Training Log Archive: JanetT

Event: Eastern Canadian Championships - Long Distance
 

Walked around at Willow Valley to stretch my legs. Not getting much exercise.

Event: Eastern Canadian Championships - Middle Distance
 

Event: EMPO - Cole Hill
 

Event: US Corn Maze Orienteering Champs (classic, relay, party, night)
 

Event: Ocean Sprint
 

At Greenwich National Park (Dunes section) in northern PEI. I think this is what my FR said; will download at some later time. Gravel trail with view of St Peters Bay, then through spruce/hardwood forest to a boardwalk over a freshwater marsh and to some sand dunes. A bit tricky climbing the dunes (only where designated) because of the sliding fine-grained sand. On the return to the car, we ran into Hugh and Julie M who'd been down to Halifax, and stopped to chat a bit. Hugh wore his NAOC shirt which made it easier to recognize them. :-) If we don't run into them again tomorrow, we'll see them in St John.

We then drove out to the cape at East Point, the NE point of PEI. Stopped for a wade in the ocean at Basin Head beach (ocean temp in upper 60'sF, 19C), then for supper (mussels and scallops for Glen, fish and chips for me) in Souris, then through Georgetown before heading back at sunset to Charlottetown.

Catching up on AP and email at the only Starbucks in PEI before heading back to the motel. :-) SO much better than Tim Horton's coffee....

EDIT: downloaded FR track. We probably stopped to talk for about 5 minutes....

After a bit of a walk around at Five Islands Provincial Park (we did see all 5 islands), we drove on to Cape Chignecto and did the Fundy Ridge trail over the headland to the beach (~150 m climb in a half mile, supposedly, and then back down), and hiked back on the beach to the red sandstone rocks below the visitors center, checking out all the shale crumbling down the cliffs. This area is along a fault that divides the two SW-facing "spurs" of Nova Scotia, and one of the areas where Pangaea split eons ago. Tide was out and there was a LOT of beach exposed.

Cape d'Or wasn't far so we stopped there to see the lighthouse; parking was uphill from it so another climb! Guess its a good thing I'm getting hill workouts in. :-) Cape d'Or is on a spit of land swept by tides passing on both sides that create a fierce riptide around high tide -- of course, we were there close to the tide's lowest point.

Note: if you're a lighthouse fan, most of the ones in NS look a lot similar to each other -- all painted white with red trim (the colors of Canada's flag). Peggy's Cove light has a neat setting and is worth a stop.

Event: Fishbones Long Distance
 

Long course 5 at Fishbones meet, back at Ski Wentworth. Nominally 4.2 km SL. I counted 270 m of contours up just on the straight lines (230 from bottom of hill where we started to the top, plus another 40 after a couple of legs where we dropped down, to which I added a couple lines dropping too low to #12--but it was a pretty route). I finished about 5.5 minutes behind Richard G. today, and was third overall on Course 5 (fastest time was around 75 minutes).

Lost a minute out of the start, thinking I could cross the stream not using the bridge (to go straight through the woods, instead of taking trails around), then most of another trying to see what side of the trail they hung #14 on (went right by along the trail, but I think they hadn't hung the flag yet). Then lost several (3-5 min) at 11 where I think I was checking the wrong group of boulders), and at least 5 dropping too low along the stream going to 12 and having to climb back up two contours on the ski trail. Another mistake was misreading a cliff/boulder combination off the side of a steep ski-slope drop; lost a minute or so there pondering.

Otherwise, I was glad I was fit enough to make it up the mountain, didn't have foot problems like at the Rogaine in July, and didn't hurt myself coming back down. More sightseeing on the schedule before next weekend's events.


Some people who went out yesterday were there but didn't start today.

C • You did . . . 1

Fishbones results

Event: Fishbones Middle Distance
 

Event: Fishbones Sprint
 

Course 5 map

Course 5 "middle" at Ski Wentworth in NS. Straight line distance quoted as 2.7 km, climb counted out to about 205m, 3/4 of that in the first 1.3 km. Four of the 8 controls were trail junctions and another was a ski-trail intersection disguised as a veg corner. No technical challenges, just a physical one. Basically, the first four legs climbed most of the way up the ski slope. Leg 5 came downhill a bit, 6 was back up the hill (35m climb), then the other two were downhill. I ran cautiously down the final slope, keeping kissy's injury at West Point in mind.

No big turnout here, and I am the only one in my age group this weekend, though not the only person on the course. Finished a minute behind the fastest gent, Richard Guttormson, who's 10 years older....
FR later; map linked above.
UPDATE: Added FR track

Course 2 map

After a jaunt north to the Tatamagouche Bay, we returned to Wentworth (up the road a bit at a provincial park) for the sprint. This is a largely flat park on either side of a medium-wide stream and marsh.A 12-minute start window got us all out on the course. Only two people on my course (me and Lorna G, W65+), and I started a minute behind...caught and passed her going to #4. Largely trail running, with an interesting woods leg from 4-5. There were a few issues with the map (mapped trails that weren't there in real life, or vice versa; veg changes not noted), but I had no trouble adjusting and am happy with my run.

We (G and I) decided the stated distances are 50% short, so I'll call the SL=1.65.

Went back out after the race to check out how the map differed from the terrain (at least with regards to trails). Didn't affect me too much, but G lost a little bit of time in an area where there are two sets of similar trails, only one mapped.

What I wanted to check out was an intersection mapped with three trails, where only two exist in the terrain. One was going to be a route choice up and over a small spur saving a little distance, but since it wasn't there I went the same way as Lorna (the only other person on course 2, who started a minute ahead of me, and who I could see from 1 until I passed her on the way to 4. She hesitated when an unmapped trail popped up; I knew we needed to go farther). There was a remnant of a trail beyond the junction, but it wasn't reflected on the map.

At Point Pleasant park in Halifax. A nice park but without great views (overlooks the freight harbor, for one thing, and the cruise ship terminal; the most recent cruise ship left yesterday); one decent view across the bay to a(nother) white lighthouse in the distance. The park seemed to be very popular with the recreational runners and dog walkers. Saw a circular fortification called a Martello tower, built in the late 1700s as part of the city's defense on the orders of Edward, Duke of Kent, and named for the Prince of Wales.

Hiked at Taylor Head Provincial Park east of Halifax, NS. We got there a bit later in the afternoon than we'd planned, so didn't do the entire loop (8+ km) out around the entire point, but did the Spry Bay loop counterclockwise, heading west across the boggy highlands to the west side of the bit of land the park was on (which was under 4 km). There were tons of Sarracenia purpurea pitcher plants in the bog which were in bloom, a state I'd never seen before. Nice hike.

Some fun maps

Walked a lot today in Halifax, first in and around the Citadel, then down to the waterfront and along that to the Farmers Market, which was closing up shop. Back to the car (parked, for free[!], on Ahern Rd near the Citadel) via the public garden which has two American chestnut specimens. Lunch at the Economy Shoe Shop (real name!), and dinner at the Henry House.

C • Maps 1

Hiked along sea caves trail at privately owned (admission charged) Ovens Natural Area near Lunenburg in NS. A few staircases were level 3 intensity, but only about 3 minutes worth. The sea caves got better and better as you went along the trail to Cannon Cave which was the loudest. It was good that the tide was coming in when we were there to make the thunder-echo even better. Ovens is owned by members of Tom Chapin's family (brother of the late Harry). He's actually a *very* distant cousin of mine (one of thousands, I'm sure), as we're both descended from one of the founders of Springfield, MA in 1635. I've read that founder Samuel had 7 children and 72 grandchildren!

We also clambered on the rocks on the lighthouse point at Peggy's Cove, which were more interesting than the lighthouse. Fun to watch the wild waves crashing against the rounded granite slabs. Glen kept imagining how it would be to map the rock detail (gray with patches of yellow? or yellow with broad swaths of gray/bare rock?).

Kejimkujik National Park (inland) in Nova Scotia. Two separate hikes, one starting near the visitors center and looping through forest and along the Mersey River (no ferries) and by Mill Falls. The other was a loop from the Big Dam Lake parking through old growth hemlocks (oldest about 400 years surrounded by several that are a bit less than 300, and lots of others, of course). Saw a bit about the geology of the park area, a bit about the First Nations people who settled there 13,000 years go, and drove down to a beach access. The day started in the mid 70s but by the time we were at the lake it was starting to cloud over. Rain, sometimes heavy, on the drive from there to Lunenburg along the south shore. We'll be at the Fishbones events this weekend in Wentworth.

Two hours, most of it standing, to get a smartphone. Now joining the 21st century?

No stepping, but otherwise a good class. Caught up on family news with Ruth (the 82 year old I exercise near; we seem to have similar personalities and get along very well).

Adding: Found out today she's of Swedish descent. Hasn't tried orienteering, though. :-)

At Kennedy Park, from the reservoir end (corner Reservoir Rd and Dugway), while Glen ran trails up on the ridge. Bike trail to main trail to Balance Rock, then up Umbrella Hill and the loop of Nose and the upper part of Aspinwall.

EDIT: added FR track

70 and overcast

Indian Ladder 3.5mi trail run?--No

I checked the estimated distance of our walk on Tuesday (Street Scramble controls plus just walking around North Beach and Chinatown) on Gmaps Pedometer, and come up with at least 9.5 miles (before catching the bus that dropped us a few blocks from the hotel; this is when we noted the pizza at the place up the street smelled really good, and we went there Wednesday). Felt like a Rogaine except for the hard sidewalks or pavement, and stop lights. :-)

Event: WMOC