Training Log Archive: TomN

Cunningham Falls Platformpalooza. Florence had a flight out of BWI at 3, so I started early and went out on Green. Good choice. It was slow going, both because of treacherous footing in the ferns, downfall, and rocks, and because the navigation required very careful compass and pace work.

Despite taking almost 2 hours, I'm happy with my performance. I read contours well, used the ditches and vegetation as handrails, and hopped from platform to platform wherever possible. Leaving #1, a thunderstorm materialized and it rained buckets. And of course, glasses were useless. But I carried on, and plodded from one control to the next with better accuracy than I am accustomed to.

The only place I feel like I should have done better was on the longest leg, from 7 to 8. There I tried to stay in between the two streams and out of the green, hoping to see a couple of platforms and #10 on the way. But that didn't work out. I met a totally lost Kim Jepsen after crossing the first stream, and soon I drifted towards the second stream for lack of a better plan. But that turned out fine, because I was easily able to reach the big cliffs from the stream bend and attack from there. Should have just blasted it instead of trying unsuccessfully to find platforms in the wilderness.

Got back just after 1 p.m., changed into dry clothes, and got to the airport at 2:30. Florence talked her way to the front of the huge TSA line and made her 3 p.m. flight just as the last couple of people were boarding.

Green - Splits

The usual neighborhood 4-mile route. Or it was 4 miles until my gps watch convinced me otherwise.

Wheaton Regional Park in the afternoon, one big loop from the dog park. Part paved, part natural surfaced, part rustic trail.

On our last full day in Maine, Addie and I hatched a plan to hike the Basin Rim Trail from Evans Notch. We would have gone farther south and done something in the Carters, but the weather forecast was much worse there. As it was, we had a 50 percent chance of rain in Evans Notch.

The Basin Rim Trail was pretty nice, but we missed all the views because we were almost entirely in the clouds. It's a rugged 3-mile trail connecting West Royce Mountain with Mt. Meader. But getting there was epic.

We parked the car at Brickett Place, a White Mountain National Forest site, still in Maine. We hiked up the Royce Trail, which was unrelentingly steep, above a 50% grade for much of the last mile, and crossed into New Hampshire. The trail passes under the huge cliffs on East Royce Mountain. We took an out-and-back side trail to the summit of East Royce (3114') then climbed up to the junction with the Basin Rim Trail on the summit of West Royce (3210'). East Royce was worth the trouble. It has great views on all sides, or would have, except that we were in the clouds. West Royce is higher, but broad and wooded, not even deserving of a cairn.

Descending, we came out of the clouds, crossed over the top of the Basin Rim cliffs, and got some views, but we also got rained on. And some sunshine. It was hit or miss. We had a good view of Basin Pond, a thousand feet below. Then climbed up to Mt. Meader (2782') in the rain, and down the relatively moderate Mount Meader Trail back to the Evans Notch road (600'), still in New Hampshire. The mosquitoes were so wild we put on our raincoats to keep them out. We walked a couple of miles on the road back to the car, finally crossing back into Maine.

Addie got a track workout from her frisbee team, so we went to the track in Rumford. A few years ago, we both ran in a 5k that started and ended at that track. She did her ladder and I ran 3x800 with 3-4 min jog in between (600m). Times were 3:27, 3:29, 3:26.

Dramatic change in the weather, raining and 50s. I kayaked around the lake in the morning, as I often do. I was wearing foul weather gear and it was pretty fun in the rain. Well, fun going downwind anyway. Upwind was a fight. The water was about 15 degrees warmer than the air, and there were clouds of steam coming off the lake, drifting with the wind.

Around the lake. 52 degrees, overcast and misty but not actually raining.