (plus a little extra at the top).

The Gate to Gate involves going from the winter closure gate at Balanced Rock (at the base of the road) up to the National Forest Gate. This upper gate marks the end of private property, about 3 miles up.


The first time up, there was a huge cloudburst above Pikes Peak. It was incredible.

Then, the clouds began to come in and a light snow fell on us, but quickly cleared again.


We got a solid 12 miles, and 2300 ft elevation gain this day.

***

Pippin got so dirty with red mud on our Rampart outing, that I decided our next run had to be a (clean) snow run.

This day was the most beautiful of all our runs this in this half of the month.

It was a day where the snow clouds kept rolling in over the mountains, then disappating into sunlight over the city.


Pippin found the deep snow again, and dove right in.

I really loved the way the clouds played with the lighting.

Big puffy flakes filled the skies, while sunlight simultaneously filtered through broken clouds.





We wound our way up through Bear Creek Canyon, connecting to the Captain Jack's 667 trail.

We made it to the overlook.


I just loved the way the clouds rolled thick off the mountains behind, but couldn't hold their steam. They parted to reveal Colorado blue skies above.


And the city, far below, was mostly sunny.


To the west, each new cloud brought a fresh layer of soft powder, before meeting the same fate: vanishing away.


As we descended from the overlook down Mt. Buckhorn trail, a foggy cloud settled in over Sentinal Rock.


What a stunning day, netting us over 8 miles, and another 2300+ ft of climbing.

***

Our next run was a very cold one in Palmer Park, 10k.


***

The next day, I wanted to play in some of the fresh powder that had fallen, so we headed to the South Blodgett Open Space, and ran up the open mesa into the National Forest.


The trail continues up the open hillside until it dips into a steep drainage. We crossed the small rock bridge over the stream, and at this point the real climb began.

The trail in the forest was extremely deep in snow, and VERY steep. I always forget how steep this particular trail is, and it's especially challenging in winter.



Pippin was an absolute workhorse in the deep snow. He pulled me up, up, through the canyon. I kept thinking how much I was going to regret this on the downhill!! 😂 But I was enjoying the climb too much to stop, and Pippin was absolutely in sync with me.

We finally topped out on a small overlook.



We enjoyed the sunlight for a few minutes, but soon it was time to head down the mountain.

I pretty much dreaded the downhill, and it was about as bad as I'd imagined, which was fairly unpleasant.

But after slip-sliding all the way down the steep National Forest trail (even with spikes!), we finally came back to out to the top of the long hillside that returns to the city open space.


We looked back at the mountain ridges from where we'd just come as the cold, clear winter sunset settled over the land.



We added 5.6 miles and over 2400 feet of climbing to the books in today's steep, snowy mountain run.

***

What a great start to the month, with a fulfilling amount of front range winter adventures. What a classic February feeling!

Wednesday, January 31, 2024

January 2024 update

I've been able to take Pippin out on every run I've done since the start of the year!

This year was off to a chilly start, with a major cold front overtaking the front range in the second week of the year.

I've done a little bit of rowing and strength exercises to supplement my runs, but I've also been able to get out there pretty often despite the cold.

Most of my runs this month have been fairly short, but I was able to take Pippin on two longer adventures near the end of the month.

***

The month started off cool and slate grey for us in Palmer Park.


We often ran in the afternoons or evenings.

There were a few warmer days despite the cold fronts.

These warmer days often brought wind and interesting clouds.



Windy days had clear views from the top of Palmer Park, even down to the Spanish Peaks.


One day, we watched the biggest cold front come in from over the mountains, and made it home just as snow began lightly falling.


There were chilly evenings with city lights in the distance.


And nice crisp afternoons.


***

I took a few days off from running near the end of the month, but I did go for an afternoon walk with my family at the Paint Mines.

We circled the sandstone formations route, and then watched the moon rise over the windmills on our way back.




***

While most of my runs this month were in Palmer Park, Pippin and I made our first "field trip" near the end of the month to journey on Rampart Range Road!

We began from Balanced Rock, winding uphill with views to the east of Garden of the Gods.


The clouds danced on the mountaintops as we ascended the road.


An incoming cold front created a cloudburst above Queen's Canyon.


We made it an overlook near the upper water tank, which is near the old Waldo Canyon trail connection.

Pippin paused for his portrait.


The incoming cold front would bring snow in the evening, but while we sat at the overlook, it was non-threatening. 

I took a few minutes to soak in the views before letting Pippin lead me back downhill. We had a blast on the down, with Pippin occasionally going so fast that I felt like he lifted me off the ground! It was exhilarating!

The cold front that evening brought some decent snow to the mountains.

***

A couple days later, Pippin and I returned to the Palmer Park overlook and surveyed where we'd been.


I looked out on the snowy mountains and decided I'd have to take Pippin there soon.

***

The following day, the weather had warmed into the 50s in town. But I knew the recent snowfall had dumped quite a bit on the local mountains and foothills, so I grabbed my snow spikes and headed for Bear Creek Canyon.

Pippin was immediately enthusiastic, leading me energetically uphill from the base of High Drive.



He found the really deep snow and stuck his head in!


There were a couple switchbacks on the trail where the snow was very steep and deep.

Pippin was a far better navigational aid than hiking poles. In addition to being attached at the waist, I held the leash with my arm against the slope, so if I slipped, I could use it him to stabilize.

I've never gone uphill through deep snow quite as quickly! What a helpful adventurer!

We soon made it up to a prominent rock outcropping and overlook.


Pippin looked out over the town.


And the view to the south, into the main part of Cheyenne Cañon, was stunning!


We hung out for a bit before descending from our perch.


We dropped down into N. Cheyenne Cañon on the 776 trail connection. Pippin really got a flow going on this section! I'm glad I had my snow spikes.

We made it down to Gold Camp Road, and ran down the road for the rest of the way. We caught the sun receeding as we made our way down.


What an adventurous day! One of the best excursions we've had together.

***

We ended the month with one more short run day at Palmer Park.


In general, I haven't had a very structured start to the year. I've kind of gone with the flow, taking it relatively easy (no speedwork yet.)

Going into February, I would like to get back to a few speedwork sessions, maybe at least two in the upcoming month. And maybe a few more bodyweight exercise days to keep me limber and to encourage all-around fitness. Specifically pull-ups, which I've been lacking in!

I also hope I can get out to some group runs soon. Although Pippin is a great running buddy, I like running with other humans sometimes too! 😂