Training Log Archive: Sandy

A fun outing at Nescopeck SP on one of Greg's maps using UsynligO. Time includes the (very) long walk to start and back to parking. I had in my head from the map that walk would be really steep but it was quite a gradual uphill (and downhill) so not bad at all.

The Trysons and I met up with Greg at the parking and then he tried to streamer the way to the start/finish. Unfortunately he didn't bring nearly enough streamers so the last bit of it he tried to mark by leaning branches up against trees. I started first but had to backtrack when I realized I didn't have my glasses on the first time I tried to read detail on the map. I must have dropped them somewhere on the way to start but despite some searching we never found them. Luckily I've been carrying spare glasses with me - they weren't ideal but worked well enough if I stopped to read the detail. I restarted and both Glen and Greg passed me on the way to #1. They were both doing a longer course but it started the same. I messed up #2 - got too low - and by #3 or 4 I could hear Janet behind me. I forget where we eventually converged but we did the last half of the course sort of together. I thought about cutting out two controls, but Janet wasn't having any of that and in the end I decided not to either.

The woods were somewhat thick with ferns and blueberry. That didn't bother me as much as the rocky ground and the prickers that seemed to attract me like magnets. I'd get stuck in it only to see that a few feet on either side of me was fine. The course was through some pretty cool terrain - lots of detailed contour stuff that was fun to traverse. Unfortunately the good stuff is sitting up above a fairly bland hillside. The last two legs side-hilled across a lot of that. Nailed the first one but got a little high on the second.

Had to wander once or twice to get UsynligO to find the control but most of the time it was fine.

A fun course at Lost Lakes that spent most of the time in private property and not the SGL. It's too bad because there was some really cool terrain in there. I picked fairly straightforward control sites since I hadn't been in the area before so the orienteering for the most part wasn't too bad. There were several places where the woods were thick - nothing prickery, just dense trees - so somewhat slow going. But other areas were wide open hemlock groves or very spongy, mossy areas. And I totally messed up one control. I was way off on my compass bearing. I actually tried to follow a vegetation boundary (hemlock forest) but it was somewhat diffuse at the edge and there was a bunch of rhododendron as well. I should have just used my compass, but didn't, and realized I had no idea where I was at some point and bailed to a stream. Couldn't really believe I was where I was because I was so far off but eventually figured it out.

I'm not sure what the deal is with the private property. There were several Posted signs, but they seemed to be warnings to hunters and trappers mostly. I wonder if they would care if random people were just orienteering in there. And I wonder who I would ask to find out.

Another great day in the woods.

Well this was a huge mess up. The plan was to check out a new area Greg had mapped. I made some UsynligO courses that just wandered in the woods going from hilltop to stream bend and other what I hoped would be obvious features. The area was in some state game lands, by Brady's Lake. I uploaded two short courses and a trail hike figuring I'd probably do 1 or 2 of them depending on how nice the woods were and so how fast it went.

The first problem was that the 3 mile dirt road in from the main road was being repaired and so was closed off. But it was a beautiful day so I figured I could just hike the road for a while and then do a section of one of the short courses that was closest.

The next problem was that I had forgotten to pack my knee brace. I don't *need* it to just walk around so I figured if I was mostly just walking on the dirt road I should be okay. And if it started to bother me I would just bail and walk back.

I walked about 2.5 miles to a dirt road junction which is where I was intending to head into the woods, only to find that it was the entrance to an active logging site that seemed to go on for a good long ways into the forest. It was posted with all sorts of signs saying to keep out so I didn't explore much but I checked further up the road where there was a clearing that gave a good vantage and it looked even more extensive from there.

I had left the other maps of the other short course that was on the other side of the road and the trail hike in my car so I couldn't even switch and one of those. Totally bummed, I just hiked the last half mile to the lake, took a short look around and then hiked back to my car.

So not the day I had planned. The good news is that my knee, while a little sore, doesn't seem too bad. Whew.

For some reason only half the hike synced with AP so this is the walk back to my car.

An old Kelly session. Slowly getting back to where I was a few months ago but still not ready to use the 10lb weights.

And a walk around the neighborhood. Am hoping that the speedy walks will come again at some point.

A short walk to get my mail. Also to get out the kinks in my back after an or so of working in the yard. And I'm more than halfway done with it! Definitely not the never-ending chore at my old place. And I have plenty of space to compost leaves and other debris instead of putting it all in the trash.