Snow Day Run Along The Skagit River

Snow changes everything! Mount Vernon got hit with a bit of a White Christmas, and then even more snow the day after. The snow will stick around for a few days, due to persistent low temperatures. For me, this is not too disruptive, as I already had penciled in this week as a slow week for work. 

Snow in the lowlands seems to come around for a day or two most winters, but never sticks around long. I chose to take one of my usual running routes, next to the Skagit River. The road is closed to through traffic right now, due to a bulge in the dike from flooding a month or two ago. This means few cars--pretty much an open trail. I was able to make fresh tracks on the road--see the "S" above. 

The snow shows a bit of wind drift patterns--nature's designs. Below, a log is covered with snow, after washing up a couple months ago, when water levels were 10-15 feet higher. The air was crisp--and cold--and my little 7 mile jaunt on my normal route ended up being one of the good days outside. As usual, trumpeter swans, Canadian geese, snow geese, and more. 

 

July In Skagit

The trips around Skagit have continued in July.

Last weekend I was out the door at 3:15 AM, in hopes of seeing the comet Neowise. It was a beautiful, quiet start to the day. A clear bright light stood out in the sky, and I thought I'd found the comet, but turns out I was looking in the wrong direction and it was a planet. Originally, I thought it was Venus, but turns out it was Jupiter. That's pretty cool, of itself.

I completed a do it yourself, from the door marathon, in a grand circuit of Skagit. I headed out to Conway via the Dike Road, and then went all the way around the outer side of Fir Island, visiting both the south and north forks of the Skagit. Gorgeous day. I came back via Rexville and the farms near the tulip fields. Tired, I was. Saw a big snake.

This effort was sufficient for me to complete the Great Virtual Run Across Tennessee, a 1000 KM adventure I started in May. It has been grand, registering my miles each day and following along on the map. The GVRAT has really kept me out there--my distance has gotten longer, and I haven't had a zero day since April. Great community too. A buckle is on its way.

During the week, I visited the Skagit Flats down by Edison and Samish Island, in further pursuit of the comet. I eventually found it, with the help of a SkyGuide app and some helpful comments on FB. It is not a clear as Hale-Bop from the 1990s, but it is impressive and quite extra-ordinary. I've gone out three times since locating it, just to stare up some more.

I've also started identifying other sights--Jupiter, Saturn, Venus, and other constellations, to name a few things. The other night, I happened to spot the international space station, ripping across the sky, as confirmed by my app in the moment. Way cool.

I am now on my way "back across Tennessee", with a goal of completing 1000 miles in four months. My approach is to do a run and a walk each day. Combined, these really keep my thoughts and health in order. It's been a good distraction from all the COVID news. 

Conway

This is the spring of solo distancing the valley. Last weekend I did the old Nookachamps half marathon route, and visited with the Taylors. This week, I did a loop from home to Conway and back, adding up to 16 miles. I've always wanted to do this route, and it ended up being one of my favorite Saturday mornings in quite some time.

Most of my day was a walk. Up early, the temps were in the 50s or 60s, but the sun really came out, and we hit 80 by midday. I wandered south through Mount Vernon until I got on the Conway frontage road, and too that straight out. Came back via the Dike Road, and walked part of the dike along the Skagit River.

So many little things to see. Painted barns, hand-painted signs, honor pay system fruit stands, recently planted fields, the river, Mount Baker.  Just one of those gorgeous days, with nothing to worry about but moving on.

I am doing the Great Virtual Run Across Tennessee. I'm supposed to cover over 600 miles in four months, which means 30 to 40 miles per week. So far so good--I'm getting out more, which is sure to lead to good things.

The coronvirus thing is in the news, in every discussion. Shuffling the feet outdoors is the best distraction.

Wiley Slough

Today was supposed to be the Chuckanut 50k. My progress towards a finish was going fine, until I rolled my ankle, bad, in the last quarter mile of the Ebey Kettles Run in late February. Nevertheless, I intended on toeing the line, perhaps with an ankle wrap, and tour the Chuckanuts today.

Nevertheless.

The world has changed dramatically in the past three or four weeks, although the birds of Wiley Slough are not in the loop. The coronavirus has hit the United States like a Hurricane Katrina, knocking society off its moorings. The government prohibits gatherings--first it was 250 or more, then 50, and now 10, or less. Chuckanut sadly postponed, like everything else. I'll let others write about the particulars, but this is a time like no other, where we are supposed to stay home, and businesses are shuttering everywhere.

Well, maybe I'll say a little more. It is a time of fear. Fear of grabbing a door handle, fear of getting too close to anyone, fear for our relatives and friends, fear for ourselves. There is uncertainty, with announcements from DC, the Governor, the Mayor, every day, ratcheting down our freedoms for the benefit our public health. A common good. Only two or three weeks ago, things felt relatively normal. But now, Sauron has come to the Shire.

But not so much Wiley Slough, one of my quiet places, on Fir Island. Instead of Chuckanut, or even a long run, I took a slow walk through some of my favorite marshlands. The water level is down lower than I think I've ever seen, and a pair of mudboots might've made for.a wholly different adventure, off trail.  Eagles, hawks, herons, waterfowl, an owl hooting, unseen. A slow walk as opposed to a sweaty run. The worries remain, but a little bit of outside goes a long way.

Friends, the best of health to you--both physical and mental--in these difficult times.

2019 Recounted

As I like to do, here is a year-end list for 2019--

1.              Arlington National Cemetery and Gettysburg

We laid my Dad to rest in Arlington Cemetery, and visited the Gettysburg to honor his memory. 2019 will always be the year I lost my Dad, and everything else was second, and so I have to have this slotted up top. Arlington is haunting, with its fields of white tombstones. Gettysburg too, standing by rocks on Devil's Den, knowing the close quarters combat that happened there, less than two lifetimes ago.

2.              Monogram Lake

            Mike and I had  a nice, hard hike up to Monogram Lake in the North Cascades, right outside of Marblemount. Be warned: this is a climb! Maybe 5k up, but it felt like more--it felt like we’d never get there. Round trip was over 10 miles. We made it, finally, and found a gorgeous  mid-sized alpine lake, sitting beneath a cirque of cliffs. We tried to catch fish—it was a way to honor my Dad, who loved to fish—but the best I could do was lose a lure and bobber, forcing me to go for an impromptu swim. Fishing is reportedly good here--I'm just not. Great blueberries and wildflowers (lupine, astors, heather) along the way. Bear country.

3.              The Big Island

            Deborah and I visited the Big Island again, and I am sold—I could live there. Our condo was right on the water—so close, I could throw a baseball and bounce it off a sea turtle, probably. We visited Hilo and the Merrie Monarch Festival, Hawaii’s celebration of hula. This is a beloved festival for Hawaiians. I went for a pre-sunrise walk eight mornings in a row, which allowed me to see a quiet Kona and get coffee to start the day. No races this year., but a bit of running by the water. We toured a chocolate farm, visited Hawi and the north end, and attended my first luau, long overdue after many trips to the Hawaii. Aloha is a state of mind, which needs regular updating.

4.              Chuckanut 50k

            This year's Chuckanut 50k was probably not a good idea for me, but I finished, for the seventy time, fifteen yeas after my first. I am a not a good example on how to approach this though. I got up in the C-nuts before the race to train, but not nearly enough. This was a serious snow year. RD Krissy put in an early start and added an hour to the finish. I needed most of that time to get it done. I was passed by runners and walkers all day, and it got to be funny hearing how people addressed me:  “Thank you boss!” “Thank you sir!” “”Looking good!”(No.)   Great job as always by Krissy, Kevin, Gretchen, and everyone. So good to see many friends. Due to peer pressure, I am scheduled again for this event this coming March. We'll see.

5.              March Point Half Marathon

            This local course out by Anacortes is so beautiful, circling March Point and then traveling over saltwater on the Tommy Thompson Trail. I saw some seals, eagles, and herons. A small crowd for the half, but plenty of support, and a great barbq at the end. I love all the local options for events around here. Annually, there are probably a dozen half marathons within a half hour or so of home, if I start counting them up. This is one of the best.

6.              Sourdough Mountain

            My friend Craig and I both list Sourdough Mountain as one of our very favorite hikes around Washington State. It is a hard climb, but the views up top are outstanding, and it has great history and character. We finally got to cover the loop together. I was a little nervous, wondering if I was up for the distance, but it all went fine, and the hike was beautiful as always.  The back side seemed longer than ever though, with no water from the top down, and a barely cared for trail. The back side gives an entirely different view. Craig’s company made this day, as we chatted quietly about everything from John Muir to current events.

7.              Lookout Mountain

 After reading a great book on lookouts in Washington, I wanted to start tagging some of the ones I haven’t. This was a wonderful quiet morning in the early fall,  alone, This is a tough climb, and I didn’t get much in the way of views, but the Lookout was really cool.. I loved the quiet alone time on trail. The first half of the hike is the same route as Monogram. Love the North Cascades, and this one is a great trail for the hard workout and proximity to home.

8.              Monterey Bay, California and Big Sur

            I made the most of a work trip, visiting Monterey, Point Lobos Nature Reserve, Big Sur, Cannery Row, and the Salinas Valley. The clam chowder on the wharf is memorable. I also threw in a 5k—the only open race—on a beautiful out and back course in Pacific Grove.  The Monterey Bay Aquarium is really worth visiting—very educational on conservation issues, and downright stunning  aquatic viewing. 

9.              New York City- Global Citizen and Central Park

            We attended the Global Citizen Festival again, on the Great Lawn in Central Park, which was incredible. My favorite was Alicia Keys, especially her New York song. Queen was great too, and Carole King. The passion of the kids and celebrities supporting great causes was inspiring. I also got out one morning and ran the full 6 mile loop of Central Park. Crazy to see commuters on skate boards cutting through the Park. We visited Liberty Island and Ellis Island, Little Italy, and Chinatown.  We also walked through the Park to go to The Met, and I got my fill of Van Gogh and Rothko.  The Play It Loud exhibit, filled with instruments from all the legends, was terrific. A really great trip.  Now, every time when we see we the Big Apple on a TV or a movie, which is just about every day,  we say, “We were there!”

10.       Packrafting the Sauk River

Seth and I got out twice this year, as I recall.  The first was a very pleasant walk in the snow on the Cascade Trail for the Woolley Half Marathon. We walked most of the way, and the conversation was good. Terry joined us for a bit. Later in the year, I tried "packrafting" with him and Ellen on the Sauk, a tributary of the Skagit.  I was a complete and total disaster on the river, and we had to walk me out after I got hung up and later dumped. Alive and well, it makes for a funny story now. This will always be a favorite memory of mine for this past year, due to the adventure of it, and thepure beauty of the Sauk River. 

The year was filled with many other great experiences. I think one of my favorite moments was attending the Rolling Stones concert with Deb in Seattle. They were outstanding, and a band I always wanted to see. Giddy. We also saw Queen and Adam Lambert in Tacoma with Dan and Heidi, in addition to at Global Citizen. Mike and I caught The Who at T-Mobile not too much later, with a guest appearance from Eddie Vedder. Deb and I saw the Mariners and the Aquasox a few times, always a summer joy. There were local birding trips. I rekindled my joy for reading books, opting for books over other forms of entertainment often. 

There were a number of other races. I finished my 16^th Baker Lake 50k. Another Nookachamps Half in the books, slow if I recall correctly. I also completed the 50^th edition of the Seattle Marathon, on a chilly day. Another Skagit Flats half, and some  volunteering with Skagit Runners. I also volunteered at Cascade Crest 100 at Little Bear, visiting with many old friends. It wouldn’t be the Fourth without a Great Sedro-Woolley Footrace. Mike and I also ran the Labor Day Half, a race I PRed in back in the late '90s, on a Redmond trail I've biked, hiked, and ran on since the early '80s. Who says you can't go back?

In between football games on Sunday, I put down a beautiful 10k on Little Mountain, to support local trail work efforts. Also, so great to hike the back end of the Baker Lake Trail one rainy Saturday with Deb, Carrie, and Brad. Going slow here opened up new sights to me, and it was the company that made the day special. There was a crazy night, where I got up at 12 AM and drove out to Samish Island, to look for the aurora borealis. I saw a few columns, standing in a spooky field. Early in the year, I ran most of the Cascade River Trail by myself, to join Skagit Runners for pizza at Annie's. This is a club tradition.

Today is the start of a new decade. New goals, new hopes, new adventures. Thanks to all who check in here, and for your continuing friendship. All my best wishes for the new year and decade to you and yours.

Northern Lights in Skagit

I've been following a Washington State group on-line which watches for the aurora borealis. There was a lot of excitement in the group last night, as reports suggested a high likelihood for sighting them in the midnight hours.

People started reporting seeing the lights south of me around 11 PM. I had no plan and I was tired, but just the same, I decided to go looking. I ended up driving out towards Samish Island, where there is less light and the water is near.  It was so quiet. A car drove by about once every half hour.  The milky way was visible, as were the lights of the refinery, Anacortes, Mt. Constitution, and so on. I heard little critters--little I think--moving in the brush. There wasn't much moon, and though I'm very comfortable in such settings, it still was spooky.

I didn't get a good view on the northern lights. No bunches of green.  I did seem to see columns of light moving around a little bit, and I'm pretty sure that was them. There was a pale glow in the sky, beyond the island and Blanchard. I think if I had a better camera, it would've picked up something more with an open shutter/time lapse approach. We have one, and tripods too, so maybe this will be a winter mission, perhaps up at Mt. Baker or at Northern States.

Alas, the best picture I got is the black photo above, from my phone. If you click on it, there is a slight glow about midway up, trust me. The night adventure though was pretty cool.

Great Sedro-Woolley Foot Race

I'm not sure how many times I've done this race, but I found a ribbon last week from 2003. I'm guessing that's the first time, and then probably two out of every three years since then.

This year's event was a bit overcast. Excellent running weather, as a finisher exclaimed to me afterwards. As usual, I did the 5.17 mile circuit, as opposed to the 2 miler. Lots of characters dressed up in red, white, and blue. Streets lined with chairs, for the subsequent parade.

I wasn't too happy with my running, but I know I've been slower. 52:20 or so, so 10 minutes per mile, more or less. My lower back is tight, perhaps from years of sitting in a chair at the office, perhaps due to core and weight. I also started a ways back, while conversing with friends, which made for a scramble through strollers and little kids as the race took off.

This is a really fun race, for the smiles and enthusiasm everyone brings. A democratic affair in a republican town, with persons of all fitness levels representing. Great to see all my friends from Skagit Runners, and great appreciation for the volunteers of Woolley, who make this happen, year in, year out.

Happy 4th of July! 

Chuckanut 50k

On the last weekend of winter, I was able to get at least one more shot at snow at the Chuckanut 50k. Concerns were high in advance, as the Chuckanuts were holding snow and ice for the last few weeks. RD extraodinaire Krissy opened things up with an early start and moved the cutoffs back by an hour, and I needed all of that time to get the course done. So, rough day out there, but a beautiful day and lots of friends sighted.

I ran my first Chuckanut in 2004. I remember signing up the year or two before that, and backing out. The distance seemed overwhelming. I ran into a few runners beforehand, from out of town, who were making this their first 50k, as so many have. It's been several years though since I last ran C-nut, though I'm up on these trails all the time.

The trails were fine until Cleator Road. As the picture above shows, snow presented somewhere up on the climb. There was a bit of a boot track, with mud spots, which made it not so bad. Much easier than a couple weeks ago, when I was marching around up there. The ridge was pretty clear--no latent ice. The third aid station was moved to the junction at Dan's Traverse, run by Doug, race founder and all around good guy. Snow on the back side, slushy.

I got passed by everyone. It became a little amusing the things people called me:  Sir (?), Bro, Brother, Chief, Boss...  I was basically doing the long walk, with intermittent jogging. I felt stiff, and I made a dozen rookie mistakes in gear, prep, etc. Familiarity may do you in. More training would help, of course. Maybe I can use the experience to learn from, although right now as I ache I'm looking forward to an old fashioned 10k.

Friends were everywhere, volunteering. Krissy as RD, of course--great job, all around. So many smiles. Dean, Terry, and Kevin at AS 1. Adam at AS 2. Doug at AS 3. After that, things went foggy for me. Actually, Glenn on Chinscraper. Great to see Dean and Terry again at AS 5. Terry was all business, warning me about cutoffs. Dean was cracking jokes. Gretchen and Kevin at the end, helping out. Good peeps, these. Thanks to all that made it happen.

The course seems to change slightly year to year. This year there was a brief detour through the 100 Acre Woods to the finish line. Aid stations were moved. Most notably--and maybe this has been the case for years--the final descent was on the Fragrance Lake trail and the last aid station was at that gate.

Views were great from up high.

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

Woolley Half Marathon

Technically, I finished the Woolley Half Marathon on Saturday. It really was just a pleasant long walk with Seth on the Cascade Trail. Perhaps my slowest half ever. No worries, be happy. We had a great day--beautiful ice and snow, a few birds, many friends, fresh air.

We've had snow this past week--more than in recent years, and folks have come to call it Snowmaggedon. It hasn't been that bad, but the Cascade Trail was mostly covered still, which made for a crunchy time. The standard course was changed into a double out and back, but one and done was the way to go. The temps sat around just under 40 degrees, and for the most part the skies were large, with some interesting clouds, but only a bit of rain.

Always so good to spend time with Seth. Great to really meet Ellen. Also good to see so many of my Skagit and ultra friends---Craig, Terry, Stan, Toi, Delores, Chris, and so many other familiar faces. The after race barbq on this event was/is the bomb. Terry and crew do such a great job.

Afterwards, we visited some antique shops and then made our way to Fir Island, to look at birds. We found ourselves down on the mud flat near Snow Goose. We watched eagles chase each other over scraps of food, chirping, diving, fighting. We saw a large flock of snow geese, lots of swans, a pair of herons, and other anonymous birds. There were a few moments, standing on a log and just listening to the birds fly over head, which took me away.