Daily Exercise Log: Saturday, May 29, 2021

I've decided I would like to keep track of my "normal" exercise days in a more dedicated way.

I do keep a paper running log, as I've mentioned previously, but it has limited space to record information. Sometimes you need a little bit larger forum in order to detail how you're feeling, energy levels, nagging aches and pains, etc. This way you can get ahead of injuries and avoid burnout.

I already use this blog to detail large adventures, but I plan to post more regularly about "normal" runs.

Today's run was 8.2 miles on the Rock Island Trail, east to Powers and back.

I'm still in recovery from my long effort on Monday, so I took it easy on my jog today.

I got a pre-dawn start at about 4:30 am, as astronomical twilight just came to an end and nautical twilight began. I love how early the sun comes up in the spring - astronomical twilight began at 3:43 am, so it was already getting light from way before I even started. With it being Memorial Day weekend, and Saturday, virtually no one was out - I had the trail all to myself in the holiday weekend quiet.

The air was cool and refreshing. Wearing a mask all the time was comfortable, even though no one was around. It kept the cold wind off my face, even as I wore shorts. Spring weather is the perfect time for shorts with long sleeve shirts and beanies - my favorite comfy run combo.

I noticed how absolutely green the Rock Island Trail is, showing how much water we've gotten in recent weeks. It is a relief to see Colorado so green, and I hope it will keep fire season at bay.

I noticed that they have now put signage up for the open valley off of the trail between Murray and Powers. This might be a city open space, but I don't know if it has a name. I'm glad they've begun adding more signage for trails throughout the city.

 Crest Trail to the left (runs on top of the old rail bed at the top of the hill), Crimson Trail to the right (runs along the valley below).

The wildflowers alongside the Rock Island Trail are pretty too!

I ran out to Powers, and turned around and came back. The way back felt stronger, I believe it is slightly downhill as you go west. All in all, a great way to start Memorial Day Weekend!!

I might decide to do a little bit of gym work later. Energy levels are decent today. 

Exploring the Vastness of the Deep Rampart Range

This past Monday was my first planned long adventure run of the year! Winter has been long; I can't believe it is almost June and this was just my first time to run in the true mountains since October. 

Spring has sprung in the Rockies!

I had a general idea of where I wanted to go and what I was looking for out of this run, but I set out with an open mind and anticipation of a little bit of unplanned exploring as well. What I ended up doing was a roughly 24 mile trail loop within the heart of the vast, deep Rampart Range. 

I started out from the south end of Greenland Open Space, using the New Santa Fe connector trail to pass through Palmer Lake, and connect to the Palmer Reservoir Trail.

The sun was just rising over Greenland Open Space as I started. The town of Palmer Lake lay ahead, and the mountains that I was heading towards. 

I entered the Palmer Reservoir Trail from the pedestrian-only gate, and began a gentle, smooth climb on a wide, gradual trail. This part of the trail reminded me of the beginning of the Cog tracks - the trail is actually fairly steep, but due to its even surface and wide appearance, it is relatively quick to ascend to the first reservoir.

The pedestrian gate and entrance to Palmer Reservoir Trail. 

Right after the first reservoir, after only about a mile from the pedestrian gate, I made the hairpin turn onto the Ice Cave Creek Trail. This trail was super fun!!

Palmer Reservoir #1

The Palmer Reservoir Trail is down on the left. When headed uphill, it's easy to miss the hairpin turn for the Ice Cave Creek Trail. 

The Ice Cave Creek Trail impressed me right from the start. Whoever established this trail did a great job. After a short but fairly steep segment that only lasts a tenth of a mile or so, the trail becomes very flat and feels almost slightly down hill. And in this part, the cool breeze blowing felt amazing! The temperature difference was stunning. It reminded me of Refrigerator Gultch in the Lost Creek Wilderness, which I ran through couple of summers back. It was cool and shady and had awesome stacked rocks (which would become a theme for the day.)

Creek crossing and stacked rocks on the Ice Cave Creek Trail.

Soon after a small creek crossing, I joined the Swank Trail, which immediately became a fairly steep single-track climb for the next mile. Important - if you are trying to stay on the Swank Trail, keep left at the Y-split with the Sundance Mountain Trail.

Keep left to stay on the Swank Trail; the right fork goes up Sundance Mountain Trail.

After approximately a mile of climbing, I came to another junction. I wasn't quite sure which way to turn at this point, so I decided to turn west and continue going uphill. This ended up being a great decision! I was on the Ice Cave Cliffs trail.

The trail became even steeper, about a class 2 climb. The views began to open up immediately. And the forest was decorated with these interesting flowers - purple and hairy on the outside of the petals, they opened up to be white flowers with yellow centers. If anyone has any information about what kind of wildflower this is, I'd be interested to know.

Interesting wildflowers, rocks, and open views at the beginning of the Ice Cave Cliffs Trail.

The Ice Cave Cliffs Trail was a short but steep segment that led up to a large rock formation. I climbed a small flat rock on the south side of the formation and found a jar with a hiker's logbook... and the view was STUNNING! 😍 

I sat atop the rock, in the bright Colorado sunlit day, and took in the vastness of the forest around me. Here I was, maybe four miles away from town, but deep in the heart of the Rampart Range. Stacked rock formations created small spiked summits all around me. I felt at peace in the wilderness. This is exactly what I was looking for!

Ice Cave Cliffs overlook panorama. 

Beyond the neat rock towers, I could see the aspen-filled valley on the back side of Mount Herman, where I had run through on my adventure last October, and on several previous runs as well. 

Even further beyond that, I had a picturesque panorama of Pikes Peak and Almagre, both still snow-capped.

Sights from the Ice Cave Cliffs Trail: twisted logs, bright green moss, and soaring overlooks.

Rock formations at Ice Cave Cliffs overlook.

Summit log in a jar, with the Mt. Herman aspen valley beyond (upper right hand corner).

Sharp rocks with Pikes Peak in the background. 

When I'd had my fill of views, I retreated back down the half-mile trail from the overlook and rejoined the Swank Trail. The descent from the overlook was steep in a couple of segments, reminding me of clambering around on Blodgett Peak. However, the steep parts didn't last long and were quite manageable. 

When I returned to the junction with the Swank Trail, I turned north and continued my meandering adventure. At this point, the Swank Trail begins a long steady descent. It was one of many ups and downs that the day would bring.  Soon I'd reached the Sidney Harrison Connector Trail, and I turned west once again.

This next part of the trail reminded me of Elk Park Trail on Pikes Peak. There were pretty little meadows with soft single-track.

Soft sunlit meadows on the Sidney Harrison Connector Trail. 

Climbing towards the Sidney Harrison Trail.

The trail climbed gradually towards the Sidney Harrison Trail. Soon I'd reached the junction, and the Sidney Harrison plane crash appeared soon after. 

The somber sight of the plane crash.

Memorial sign for Captain Sidney Harrison.

Soon after seeing the plane crash site, the forest became deeper and darker. Dead trees with notably twisted trunks appeared with increasing frequency. It became apparent that this was an old, deep part of the forest. It felt a little mystical, like a connection to our past. This part of the forest felt untouched, like it had been allowed to grow wild for many centuries.

Aspens with eyes 👀 and candycane-striped dead tree trunks were the signature markings of this deep part of the forest.

Moss-covered rocks in the deep forest.

The Sidney Harrison Trail was about 3 miles long, until I connected with the forest road #324 in the Rampart Range. I was getting a bit tired by this point, and I was glad to be on a wide dirt road for a little while. The only downside was that it was an ATV/ 4-wheel drive road, and it undulated quite a bit. I was never certain whether I was going to be losing or gaining elevation.

Now that I was more than halfway through a large loop, I was confident in the remainder of my route for the day. I would continue on FR #324 until the junction with the Winding Stairs Trail, and use this to go back to Palmer Reservoir Trail.

However, I was worried that I would miss the connection for the Winding Stairs, so I turned around a couple times and backtracked on small segments to investigate if I'd missed the junction. In the end, my worrying was for naught (except for bonus mileage) because the junction was obviously marked by a sign that said "No Motor Vehicles."

A cool rock formation that looked like a marshmallow Peep along FR #324, and also the ONLY patch of snow that I saw all day!

The junction of FR #324 and Winding Stairs Trail, looking back at the road after just entering the trail.

The Winding Stairs Trail was exactly as named. It wound like a snake, gradually descending, but not without a fair number of short uphills thrown in for good measure.

At times, the trail was wide like a doubletrack dirt road. At other times, it was difficult to distinguish the trail from a steep downhill wash. I saw a few strange sights, like circular moss growths on a rock that looked like petroglyphs, and a dead tree trunk with spikes on the *inside.* I began to feel like maybe I'd been out in the woods a bit too long!

Strange sights on the Winding Stairs Trail: circular lichens or moss on a rock, and a tree trunk with weird spikes inside.

Finally, after a steep downhill that involved a little bit of pathfinding, a view of the upper Palmer Reservoir came through the trees. I rejoiced! Almost there!

Palmer Reservoir #2 through the trees.

I descended the final bit of the Winding Stairs Trail and came back to the Palmer Reservoir Trail. The easy, wide, smooth downhill felt like a relief after the steep descent I'd just completed. I even clocked my second-fastest mile of the day (after mile 1, which I started off fast 😅 from excitement.)

Palmer Reservoir was pretty in the afternoon sun.

Nearing Palmer Reservoir on the Winding Stairs Connector Trail.

Upper Palmer Reservoir. 

I descended the remainder of the Reservoir Trail and came back to town, passing by the outside of the tracks on the far side of Palmer Lake (and avoiding all pedestrians this way), rejoining the New Santa Fe connector back to Greenland Open Space. What a day!

New Santa Fe connector trail (top) and the south side of Greenland Open Space (bottom).

I took a peek back at the town of Palmer Lake and the mountains from where I'd just come, capping off my day just like I'd started it. 

From the early morning ascent into the deep wilderness, to the "naturally refrigerated" Ice Cave Creek Trail, to the sunlit wide views atop Ice Cave Cliffs overlook, to examining the site of the Sidney Harrison plane crash, to wandering through the untouched ancient forest - this was really an adventure to remember. It was food for my soul. If you've made it this far, thank you for reading and journeying along with me! ❤

View back at Palmer Lake from Greenland Open Space at the end of my day.

Now that it is almost summer, I can't wait for more adventures! See you all on the next one.

Mid-May 2021 Update

Lately, I've only been updating monthly at the end of each month. But this month is moving along swiftly and I felt that I had enough to share in order to justify a mid-month update!

I haven't looked at the books and calculated my mileage for the month this far yet, but I have a sense that I'm right on track for getting between 140-150 miles this month, so just on track (or a little bit ahead) for my 2021 goal of 1700 miles this year.

I have a positive feeling about this summer! The weather is warming up and the outdoors are calling me! As many of you know, my husband has been extra cautious during the pandemic, to the extent that he wouldn't allow me to run outdoors in the neighborhood or go on regular runs for the last year, meaning a lot of overall treadmill mileage for me.

I stuck it out, but I really don't enjoy treadmills, and it's been a little bit like a year in prison when I couldn't just lace up and go for a run whenever.

Finally, a couple mornings ago, he gave me the go-ahead for an early morning jog in the outdoors. I finally feel free! I've been missing regular running so much. Just the ability to leave out my door and connect to the many wonderful local trails gives me optimism. I'm fully vaccinated and I still wear a mask when I run (a gaitor), but I got tired of sitting inside and being jealous of people walking their dogs outside because I was not allowed to simply go out of my door.

That said, I'll still make an effort to go outside when fewer people are out, meaning early mornings or later evenings, and I'll still not be allowed to go on highly populated trail runs like Barr trail or the Incline. But just the ability to be able to run is amazing.

As one of my first outdoor local adventures, I did a big loop around Palmer Park. Coming in on Greencrest trail from the far southeastern corner of the park, I climbed the eastern bluffs as the sun began to rise.

Rock formations near the eastern side of the park at sunrise.

Rock formations and wildflowers at sunrise.

The wildflowers are blooming in the park, decorating the ground with small splashes of pastel colors.

I followed Greencrest trail all the way along the eastern edge of the park until I reached the northeastern corner by Lazyland.

There was a small layer of low-laying fog in the northeastern valley. It was fresh and wonderful, and I breathed deeply in the forest air. This is what I'd been missing for the last year when I stuck (mostly) to the treadmill!

Low-laying fog in the northeastern valley.

I then followed the Lazyland trail for a short time until the connection with the Yucca trail.

The sun was shining its early morning golden rays in the area near Lazyland.

Sunbeam in the morning at Lazyland.

Rock formations near Lazyland in the morning golden rays.

I ascended and topped out the northern mesa of Palmer Park. I then followed the winding Yucca trail all the way until its connection with Templeton trail on the WEST side of the park. (Yucca trail has several connections with Templeton trail throughout the park.)

The view east, near the top of the mesa (Yucca trail.)

The view west from Yucca trail near the northwestern side of the park. Views of Garden of the Gods in the lower right corner, and a thin strip of clouds across the southern part of the mountains. 

I descended the winding trail on the west side of the northern mesa, adjoining Templeton trail for a short while, until the intersection with the Palmer Point trail. Another short descent, and then I was running through the beautiful field on the western side of the park.

Palmer Point trail along the western side of the park.

A view back at Pikes Peak from the Palmer Point trail near the stables. 

I wrapped up my run by exiting the park by the Mark Reyner stables, with a peek back at the peak, now fully lit in the bright Colorado bluebird day.

Total mileage for the run was 11.4 miles, including some extra miles during the warm-up and cool-down mileage from my house.

I have missed the simple joy of fresh air and morning sunlight!! I can't wait to do more lovely runs like this soon.

And hopefully, a big marathon-length challenge for me coming up soon (still in planning stages at the moment.)

Can't wait to do (and share) more!  See you all on the next adventure. 

April 2021 Update

 Wow, April was actually a huge success! I ran 170 miles for the month. That's a huge improvement upon the first three months of the year, and it gives me a little bit of a jump start for the rest of the year.

I still did a bit of treadmill mileage, but my outdoor mileage is up. My husband is still too concerned with coronavirus to allow me to run on trails most of the time, despite being vaccinated and always wearing my mask!! The only exception is if we find a trail where no one is at the trailhead, which is rare.

But he has begun to allow me to run the very early shift around my local area before anyone is out and about. I try to wrap up my run before 5 am so I don't pass by anyone on the sidewalk.

But man, I'll take road and concrete at 3 am over the treadmill any day. And it has helped me increase my mileage to a level that I feel better about.

I *really* hope that this summer, my husband will feel that it is safe enough that I can go back out on the trails again (even if it's not the Incline.)

For now, I will keep chugging away on the sidewalks and staying consistent. Stay healthy, everyone!

February & March 2021 Update

Hello friends,

The last two months I've gotten outside for a couple runs. My treadmill mileage is still over 50% of my total mileage these last two months, but that's better than the 100% of total mileage in January. 

***

02/08/2021

I did a birthday run at Greenland Open Space!

I originally set out to do an out-and-back, but revisited my decision and ended up doing Kipps Loop. This little 8-mile loop was beautiful in the bright Colorado sun, despite biting cold wind and areas of deep snowdrifts that accumulated from a prior snowstorm. I finished up just before sundown. At a couple points my fingers began to freeze even with gloves on, but it was totally worthwhile.

***

02/19/2021

This time, we went to Spruce Meadows Open Space and brought the family. I did some sledding with the kids and then did a short 6-mile out-and-back run. I ran from the meadows to the junction with the mountaintop loop. I didn't have time to do the loop, so I turned around. I was sloshing through deep snow at points, but it was a warm day and that buoyed my spirits. It reminded me of all the warm days after snowstorms that I tackled Barr trail. I hope that I'll be able to go back on Barr someday soon (it's too popular for social distancing standards, so I haven't been there in over a year.)

When I returned from my run, I found that Alex and the kids had built a huge snowman ⛄ out in the field! (It was close enough to the train tracks that it could be seen from there.) Neat!

***

03/03/2021

I ran an 8-mile loop at Homestead Ranch near sunset. It was a lovely day, although my legs felt somewhat heavy and I felt like I just couldn't pick up the pace. Maybe a result of trying to fit too much mileage in near the end of February, which is always a challenging month for mileage goals.

Honestly, by the end of February, I was behind on overall mileage yet again and I was beginning to doubt my ability to accumulate even 1700 miles this calendar year. Since I'd already reduced my original goal, and I didn't want to drop it down again if I didn't have to, I decided not to post a blog update for February by itself. I thought maybe I'd be in a better position by the end of March.

***

Throughout March, I did a couple nighttime and moonlight runs, but still supplemented with plenty of treadmill time.

I did a couple tough weightlifting sessions in my garage gym and rode the exercise bike as cross-training when I felt the mileage beginning to wear my legs down. 

And we finally got our yoga trapeze set up! 

I love this thing!! I use it daily now, at least a little bit. Mainly I've used it for bodyweight strength work so far. I've already noticed a difference from just regular weights (although those still have their place too.) I feel like it helps strengthen all those little balancing muscles that I am lacking. It's great, it's like having gymnastics rings on high/medium/low settings. Doing dips and pullups are my favorite so far. The dips especially require extra balance that isn't required on a static dip station. And I know I've only begun to explore all the possible uses for my yoga trapeze. 

So, now that March is wrapping up, I have totalled just over 422 miles for the year thus far. This breaks down to between 140 and 141 miles per month, or about 1690 if I keep this monthly pace up for the remainder of the year. While that's still about 10 total miles behind goal, I feel like it's totally possible to make that distance up.

1700 miles is still a goal that will challenge me, and not allow me to get too complacent on taking a lot of rest days in a row. However, I'm much more confident today, on this last day of March, that I'll be able to achieve this goal. Certainly more confident than I was at the end of February, when I was so discouraged that I didn't even dare write about it!

I hope everyone is staying healthy. We are almost out of this pandemic. I'm trying to just hold out a little longer, and maybe this summer I'll be able to go back to my favorite trails and back to the mountains!!

January 2021 update

 Hello, just a quick note today. No pictures - because all of my January mileage was on the treadmill. And I'm sure you know what one of those looks like!

I did try for a couple weeks to maintain my 10k daily goal, but it became too overwhelming for me. I realized how much mileage that actually is, and that I'm not sure I'm able to do a running streak at this stage in my running career.

Especially at 10k a day, it was way too much, plus I wanted to include weightlifting. Being sore on a day after heavy lifting made it even tougher to get my mileage in. In fact, looking back, I am surprised I was able to ever do over 2000 miles in a year. Of course, in previous years, I'd run outside a lot. Since I'm relegated to pretty much exclusively treadmill running these days, I struggle to do anything more than 10 miles. And even that much is pushing the boundaries of my sanity in a single day. It's not something I enjoy or look forward to.

I miss running outside, for sure. I miss being able to go to the mountains. But as it stands, with new strains of the virus and the world going down the tubes, the outdoors is not a place I can go anymore. Maybe by next year I'll be able to go outside again.

For now, I have trimmed back my goal for the year to running a total of 1700 miles. This is a more realistic, yet still challenging goal. I will have to strive still, and stay motivated, in order to reach it. I ran 140 miles for the month of January, and I'll have to average about 142 miles for the remaining months of the year in order to attain a total of 1700. I think that's pretty doable, although I'll have to stay focused, as skipping too many days in a row will make it difficult to get all the mileage needed.

I'm coming off a two-day rest from running currently, and that has helped my soreness levels immensely. I'll try for an evening 8 to 10 miles today, and try to make up for the short month by being consistent. 

That's all for now, have a nice month everyone!!