(6.1 miles) Solo Hike on Crystal Hills Trail - 6 wet & soggy miles

Wore my Salomon boots and due to recent rain and tall grass, feet were soaked as soon as I started. Didn't get any better, and I had to wade through a river near the turn around point so feet were even more wet on the way back. I used the SMD Flight 30 as a bit of a test run and it was comfortable with about 10 pounds in it. Hated going solo, but glad to get outside.

Coronavirus

Outbreak you may recall - within 1 month it killed over 2K people. Not sure how it will affect the USA. Our family bought some extra food, medicine, and water just in case the country gets shut down. The stock market is taking a nose dive and now I'm personally worried about retirement in another 10 years! Will we have enough???

This first set is from Feb 27, 2020.

Then, around mid-March, we in NY received a "stay-at-home" order and all the schools & non-essential businesses were ordered to close. Here are some other images from April 2.

It's stunning how nonchalant President Trump was at the start and how starkly different things are now. The current "hope" in the US is that the infection apex will be mid-April and then things will slow down & eventually stop. But no one knows yet if this is seasonal like the flu, or if it will stay vibrant all year round.

It's been nice being home with you kids more, but I do have about 10 - 100 time the stress that I used to. We are worried about our jobs, your grandparents, our health, retirement savings, provisions for living at home, etc... Before all this, the only thing I worried about on a daily basis was whether or not my boss would notice I wasn't that busy. That and what was I going to prepare for everyone to eat for dinner.

Runners Knee

Started having runners knee (L). Been trying to add a few jogging laps during my January workouts. Then added some weight to my squats and that's what I get for that...

(7.12 miles) Watkins Glen Solo Hike

Why didn't I bring Belle??? She would have loved it. I ended up stowing the trekking poles and didn't see anyone else so I really wish I'd chosen differently. Beautiful hike, though. Backpack, with 2 liters, was at 17 pounds. Good workout all around.

(3.5 miles) Building Up The Miles

Three miles last week and a very muddy 3.5 miles this time. 

Belle was so happy! Pack was about 12 pounds.

2019 Books...

• Star Wars: No Prisoners
• The Whispering Room by Dean Koontz
• The Crooked Staircase by Dean Koontz
• The Forbidden Door by Dean Koontz
• The Night Window by Dean Koontz
• Creepers by David Morrell
• Scavengers by David Morrell
• The Spy Who Came for Christmas by David Morrell
• Joomla! 3 explained

Elmira Enforcers, Friday night 12/27

It was a loss unfortunately, but a solid game. Everyone had fun and it was nice to have Mary there.

Nutcracker In Motion

It was a totally awesome experience. My family was Allison, Landon, Brennan, Lexi, Caelyn, McKenna, & Rosalee. Can't wait to do it again!

West Point

I made all the purchases & arrangements for this. Even did the grocery shopping. For my very first event, it went okay.





Drove to Camp Bullowa on Friday night. Advance party was supposed to be Matt, Paul, & Sara, but Matt had house trouble and Sara had a surprise Dr appointment so I had to get the boys out of school quickly and get on the road. Because of that, we didn't arrive before dark which made setup difficult. We never even deduced if we were in the correct camp site or not.

 The game was a blow-out and we were late arriving which meant late for tours, etc... It worked out okay, but could have been better. I fell short on the arrangements - no water supply and I didn't gather info on how to sign up for tours, where the scoutmaster activities were, etc... I could have done better.

After the 3rd quarter the scouts decided to visit the West Point Museum which was cool. But it was closing soon after we arrived - started late because some scouts were in the bathroom / food lines. After the museum we had to walk briskly back around the stadium and luckily caught a bus to take us back to our parking site. Then we were in the dark, AGAIN, trying to make dinner - frozen hamburger foil packets.

Boys were exhausted on night #2. That's why Brian is wearing his winter jacket in the second tent picture.

Cycling Merit Badge

5 Mile bike ride to start the Cycling Merit Badge. Brennan was a little unsteady at first with the big bike, but he got comfortable and made the trip. Brian did fine - I didn't see him most of the time. That night Brennan had terrible pains in his leg while Annie & I were out - Allison did a solid job taking care of him with an Epsom salt bath. It was difficult to see.

Camp Brule Camporee

One night affair. Drove down Saturday morning, set up camp, made chili, the scouts set up their catapults / trebuchets, and then there were a bunch of night-time activities, including a ropes course. Both boys did great. Brian was able to do the ropes course, but Brennan was too young & too cold. Boys slept in the half-dome tent while I stayed solo in the Lunar Solo. It got down to 25 degrees at night! It was a good time, but exhausting.

FLT Multi-day hike: 31.46 Miles

Hiked Thursday night to Moss Hill Lean-to. That was a bit more tense than I was expecting - got dark and there were 2 problems: I lost the white blazes twice and the battery on the headlight was draining - I'd forgotten how to lower the lumens output. But in the end I made it to the lean-to. And when I got there I saw a couple eyes staring at me. Not big enough to be a bear, but not a tiny rodent either. Maybe it was a fox? I found in the morning that whoever had been there prior threw their food garbage into the fire pit. The last couple miles of hiking I was certain I'd forgotten the tent stakes but was SOOOO glad that they were in the tent bag when I arrived. 

Gear List Here

Also glad I used the skinny titanium set as they fit in the grooves between the floor boards. I set up the tent in the lean-to, I know I'm not supposed to, but I wanted another lay of protection from rodents & scavengers. I hears something run on the shelf in the lean-to and it knocked some acorns and screws onto the floor.

Full day 1 started well, though I could have started sooner. Love this picture below - how often have I seen those large green areas in the hills while driving and wondered what it's like up there? Now I know! Awesome view and a cool memory. There's a lake in the distance - Lamoka, I think.

I did my best to control my pace as I knew I was in for a really long day, and I was very cognizant of water availability. Unfortunately, for the last 5 miles or so, I totally didn't take a break or much of a drink and I certainly overdid it and I really felt it when I arrived at Sugar Hill - the red cheeks, the overheated head. On the bright side, since I hiked too quickly, I got there earlier than expected and had extra time to relax and recover. I napped for an hour after set-up. Eventually I made dinner, popped my 2 small blisters, and just relaxed some more. It was a very windy night and there was some rain, but the MEIR tent held up well, though I definitely wouldn't consider it a full 2-person tent at only 43 inches wide. It will be okay for the boys for a couple years, though. I was so comfortable on just the Z Lite I considered sleeping on just that, but inflated the NEMO Astrolite anyway. It wasn't a good night sleep or very restful. Again, I think that's because I overdid it. I did discover just how comfortable the Adaptor Liner is, though - I should grab another couple of those. It was pretty important,too, as I had developed some chafing and needed to remove the clothes to let everything dry out. It was basically perfect. The 30 deg quilt was a bit much, but at least I wasn't cold.

Saturday ended up being the final day. The blisters had been addressed, but somewhere during the hike my socks got wet inside my shoes. The Leuko tape stayed on to cover the blisters, but the bottom of my right foot was really getting sore. And there was a TON of downhill which created the blisters in the first place. I definitely COULD have continued, but I completed 2 of my 3 goals: 

1. go on a solo hike and not die
2. complete the previously abandoned attempt from Sugar Hill to Watkins Glen
3. complete M14 map of the FLT

If I had made it another 4 miles to Burdett I would have completed the M14 map, but there was no place to camp so I'd have to return to Wakins or continue for another 2 or 3 miles. It just didn't seem like the smart thing to do. Given how much I ate, drank, and slept and how slowly I moved Sunday, it was the right call. I made it through Julie's Crossing with no problem as the trail was well beaten. There was a lot more to the WG park then I knew and it was really cool to see. I didn't see anyone else on the trail until I got to the state park. It was cool to be solo, especially as I consciously lowered my pace and stayed as slow as I could and take breaks (or not) as I wanted. But next time a partner might also be fun.

    

In total I was out from 5:30pm Thursday - 5pm Saturday. It was a solid test of my ability - mental & physical - as well as my gear. The Gregory Zulu pack was comfortable 99% of the time, the tent was  solid during the extreme wind and roomy, the food was good and the cookset worked well, and the sleep system continues to improve. I can't think of much I'd do differently given the setup I had - aside from not carry extra water on Friday, take a set of flip-flops next time, and get some lighter items (already ordered a new 1.5lb tent). Still on the fence about the nalgene bottle. It was good when I wanted to roll out my calves, but it is definitely heavy.

***** NEED AQUA MIRA NEXT TIME AS BACKUP *****

I do need to stretch a lot more next time. It's 2 days later and my hamstrings are still tight despite my Yoga in the morning & stretching during the day.