Training Log Archive: JanetT

Recovery walk at SteelStacks in Bethlehem, on the Hoover-Mason Trestle walkway, and back via sidewalks, about 1/2 mile or so total.

Hoover-Mason Trestle

Interpretive walkway (informational signs along the way) about the Bethlehem Steel structures that remain in south Bethlehem, built after the plant was closed and decommissioned (last steel produced 1995; took 3 years to completely shut it down). We took the stairs (naturally) to ascend and descend and marveled (well, I did) at the opportunistic vegetation, including trees, growing up through the old structures.

Event: DVOA Governor Dick
 

Green course at DVOA's Governor Dick map in Mt Gretna, 5.1 km / 165m climb nominal. Temp about 50 (45 when we arrived, 55 when we left around 3pm).

AP counts almost 11 minutes of error, I count closer to 10. 87 minutes would have been a good time for me (90 minutes on a well-set green course is a good run for me).

I turned the wrong way out of start but caught myself quickly. Realized going to two I would have to use bearing / pace counting and did well except at the very end (went the right distance and turned the wrong way for a few steps but checked behind me as well and saw the flag).

AP thinks I had an error to 3 but I was just really slow over the rocky ground. Good traverse to 4, down the trail and reentrant to 5, then missed 6 off to the right but figured out which way to correct.

More bearing / pace counting needed to 7 but I had a bit of help at the end when I saw Vadim close by who was headed to the control too.

Up to the trail to 8, then angled through the med. green to the boulder. Contoured to the bare rock for 9.

Next problem was the second control on the 1:2500 blowup map, where I left the trail too early and climbed up a boulder I shouldn't have been near. Lost 3:30 on what should have been a simple leg. Fine on 14 and 15, then I overran 16 and had to backtrack, falling on the trail in the process. Confused by all the mapped rock at 17 and did a bit of circling. Then an easy run in from there.

Great weather day for orienteering and I'm glad we went.

Stopped by Middle Creek on the way back home and saw at least 1000 snow geese (plus some Canada geese and a few swans of some type). Nowhere near the number there a month ago (which we missed) but it was great to see that many.

Also discovered Black Forest brewpub in Ephrata, right off Main Street next door to (and owned by) Americana bed and breakfast. Decent beer and food.

Green - Splits

To get the kinks out. Not pushing anything today, just wanted to get the joints moving.

Yesterday was a travel day, spent mostly in airports or on the plane (yes, a nonstop). We didn't need the moving sidewalk at SFO because we had plenty of time to get to the gate (never found Starbucks in terminal 3).

This morning I read a short article about maps (old style navigation), that has the most info about the very first civilian O event I personally have seen.

Saw a display on local National Parks at the Maritime Museum at Fishermans Wharf in SanFran, so we altered our last day plans to swing down to Pinnacles, about two hours south of SF. Possible interesting things were a trail through caves made from giant jumbled rocks piled together (rather than underground), and the condor gulch trail.

This track is for our hike from the Peaks View Trailhead (where we parked when closer lots filled up earlier in the morning), up through Bear Creek Gulch and through said caves, using my phone's flashlight app as a light source when needed (while I had my camera along, it doesn't take very good photos so I used my phone's camera instead). Once we finally figured the not-very-well-signed trails, we made it to the reservoir at the top.

Took the more open trail back down to the Nature Center, past the Monolith, on switchbacking trails near the end. Saw multiple red headed woodpeckers (including acorn woodpeckers), Black Eyed Juncoes, and Swainson's thrushes near the picnic tables.

We decided we had time to hike the 1-mile-each-way Condor Gulch trail to the Overlook, and made it there in about a half hour (Glen could have gotten there sooner, but I'm not a fast climber).

Once there we ran into others from whom we learned the critical info that condor wing undersides have whitish areas toward the forward part of their wings, vs. the multitudinous turkey vultures who have whitish feather underparts but black forewings. And we saw two California condors circling the highest peaks now and then, among the many vultures! Made the hike that much more worthwhile.

Because it had been such a busy day despite not being a weekend, they were running a shuttle back to the visitors center, which stopped to drop us off at the parking lot where we ended up, saving us another mile or so hike. I can't imagine where everyone would park on a weekend, or how quickly the lots would fill.