The Toughest Ride of the Season (so far)

Today, I decided to do something a bit more technical, and by definition, a little tougher than the rides I'd done up till now.  So I decided to go south on the Santa Fe trail through the Air Force Academy, and then into the woods along the banks of (what I believe is) Monument Creek.

Which meant I was going downhill the whole way out.  Well, after about 10 miles I decided to turn around.  after about a mile, I felt the wind kick up - a south-bound wind.  So I was not only going uphill, through the woods, but I was doing it with a 10-15 mph headwind.

By the time I got home, I was exhausted.  My quads feel like someone has beaten them with a baseball bat. 

Easter Weekend....

Welcome to Colorado!  Weather this weekend has not been conducive to hiking or biking.  Temps in the 20's; snow covered ground... not good.  However, I refuse to let a weekend go to waste.  So this weekend, I've been breaking in my new boots.

As some of my readers (either one of you)  may recall, I have been struggling with a right ankle that rolls all the time.  Even my dogs were getting embarrassed by all the high-pitched squeeky whining noises I was making while walking on an ankle that was killing me.

So I've been searching for a boot that would provide the ankle support necessary for me to get up and down the mountains without the need to produce girly-noises.  After an exhaustive search, I settled on the Bitterroot boot by Vasque.  I'm pretty happy with these things.  They are basically bomb-proof.  They are Vasque's newest offering for this year.  They are essentially a beefed up version of their Sahwatch brand.  So this weekend, my goal has been to break these things in.  So far, so good.

Mt. Herman loop (hike) & Palmer Lake (ride)

This weekend, I turned up the bike training a notch.  I realized that we are just 7 weeks away from Elephant Rock.  I needed to see where I stood, so I did my first 20+ mile ride of the season.  I rode from the house over to the Sante Fe Trail, then up to Palmer Lake and back (about 9 miles each way).  In order to get in a full 20, I did 2 laps around the lake itself.

 
I felt surprisingly good.  It must have something to do with all the other training activities I've been doing (hiking, Mountain climbing, etc) But I had no problems at all.  I still want to do some hill work, but I am genuinely happy where I am 7 weeks out.

On Sunday, I still wanted to get in a hike.  But with time constraints (today being Palm Sunday), I really only had about 5-6 hours.  So I decided to do a hike I'd done before: Mt. Hermon loop.  I was only able to get in about 8 1/2 miles due to time constraints, but considering that I rode 20 miles the day before, I still felt pretty good about it.

 

I figure as good as I feel, I think it'll be safe to take on one of the peaks soon.  As of right now, they are still buried in snow, and I have limited desire to try and summit them with snow shoes.

Barr Camp / French Creek /Manitou Reservoir Loop

Yesterday's hike was tough: Barr trail (elevation 6575) to Barr Camp (10,188) then back to the French Creek trail head over to the Manitou Reservoir then looped back to the Barr trail before heading back.

It was originally gonna be 12. But I decided to add in the Barr Camp for lunch. Then because I was feeling good, I went the full distance down the French Creek. Although, today, I'm feeling it. One area where I was happy though: my right ankle. I used this special brace that is meant to stabilize it. While yes, it did get sore, I wasn't in 'crying like a little girl' pain.

Total length: 18.1 miles Elevation gain: 3614 ft. Total Elevation: 7109 ft. Time: 10 hours 20 minutes

Spruce Meadow / Mountain - and repeat

Over the Spring break, I did Spruce mountain again, and then yesterday, I did it yet again with my son. Like the first time, we also added the meadows to make it a hike of some decent distance. God what a beautiful day! 76°, crystal blue skies, light breeze. We ended up making it a nice 10-mile hike. We took the dogs with us, who also decided to take the first pond-swim of the season.

There was a negative however. I sprained my right ankle (again). Beginning to get a little concerned how easily that ankle keeps getting sprained.