Chuckanut in February

The last two weekends I've ventured into the Chuckanuts, in anticipation of the 50k in March. January may well have been the wettest month on record. February has continued that trend through the first week. We've had pineapple winds and all manner of rain--sideways hard, steady drizzle, relentless showers. The wind has caused trees to fall across the trails, and yesterday a mudslide shut down Chuckanut after I arrived at the trailhead. I had to route home via Old Samish Highway.  Perhaps that's why the trails seemed emptier than normal this weekend--a major difference from last week, when it seems everyone and their friend was motoring up the hills, past me, with smiles.

Yesterday, I only saw one person after passing Fragrance Lake Junction, up Chinscraper, and around the back on the Ridge/Lost Lake Loop. I hiked up to the top of Chuckanut, barely running, but I managed to jog the ridge, and jogged the back side and way back to the car.  I guess I probably put in 15 miles, at an unimpressive but better than hiking pace.

The water was flowing. As per below, the trail in parts was a stream. Puddles everywhere, and I had to watch my step on the ridge, as the wet roots were surely slippery. I guess on Orcas the runners for the past few weekends have been running through trail streams. No spills for me this weekend, but last weekend I landed on my butt, hard, coming off the chinscraper trail to Fragrance Lake Road.

I am parking inside Larrabee these days, because there have been a high incidence of broken glass car break-ins in the Lost Lake and Fragrance trailhead lots. You would think the State would set up some wildlife cams to record activity in these highly trafficked places. Not that hard to do, and with a sign or too, perhaps some deterrence. They could also place park vehicle in strategic places. And catch the crooks--they should do that too.

We are ready for things to spring up a bit around here. Too much dark and rain. The sound of the furnace kicking in is getting old.

A Snowy Chuckanut

I got out early Saturday A.M. and did a Chuckanut walkabout, covering the middle 18 except for the final Chinscraper climb. More like 16, I suppose. That was plenty for me, as the whole route/course was covered in snow from Fragrance Lake on. It was a slog climbing Cleator Road in the snow, and then the Ridge Trail was very icy. I was going to bail, but Deb happened to call when I was up top, and encouraged me to go for it, because it was a such a beautiful day. I navigated the Ridge, avoiding ledges, and looking for dirt to step on. Mostly careful walking. One guy passed me and I could hear him swearing, again and again, as he slipped ahead of me.

Both Fragrance Lake (above) and Lost Lake (last, below) were frozen. A younger me might've tried walking across, but I was alone, and it wasn't that cold, so no. Huge icicles hung from the rock ledge back on the Lost Lake Trail, and enormous blocks of ice lay on the ground, having broken off. I've seen it like this back there, but not in a while, and not with those huge blocks of ice. Crunch, crunch, crunch, I went.

I beat most everyone up there by leaving early, but eventually the trails were full of runners, prepping for the Chuckanut 50k in a couple weeks. Ran into Kevin. Spirits were good, with lots of hellos, and overall it made for a memorable day. Sunday is a home day.

Cleartor Rd./Fragrance Lake Connector Trailhead, snow covered

Long clear views from the Ridge

Runner approaching out by Lost Lake

Icicle City

Blocks of ice below Icicle City

Frozen Lost Lake

Chuckanut

I had a nice day today, taking Friday off work before the New Year's weekend.  I went to Chuckanut and hiked and ran the Ridge-Lost Lake Loop. There was snow on top of Chuckanut, and snow and ice on the backside out by Lost Lake. I find myself on days like this.

Slow and pleasant. I spent over 4 hours wandering. Temps were between 30 and 40, with the snow melting constantly off trees, and snowmelt running across the trail. Lost Lake had some ice. My right ankle didn't roll, but there is instability there. The left hip has voiced opposition as well. Worth it.

Lost Lake 50k+

Lost Lake 50k was wet and muddy this year. Really wet and muddy. I had mud on my face at the finish, and my shorts were caked, from sliding down the hill by the Lost Lake waterfall. My shoes have their own room right now. My socks didn’t make it.

My most lasting memories will probably be the wind spitting rain at me while going up Chinscraper. Also, slipping and sliding in the mud around the Lost Lake waterfall and back up the makeshift trail that once was Overlander. Always muddy, the course turned into a grad school course in Soils once we got to Lost Lake.

I did the early start, along with friend Rich. Early start, early done. We totally nailed a high-five right before RD Alvin said go. We ran together until Two Dollar Bill, after which I fell apart. That’s about 1.4 miles in. Oh well. There’s a hill there, and I do my own thing. Takes me a while to warm up. And this course has a lot of hills. I think it is 8200 feet of climbing. Also, the course is actually 34 miles.

It rained steady the first three hours. Not a good rain. The kind of rain that gets into everything, with a sideways wind. Times this year seemed to be about a half hour slower than the last two years, probably due to conditions. It was hard to dial in what to wear—I ran in an OR Seattle Sombrero, orange vest, blue sleeves, and then another jacket at times. Pretty much a fashion disaster, but it seemed to work.

There was this new section after Lost Lake, about 29 miles in, with steep steps cut in the mud. Alvin, Terry, and everyone put in a lot of trail work here--I was very impressed. It was a whole new trail, for quite a ways. That said, it was a tough and somewhat deflating section, because of all the climbing, sometimes with your hands, and the slipping, the sliding.

This year there was even more drinking water out on the course, with self-serve jugs left in strategic locations. I went with only one bottle, and it worked fine. Friend Mike and I climbed together up the Pine and Cedar trail—that was great catching up time. Bonked from Lost Lake to the last aid station, but always kept moving, and finished fine. Maybe I could’ve went faster, or been more ready, but overall, I’m content with the effort. A day on the trail.

I hung out a long time afterwards with friends at the wonderful post-race barbq in the Clayton Beach parking lot. Recovery comes fast, with good burgers and soup, while talking trails, runs and other stuff. Also, worth noting—a great shirt, a finisher cup, a finisher coin, the aid stations, and the barbq—it all makes a really great value for the registration fee.

Thank you Alvin, Skagit Rs, Terry, Delores, Shawna, Joe, Heather, Kevin, Jamie, Stan, Jon, and everyone else. You are awesome!

Lost Lake

Lost Lake

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Geez Louise, the Lost Lake 50k is tough. It seems like I’ve been saying that a lot lately. But IT WAS. The course is actually 33 miles and has an advertised 8200 feet of climbing. It is gorgeous, and we had great weather. I ran purposely slow today, but even so, my finish time was 8:48 or so, which is slow slow. No worries—I had a good time and am not wrecked, which were the goals of the day. Alvin C.---organizer, designer, svengali---has apparently been studying course design with James V. I’d say Orcas is the only 50k locally that’s in the same ballpark in terms of difficulty.
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I tried something new—running with hiking sticks. Call me Sticks. Or Styx. I used to like Styx a lot---when I was a kid. (Now I listen to manly music.) I had a t-shirt I got at the Ocean City boardwalk, with Styx written in big glitter colors, on light blue, with dark blue cuffs. I loved that shirt. I also got one for Zeppelin—the one with the dude with wings. I wore them a lot. Anyway, for the race, I also carried a belt full of stuff, and a jacket, and some other stuff, so my point is, I was sort of loaded down. I wanted this to be a gear test run, while getting in some good slow miles with climbing—mission accomplished. I spent a lot of time adjusting things—I really do not like camelbacks, or camels for that matter—they are creepy. After 33 miles, I’m still not sure if I like using the sticks or not.
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My favorite part of the race was probably the secret trail behind Lost Lake. It’s a bit of a surprise—you’re ready to be done by then, having worked your way through a number of challenging climbs, including Fragrance, Chinscraper, Raptor, and Pine/Cedar, but there's a secret--you've got more to do. Rather than pass above Lost Lake like on the C-nut course, you go down to the lake, and then take a little known trail which skirts steep cliffs above the lake, doling out views the length of the lake. Towards the end of the race, I opted for a cool swim in Fragrance Lake---so much for a finishing kick, I suppose, but it felt really really good, and it wasn't like I was getting any hardware, with my sub 9 hour time. A little mavericky, maybe, but the right call for today.
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Great volunteers—mostly Skagit Runners people (Terry/Delores, Rob/Sue, Stan, Dean), and Skagit Search and Rescue, some of who were there just two weeks ago at North Face. Burgers at the finish, with fixings and vege alternatives. Good company. Mugs for finishers, nice shirt. I recommend the early start, unless you’re fast, and maybe even then—this is a good one to do slow regardless. Special props to Alvin—great job!
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Stan & Dean, manning the Pine/Cedar aid station

Post-race hangout

Read the sign

Matt and I ran together maybe 10 miles early on

Trail snail--big one too