Operation South Dakota 2.0, Part V: Black Elk Peak, Custer State Park, and Custer

In October 2020, my dad and I embarked on an epic South Dakota adventure, which included a 5K (for both of us), a half marathon (for me), and a lot of exploring, hiking, and memories. Now, exactly one year later, I invite you to follow along as I take a multi-post look back at this incredible vacation in an incredible part of the country!

Catch up on the trip by reading Part I, Part II, Part III, and Part IV!

Our last full day in South Dakota was going to involve a hike to the summit of Black Elk Peak (elevation 7,244 feet – the tallest mountain between the Rockies and the Pyrenees!). I had been interested in hiking this in 2010, but we weren’t able to swing it then. It looked like 2020 would be our time!

When we returned to the hotel after our day at the Badlands, I researched Black Elk Peak hiking routes. Trail #9 sounded like the best one for our purposes.

Wednesday (Oct. 7, exactly a year ago!) was a beautiful day for a hike. We got out the door shortly after 7:00 to head to the trailhead at Sylvan Lake. The reflection of the trees and sky on the lake was stunning; one of my biggest regrets is not taking a picture of this for some reason.

The trail to the summit of Black Elk Peak was about 3.5 miles up and 3.5 back, so we went prepped with snacks and layers and water. We started around 8 a.m.

The trail was – you guessed it – beautiful! It was a cool morning, but we both started in T-shirts.

At first we were both sucking wind (#altitudeproblems) and trying to talk. We climbed a good bit right away, but it didn’t feel too intense to me. I just loved looking around – at the ground, at the trees, at the gorgeous rock formations, at the layered mountains in the distance when we reached a clearing.

At our first clearing, we could see Black Elk Peak waaaaaay off in the distance. Although it honestly seemed dauntingly far away to both of us, we talked about how we were still up for it and about how running distances are just as far; we just can’t see the destination, so they don’t always seem as daunting.

The trail climbed some more and looped around, and soon we were looking back and downward at the clearing where we had just been. Black Elk Peak was no longer in sight, but we were making headway.

After we climbed a bit, the trail descended, which was nice except that we knew that just meant we’d have to climb some more later.
Dad: No! Why are we going down!

One thing that had puzzled me was that I’d read online (and then we’d read on one of the informational signs) that anyone could hike the trail, but you needed a permit if you were going to summit. Well, we didn’t see anywhere at the trailhead or Sylvan Lake where we could get a permit, so we just went without. But still, I wondered where we should have gotten one and if we’d get in trouble for not having one.

No need to worry! After about 45 minutes of hiking, we reached a point where we were officially entering the Black Elk Wilderness – and that’s where they had a little box with permits to fill out. Problem solved!

Officially entering the wilderness

Dad attached the permit to my pack, and we went on our way. The trail was completely wooded at this point – downhill for a bit, over some muddy areas, and winding uphill.

I had no idea how far we’d walked of the 3.5-mile journey to the summit, but I could tell we were getting closer when the terrain started to change. The trees became more sparse and the sky was more evident beyond the pine trees overhead. The trail got a bit more rocky too, and we were careful with our footing.

Finally we really broke through the trees and had the most gorgeous view! Visibility for miles and miles on a perfectly clear day – rock formations, the Cathedral Spires, mountains…ahhh, I just wanted to soak it all in as much as I could.

We were close now, probably within a quarter-mile of the summit, and the views were getting better and better. Have you ever done something so amazing, so special, that you are fully aware in that moment just how mind-blowingly incredible it is? That’s how I felt in those moments – just fully aware of how blessed I was to be on that trail on such a beautiful day, seeing those wonderful sights with my dad.

Before long, we reached our final turnoff for Black Elk Peak and Harney Tower. We were almost there! (Strangely, we weren’t sucking wind as much as we had been at the beginning, despite the fact that we’d climbed about 1,000 feet of elevation!)

The trail opened up into a clearing, and we briefly took in the view before heading on. Up on the right we could see Harney Tower and a pole with bandanas, etc.; it kind of made us feel like we were on a mountain in Nepal or something!

The trail looped up to Harney Tower and led us into a stone stairwell that wound up into the tower and on top. The whole atmosphere was so cool! We emerged from the stone and were halfway up the tower.

Climbing part of Harney Tower

What a view it was! I have no clue how far we could see, but we could definitely see four states. Just beautiful scenery as far as the eye could see. Rock formations, forests, mountains, cliffs, plains, ahhh.

The actual tower part of Harney Tower

We went up higher into the tower, where there was an overlook. We stayed out there a while and got some pictures.

Breathtaking views!

So vast!

After taking in the view for a bit, we went down to the main level and ate some snacks. Quite the scenic meal location, if you ask me!

In all, we spent more than an hour at the summit and then began our descent. We were careful with our footing as we went down, but I was still pausing to look around and enjoy. It’s hard to know whether I truly soaked in the view as much as I could have, but I really believe I did.

The descent was pretty rapid, and we lost elevation quickly! We took it easy on the rocky parts but picked up the pace when the going got easier. Dad even jogged some on the way back. I did not! We still made pretty good time, and before I knew it we were back at the permit place. We finished filling out the form and put the rest of it in the box.

Soon we were back at the first overlook where we’d seen Black Elk Peak way off in the distance.

When we exited the trail, it was bittersweet. On one hand, we’d done it! We’d summited the mountain I’d wanted to climb 10 years ago! On the other hand, it was over!

We took our stuff back to the car and then walked around Sylvan Lake. So beautiful! Sylvan Lake had been one of our favorites 10 years ago, so walking there was definitely nostalgic.

Dad is giving his “LH” initials sign. 🙂

After saying goodbye (or “see you later”) to the lake, we headed to Needles Highway, where we knew we’d see some spectacular views and drive through three tunnels in the rocks.

When we got to the Needles Eye, Dad stayed in the car and I got out to explore a bit. I climbed back up into the rocks where Mom and I had 10 years ago, taking in the views there before climbing on the other side where one of the tunnels was.

Needles Eye on Needles Highway

Once I returned to the car, Dad drove through the tunnel with no problem (at least, from my perspective) and we continued on the highway. We drove through another cool tunnel and saw some other incredible rock formations.

Needles Highway was long but incredible. Knowing that we were leaving the next day, I really wanted to take it all in and enjoy the views and the time with Dad.

We picked our way south until we hit Route 16, where we turned left to go to the Coolidge Gift Shop. I definitely stocked up on souvenirs there. No regrets whatsoever!

We love Custer!

Purchases in hand, we drove to downtown Custer, where we walked around and stopped in a few shops. We were pretty close to the Custer Skywalk, so we took our stuff to the car and walked over.

The Custer Skywalk beckoned us!

Let me tell you: Dad and I did not remember how intense the Custer Skywalk trail was! Sure, we were doing it on the heels of a 7-mile hike, but still. Steep and long with awkward steps! The scenery on the way up was nice, though. And, of course, the view at the top was amazing and totally worth it!

The Custer Skywalk overlook

It was about dinnertime, so we headed to Black Hills Burger and Bun Co. in Custer. (It had just been rated the No. 1 burger in South Dakota, so we couldn’t NOT go there!)

It was obvious why these burgers had received their recent accolades. There was just something special about them! I got the Hot Granny with a bison burger (bacon, cream cheese, jalapenos, and sweet-spicy jalapeno sauce) and fries. Dad got the Black Hills Blues with a beef burger (blue cheese crumbles, bacon, garlic aioli, and grilled onions) and Granny’s beans. Would highly recommend!

After dinner, we made our way to a homemade ice cream place, Horatio’s. Even though I wasn’t super hungry, I wanted the Horatio’s experience!

The shop is named after Horatio Ross, who had accompanied General Custer on his expedition to the Black Hills in 1874 and discovered gold. He claimed several sites and stayed in the town of Custer for 30 years.

Just like Horatio Ross found gold in Custer, we found the hidden nugget of Horatio’s Ice Cream. Dad got two scoops of chocolate in a dish. I got a waffle cone with Iron Mountain Road (like Rocky Road, only more geographically appropriate) and a scoop of Cookie Butter. SO GOOD.

He’s trying to steal my ice cream…

The night was a tad chilly, especially after ice cream, so we went back to the car and drove to the hotel…

…to pack. Dun, dun, dun!

Operation South Dakota 2.0, Part IV: Badlands National Park

In October 2020, my dad and I embarked on an epic South Dakota adventure, which included a 5K (for both of us), a half marathon (for me), and a lot of exploring, hiking, and memories. Now, exactly one year later, I invite you to follow along as I take a multi-post look back at this incredible vacation in an incredible part of the country!

Catch up on the trip by reading Part I, Part II, and Part III!

Exactly one year ago today, Dad and I began the journey from our hotel in Custer to the Badlands! I loved this park when we visited in 2010, so it was pretty high on my list of things to do this time, too. Since there were a lot of other things we wanted to do in South Dakota, I had naively suggested that we only needed to make it a half day/partial day. Dad was skeptical – his experience led him to believe/know that a partial day to the Badlands was unlikely. As I learned, dads are typically right about things like this.

I’d also forgotten how close the Badlands are to Wall Drug. We saw Wall Drug signs the whole way; of course, they still advertised free ice water and 5-cent coffee.

From exit 110 off Route 90, it was a short 8 miles to the entrance of the Badlands. My excitement was mounting as we got closer. It was even more when we reached the entrance and several bison started walking across a field toward us!

As we drove through the gorgeous Badlands, we rarely went past an overlook without stopping. We spent a good handful of minutes at the first overlook, just taking it all in and being amazed.

See me on the ledge over on the right?

Early on in our drive, we came upon a golden mound where we had stopped in 2010! Of course we parked and checked it out again. Dad said he’d take a video of me running up the mound. He climbed up and said go – so I ran up, still stiff from the half marathon. When I was close to the top, he motioned for me to stop; turns out he hadn’t started the video! So I had to go back down and run it again. The pain!! Worth it for the tradition, though!

Screenshot of my second attempt at running up the golden mound (the attempt that was actually recorded)

View from close to the top of the golden mound

Trying to make Michael Jordan proud

The next overlook was stunning (OK, they all were), and Dad and I had someone take our picture. As we were leaving, Dad threw a stone at me! We then passed the person who had taken our picture, who was in her car.
Person: Father/daughter trip?
Me: Yes!
Person (lighthearted): Make sure he treats you nice!
Me: Well, he just threw a stone at me, so I have to throw him over the edge now.
Person: I won’t say anything!

(I did not actually throw my dad off the edge…)

As we made our way through the park, we saw a bunch of cars stopped along the road. We pulled up behind them and saw a majestic bighorn sheep with huge horns just sitting overlooking the Badlands! It was beautiful!

The day had started off cool and windy yet sunny, but by this point the coolness was fleeting and the wind was sparse. I’d worn long sleeves over my T-shirt, but I nixed the long sleeves around this point.

Dad and I wanted to do a handful of trails, of course. We reached the Fossil Trail first; it’s a short trail with boardwalks, but it’s a good intro to the Badlands.

Fossil Trail

Across the way from the Fossil Trail was the Castle Trail. We hadn’t planned to do this one because it was a point-to-point that was a handful of miles long. We did, however, want to explore it a bit. So we went right to it.

Dad and I explored together for little and then split off. I climbed a few structures and ran around. It was getting hot, though, so after a bit I made my way over to Dad and we went back to the car.

What’s up, Castle Trail?

We wound our way through the park and were disappointed to see that the Cliff Shelf Trail was blocked off because of roadwork taking place along that road. Bummer!

We reached the visitor center and gift shop next, but we wanted to do our hiking before buying lunch and gifts. We knew that nearby were the next three trails: Door, Window, and Notch.

Dad and I headed out on the Door Trail unencumbered. We discovered that this trail included a half-mile-ish trek to a canyon overlook! It was strongly recommended to take water, so we went back to the car and grabbed our gear.

The trail was fun and as strenuous as you wanted it to be. You could follow the trail markers exactly or deviate from them a bit. I really enjoyed that!

Exploring the Door Trail

The view at the end was phenomenal. Pictures don’t do it justice (although I definitely tried!).

Just about at the overlook on the Door Trail

The view from the overlook

It was getting hotter, though, so we didn’t stay out there too long. Next up was the nearby Window Trail. We reparked the car closer to that trailhead and embarked. This one was very short and led to a window of sorts through the structures overlooking the area that encompassed the Door Trail. Short and sweet, that’s for sure. Amazing.

Window Trail!

We had one more trail to do before lunch: the Notch Trail. Now, in 2010, I remember really liking this one. It’s not for people who are afraid of heights, because you climb up a wooden ladder and then hike along a ledge for a while until you reach an overlook.

Dad and I were still game, so off we trekked. We hiked back to the ladder but had to wait a while to ascend because a bunch of people were coming down. Finally we had our chance!

The Notch Trail’s ladder

I climbed up first, and it wasn’t really unnerving at all. Dad made it up fine too, and we started along the ledge.

The ledge was amazing, as I remembered. We just watched our footing but also made sure to look around and enjoy the sights!

The ledge eventually flattened out into wide space, leading to the overlook. Honestly, the view from the overlook was more beautiful than I’d remembered. We took in the view, snapped some pictures, and headed back. It was hot and we were hungry!

What an absolutely beautiful overlook!

We made our way carefully back the ledge, where the wooden ladder was waiting. In my opinion, the sketchiest part of going down the ladder was turning around beforehand. Once I got that, it was smooth sailing.

Dad descending the ladder

Next stop: food!

The restaurant at the gift shop wasn’t serving dine-in, only takeout from a little window on the side of the building. I had my heart set on an Indian taco (I’d been waiting 10 years for this!), and I was scared they wouldn’t have them because of the takeout process!

But they did have Indian tacos! Yahooooo!!! Dad and I each got one, and we ate outside with the Badlands as our backdrop. Couldn’t ask for anything more!

The Indian taco was so worth waiting for. I’m getting hungry just thinking about it now, a year later! It was so good. SO. GOOD.

Great food, great company, great scenery

After doing a bit of shopping, we decided to head back to Custer. Mid-afternoon was turning to late afternoon, so we took in the changing colors on the Badlands (and the numerous bighorn sheep) as we drove out.

All too soon, it was time to exit the park. It was slow going because there were some bison in the way…South Dakota problems.

We were close to Wall and the famous Wall Drug, so we stopped in a convenience store and each got a Coke.

Cold beverages in hand, we headed back on Route 90 West. The sun was starting to set, and it was so beautiful. Detecting a beauty trend here?

Our plan was to drive home on the Iron Mountain Road (pigtail bridges, tunnels with views of Rushmore); even though we’d planned to do it when it was light out, this was a good Plan B. But we also wanted to see Rushmore lit up, so we took a short detour to take that in as well. Back on Iron Mountain Road, I enjoyed going over the pigtail bridges and seeing views of Rushmore through the tunnels. That’s just cool at any time of day or night.

Gotta say, though, Iron Mountain Road is LONG, especially when you’re tired, which we were! But I reminded myself to soak it all in. I could always sleep another time, but my opportunity to enjoy the Iron Mountain Road and Custer State Park was limited!

In fact, we had only one full day to go, and I was not ready for the trip to end.

Operation South Dakota 2.0, Part III: From Deadwood to Spearfish Canyon

In October 2020, my dad and I embarked on an epic South Dakota adventure, which included a 5K (for both of us), a half marathon (for me), and a lot of exploring, hiking, and memories. Now, exactly one year later, I invite you to follow along as I take a multi-post look back at this incredible vacation in an incredible part of the country!

Want to catch up? Read Part I and Part II!

I was feeling a little sore and gimpy on Oct. 5, 2020, the day after the Run Crazy Horse Half Marathon. The plan for the day wasn’t too strenuous, though: we were going to head north to explore Deadwood/Lead/Spearfish/Spearfish Canyon. I’d seen these during our trip in 2010, but we only drove through at night when it was raining, so I was looking forward to seeing them in the daytime.

The drive up to Deadwood was so scenic. There were a good handful of hills, and my half-marathon-affected body ended up thinking about how horrible it would be to have to run them.

We arrived in Deadwood the same way we had in 2010; it looked completely different during the daytime!

Dad and I stopped at the visitors’ center and found the location of Mt. Moriah Cemetery, where Wild Bill Hickock, Calamity Jane, and Potato Creek Johnny are buried. Of course we had to go check it out (admission was only $2!).

The cemetery is situated pretty high up on a hill, and the roads to it are STEEP. The cemetery had a book with a list of who’s buried where, so it was easy to find the three celebrity inhabitants.

It was good to move around, but it definitely hurt walking up those hills in the cemetery! And, of course, the celebrity graves were up another few inclines.

People had put playing cards on Wild Bill’s grave that mirrored his last hand – two pairs: black aces and black eights). Apparently Calamity Jane’s dying wish was to be buried next to him. He wasn’t a fan of her, to put it nicely, but she died after he did, so her wish was granted.

The resting place of Wild Bill Hickock

After checking out those graves, we headed out, parking in downtown Deadwood and walking along historic Main Street. Deadwood is such a neat, quintessential Old West town with a bunch of gambling places and saloons (we also saw the place the guy who shot Wild Bill was apprehended). We couldn’t resist grabbing some ice cream at the Big Dipper/Main Street Espresso; my white chocolate raspberry truffle cone was superb.

Our next stop was Lead, a unique town in the mountains. OK, technically it wasn’t a stop because we just drove through (aside from filling up the gas tank), but I enjoyed looking out the window at what Lead had to offer.

Next up were Spearfish and Spearfish Canyon. Our GPS took us a really random (and pretty sketchy) route on gravel roads through the mountains with only rare sightings of houses. We cracked up so hard every time the GPS reminded us to turn onto/stay on Maintland Road. It’s kind of a miracle we’re not still driving around on Maintland Road a year later…

After FOREVER, we emerged onto a real road and made it to the town of Spearfish! We drove through it but didn’t get out. It seems like a neat place, too.

Our last destination was Spearfish Canyon. I’d really been looking forward to this because I’d never seen it in the daytime and because someone had told us that it was beautiful during autumn.

It did not disappoint. Many of the trees had bright yellow leaves, which popped against the green of the pines. I frequently exclaimed, “Ohhh!” and “Wow!” and “Whoa!” as I looked at the canyon walls backdropping the fall foliage. Absolutely incredible.

We spent just a short time at Bridal Veil Falls, which was back up in the woods and was beautiful. Another quick stop was at Devil’s Bathtub, where there was a little rapids spot and above it a tranquil pool of water a color we’d not seen before – a bluish/greenish color, but light and with a slight hint of brown. It looked like it would be inviting on a hot summer day.

Random question: Does Devil’s Bathtub make you cleaner…or dirtier?

Bridal Veil Falls is back there, almost hidden by the trees.

After driving a while longer, we parked in Savoy, where we could see Spearfish Falls and then hike to Roughlock Falls.

Spearfish Falls was stunning from the upper overlook. There was also a lower overlook a short hike away, down the side of a hill and over a creek and through the woods. Of course we decided to do this trek. The falls were gorgeous from the lower overlook too, and they misted us with a delightful spray.

Spearfish Falls was wonderful!

Once back at the trailhead, we tracked down the Roughlock Falls trailhead and began that trek. For some reason it was tough for me to remember the name Roughlock.

Me: Dad, I think that’s the trailhead for Roughneck Falls.
Dad: …Roughlock…
Me: Ha, yeah.

The trail started over a little footbridge and was about a mile long. It was a neat wooded trail with a river that ran along beside it. Dad and I walked and jogged along, talking about all sorts of things.

Jogging along

We reached a point in the trail where there was a little side trail down to a bridge that crossed the water. We embraced the short detour and walked most of the way across the bridge before returning to the trail. It’s often worth it to completely soak in wherever you are in nature. Ahhh.

The day was cool, and the trail was mostly shaded, so it felt good to keep moving. When the river broke into a more open swamp-ish area, I turned around and looked behind me, and the view was stunning, with canyon walls on all sides. And the way the light was hitting some of them was so mind-blowing.

Before too long we came to the lower observation deck of Roughlock Falls – amazing! We spent just a few minutes there and then kept hiking to the upper deck. The views on the way were breathtaking too.

The upper observation deck had three separate lookout points. We stopped at all of them, of course, and we also explored upriver just a bit, finding a neat shaded picnic area and a little pool of water and…BATHROOMS!

Me: Hey, look! Roughneck Falls!
Dad: Roughlock…

On the trek back to the car, we soaked in the views as the natural light changed. Have I mentioned it was gorgeous? It was gorgeous.

With the incredible hike complete, we headed out toward our hotel in Custer (and dinner – I realized I hadn’t had a real meal since before the half marathon – a day and a half earlier!).

Dinner was at the Buglin’ Bull in Custer. I put our name in, and we killed some time by walking around the town, although we didn’t have to wait long, thankfully (I was HUNGRY). Buglin’ Bull has a neat atmosphere, kind of woodsy and cool. Dad got a Bacon Blue Burger with chips, and I got a Wagyu Melt with garlic Parm fries. My sandwich was on grilled sourdough bread and had a really tasty sauce. Mmmm, so good and replenishing.

Tired and satisfied, we headed back to the hotel to begin prepping for the next day’s adventure: the Badlands!!

Live and Learn: 2020 Goals Edition

I like to have goals – concrete targets where I can aim and that I can use to measure my progress and focus my efforts. Entering 2020, I had set exercise goals in five categories: running, walking/hiking, strength training, planks, and biking (exercise bike or traditional bike).

Take a guess at how many of those five goals I achieved.

One. That’s right. ONE. UNO. ENO. UN. You get the idea.

I was so, so close to a second goal and within (distant) spitting range of a third. And two goals I didn’t even come close to meeting.

Cringe.

On the bright side, I knocked it out of the park with the one goal I met, so there’s that, I guess.

Don’t get me wrong; I knew my exercise totals weren’t going to be pretty, so I wasn’t entirely surprised at the results. Before I tallied everything up, I honestly wasn’t sure I was going to meet any of my goals. That said, I didn’t think I’d be so far off of meeting so many of them. (I did, however, meet my goal of reading the Bible out loud, cover to cover, in 2020. YAHOO!)

I spent a little chunk of time this past weekend pondering what went so horribly awry for me with my exercise goals. From what I can tell, it boils down to a few things:

1. I didn’t know what I was capable of. I hadn’t done a tally of my exercise in 2019, so I had no idea what would be reasonable for me to achieve in 2020. I set my 2020 goals loosely based on some goals I had set seven-ish years prior, when life looked a lot different for me. Whoops.
2. I didn’t check in on my progress during the year. This is a big one, especially for the goal I was incredibly close to meeting. If I would have been paying attention to my progress, I could have met that goal SO easily and maybe gotten respectably close to meeting the others.
3. I hadn’t planned on life as I knew it being completely blown out of the water. I guess that’s the thing with goals – you set them based on your current and/or anticipated situation, but sometimes curveballs happen. As the vast majority of people can attest, 2020 was one gigantic curveball, to say the least. In my case, not only was there the global event that I am not going to mention by name, but there were a lot of unrelated changes with my job and other things I’m involved with, so I had a lot less free time than usual…and I was a lot more frustrated than usual. I did pour my frustration into exercise, but not in the categories I’d set for myself. (For example, I shot hoops a lot.)

OK, now that we know why I struggled to meet my goals, let’s take a look at each goal a little more closely.

RUNNING
Target: 500 miles
Reality: 356.15 miles
Deficit: 143.85 miles
Monthly Breakdown:

Entering 2020, running 500 miles felt like a pretty conservative goal for me. One thing I’m realizing, though, is that it really helps me to have a reason to run. As in, a race I’m training for. Looking at the monthly breakdown, the months where I logged the most miles are the months where I was training for a race (see August and September – 64.4 miles and 80.7 miles, respectively – when I was training for the Crazy Horse Half Marathon). In late February and early March, I’d been training for the Rutgers Unite Half Marathon, which would have been in mid-April; it was canceled, so, despite my desire to continue my training program, I kind of stopped training in mid-March. (Then the race directors said, “Hey, we’re making it a virtual race!” So, on the day the race would have been held, Mom and I went out and did 13.1 miles after not really running the previous month.) If I hadn’t stopped training for Rutgers, I would have logged maybe 80 or so additional training miles, which would have put me within spitting range of my goal.

Along those same lines, a number of other half marathons I had considered signing up for were canceled. I log about 150 miles each time I train for a half marathon, so if I had even been able to do one more half, it’s likely I would have met my running goal.

But hey. Since I didn’t have races to focus on, my running fell by the wayside. I could have/should have independently laced up my Mizuno Wave Inspires and logged more miles just for fun, but I didn’t. No excuses here, just observations.

2021 running goal: 500 miles. I should be able to do this if I take ownership of my time and override the part of me that can’t seem to get motivated.

WALKING/HIKING
Target: 200 miles
Reality: 309.65 miles
Surplus: 109.65 miles
Monthly Breakdown:

Woohoo! I knocked this one out of the park! This is one instance where I didn’t know what I was capable of (in a positive sense).

Looking at the monthly breakdown, my numbers started to spike over the summer, when I took more time to walk as a way to blow off some steam during the day. I also walked more to meet up with my family in town, etc.

My highest total came in October, when I logged 60.4 miles. This was due to an amazing trip to South Dakota with my dad (more to come on that in future blog posts); we flew out there to run some races but spent a few extra days hiking around in Custer State Park, Spearfish Canyon, the Badlands, etc. I also joined my church’s youth group on a backpacking trip that month.

My 2020 total could have been higher, but there were a few additional hiking opportunities I typically would have had but weren’t available to me for various reasons. Hey, no complaints here, though; I’m just glad to have one goal I actually met!

2021 walking/hiking goal: 350 miles. I decided to add just a bit to what I totaled in 2020. Who knows? Maybe I’ll far exceed this goal, too, in which case I’ll need to give myself more of a challenge in 2022.

STRENGTH TRAINING
Target: 150 sessions
Reality: 132 sessions
Deficit: 18 sessions
Monthly Breakdown:

It was feast or famine with strength training in 2020: I had stretches where all I wanted to do was lift and stretches where I barely picked up my weights. The first three months of the year were pretty bare, but I found my stride in the spring and early summer. Strength training took a backseat to cardio in the late summer and fall, but I refocused on it during December thanks to a “12 Days of Christmas” workout that was pretty heavy on arm stuff.

If I’d been aware of my progress during the year, I might have pushed myself to meet this goal. Hard to say, though.

I measured this goal in the number of sessions (instead of tracking my improvement in number of reps or amount of weight lifted, etc.) because my strength training is so varied; I don’t stick only with lifting dumbbells, for example. I do that, but I also do bodyweight stuff and fitness trails and miscellaneous strength training exercises (like cat press instead of bench press). Maybe I’ll come up with a better way to measure this goal in the future, but for now I figure that measuring in number of sessions can generally account for how well (or poorly) I focus on strength training.

2021 strength training goal: 150 sessions (again). Let’s see if I can keep a more consistent focus on this year-round this time.

My purrsonal trainer, Sebastian, sometimes helps me track my strength training workouts.

PLANKS
Target: 500 minutes
Reality: 477.5 minutes
Deficit: 22.5 minutes
Monthly Breakdown:

I MISSED THIS GOAL BY ONLY 22.5 MINUTES?! ARE YOU KIDDING ME? If I would have planked just 26 more seconds per week, I would have met this goal. Or if I would have done just one more Saturday of planking every hour for 12 hours (which I did a handful of Saturdays over the summer), I would have met this goal. If I would have just CHECKED MY PROGRESS at any point during the year, I would have recognized how close I was, and I would have MADE IT HAPPEN. This one stings a bit, to be honest, because it was so achievable!

June was my best planking month; I tallied 110 minutes of planks, an average of a 3:40 plank every day. I also had good months in May (97 minutes) and December (98 minutes); if I’d known how close I was to the century mark those two months, I would have done a bit more planking to get there. Also, I did ZERO minutes of planks in October; not sure why I trailed off like that, but if I hadn’t, I would have met my goal.

Overall, I averaged 39.47 minutes of planking every month. (Side note: 41:40 per month would have had me meet my goal.)

Grrr. OK, we have established how reachable this goal was and how frustrating it was (and is) not to have met it. It’s time to change the coulda/woulda/shoulda of 2020 into the can/will/DID IT of 2021.

2021 planks goal: 600 minutes. Because I was so close to my 2020 goal, I figure I can add some more minutes to the 2021 goal and make it. After all, that’s only an average of 11:30 per week!

• 

• 

Feeling the pain of a 3-minute plank (left) and being “assisted” by my furry friend Layne (right), who held my forearm down (while purring) as I struggled through another plank

BIKING (Exercise Bike or Traditional Bike)
Target: 25 hours
Reality: 12 hours, 20 minutes
Deficit: 12 hours, 40 minutes
Monthly Breakdown:

OK, how did I not even make it halfway? I felt like I spent so much more time on the bike than that. (Side note: I calculated this in minutes instead of miles because most of my biking happens on my exercise bike, which doesn’t have a working odometer.)

My best month was November, when I tallied 2.5 hours on the exercise bike. That was only because I spent a few weeks quarantining and the exercise bike was my only option for exercise. Despite my focus on riding the exercise bike in November, my total for that month wasn’t blow-my-mind amazing; it was just solid.

I didn’t hop on the bike at all in August or September; that’s partially excusable because I was training for a half marathon, but still, I should have been more devoted to riding the bike as part of my cross-training.

Again, live and learn. The exercise bike started getting pretty squeaky toward the end of the year, so I’ll have to adjust that so I don’t lose my mind while using it as I work to exceed my 2021 goal.

2021 biking goal: 25 hours. If at first you don’t succeed, try again!

• 

• 

Logging some time on the bike with friends in Harpers Ferry, W.Va., in July 2020

NEW 2021 CATEGORY: BURPEES
You know those people who aim to run 2,020 miles in 2020 or 1,998 miles in 1998, etc.? I always thought it would be cool to do something like that. (A.D. 356 would have been a great year to live for that reason. See my 2020 running mileage total if you don’t get why I picked A.D. 356…)

Of course, since I didn’t even reach 500 miles in 2020, running 2,021 miles in 2021 is definitely out of the question. Perhaps some year I’ll set a distance-based goal like that.

For 2021, though, I decided to pick a physical activity that will provide a different sort of challenge: 2,021 burpees! The number sounds like a lot, but when you do the math, it seems more manageable; it averages out to about six burpees every day. The challenge will be making time for them and cranking them out when I just feel like sitting on the couch. I already have some girls from my basketball team on board, so having that accountability should be a help to all of us.

2021 burpees goal: 2,021. Let’s do this!

Maybe this year will throw endless curveballs, or maybe it will be smooth sailing the whole way through. No matter what, I’m going to do my best to reach these goals – and I’m going to keep track of my progress along the way!

Ten Years of Operation Life

Ten years ago today, on April 26, 2010, I took the first steps on a journey – a journey toward improved health, improved energy levels, better fitness, and a whole host of other benefits that I hadn’t anticipated. This journey is called Operation Life.

The first stirrings of Operation Life can actually be traced to a few weeks before, on April 5, 2010, when I realized I wasn’t as healthy as I thought I was. I had found myself in a bit of a rut since graduating from college the year before, and I was becoming increasingly dissatisfied with certain aspects of life. That led to me being grouchy, perpetually tired, and generally lethargic – and I kind of tried to self-medicate with food. It didn’t work, and, in fact, it likely made things worse, contributing to my downward spiral.

But on April 5, the rubber hit the road and I realized I needed to change something about the way I was living. My family was planning an incredible trip to South Dakota that summer, and I knew I wanted to get in great shape so I could make the most of the experience – lots of hiking, climbing, exploring, you name it.

Three weeks later, I started taking tangible steps toward this goal as part of an effort dubbed Operation South Dakota. My mom decided to join me, and it was so helpful to have accountability. I started eating more fruits and veggies. I walked past the bags of chips on top of the fridge when I got home from work. I exercised more regularly and more intentionally. My first official workout to prepare for the South Dakota trip was a weightlifting session using dumbbells I already owned. I don’t remember what the routine was, but it was probably something weird I created on my own with no idea what I was doing (sorry, Dad).

As time progressed and the trip grew closer, I was loving how much better I felt – stronger, more rested, happier, more fit. Mom and I decided that Operation South Dakota should be renamed Operation Life, because we were not going to stop our efforts or scale them back once the trip was behind us. No, our new way of approaching life was going to stick with us.

The sis and yours truly exploring the Badlands

Family hike near Sylvan Lake

And it did. I loved working out and eating in ways that fueled my body to be its best.

As I ramped up my veggie intake, I expanded my horizons by discovering a world of strange but healthy recipes.

Some of them were surprisingly good. Take raw lasagna, for example. Completely vegan, right down to the “ricotta cheese” that was actually made from macadamia nuts and pine nuts. It was very tasty, but I only made it once because it was EXPENSIVE. Another surprise was a kale juice recipe; sounds gross but ended up being very tasty!

Then there were the recipes that were expectedly good: smoothies and three-ingredient cookies, for example. I haven’t made those cookies in a while. Maybe I will soon – perhaps today?

Tasty three-ingredient cookies!

And, of course, there were a few duds. Mom and I tried a recipe for “Sweet and Spicy Arugula Saute” that left our eyes watering. But my least-favorite was a dairy-free lemon cauliflower pudding. It was the most horrible thing, and I still laugh when I recall naive Krista thinking that this would somehow be good!

Outside of the kitchen, I focused on my fitness. I’m a firm believer that exercise shouldn’t be something you strongly dislike. If running isn’t your thing, for example, don’t make yourself run. Instead, do something you enjoy. And I can honestly say that I enjoyed my workouts, everything from lifting weights to riding the exercise bike to shooting baskets and incorporating some sprinting games.

Mom and I also did a lot of walking. We’d walk 2 miles from home to Lancaster Central Market, buy a bunch of produce, and carry it all home. Yes, sometimes this meant that we each were toting a melon of some sort. It was all just fun.

I didn’t set out to be a runner.

This goes back to my philosophy that people should enjoy exercise. And I did not enjoy running. At all. Whenever I saw a friend running at college, I’d be like, “Why?!” After college I watched a friend finish a half marathon and sincerely wondered what in the world would ever possess anyone to run that far. So I was strongly anti-running.

But after consistently taking walks for months, I started to think, What if I move faster? And after doing my sprinting games during my basketball workouts, I began to wonder, How many laps around this court is a mile? The answer was 20 – well, 20 laps was 1.1 miles. Before I knew it, I was starting each basketball session with 20 laps and then moving on to my regular workout. I timed myself, watching myself complete 1.1 miles in 12 minutes, then 11, then 10, then 9-something. EXCITING!

I also started running with friends here and there. I woke up early to run at the beach on vacation. Mom and I signed up for our first 5K (Sept. 17, 2011), and I won third in my age category. Inspired, I kept signing up for 5Ks.

First 5K!

After a few months of that, my friend Candace asked me if I’d be interested in running the 2012 Pittsburgh Half Marathon with her. In my head, I immediately thought, NO WAY! But then I thought about it a little more and was like, “Hey, why not?”

In a very short amount of time, I went from being appalled that anyone would want to run 13.1 miles to realizing why they do. After the Pittsburgh Half, I was hooked.

I blame Candace for getting me hooked on half marathons. Yes, definitely Candace’s fault.

I ran four half marathons before I decided to tackle an even bigger challenge, one I had promised myself I’d never do: a full marathon. (Haha, I accidentally typed “fun” instead of “full” just now. And “fun” it was NOT!) My first marathon was in 2015, and it was without a doubt the toughest thing I’ve ever done. It didn’t go as planned, but I learned a lot and returned the following year to try again, with more success.

2015 (left), where I walked a lot, vs. 2016 (right), where I ran the whole thing!

I’ve even completed a handful of obstacle races, from national ones like Warrior Dash (may it rest in peace) to local ones like the Acre Breaker. Now those actually are fun. Not fun to clean up after, but hey, cross that bridge when you come to it.

Summoning my inner Air Jordan, 2014

I love this shot of my sis and me at our first Warrior Dash! (This was the coldest late-August day EVER, I’m pretty sure.)

And, of course, there’s hiking. I’ve been on many backpacking and camping trips. I’ve hiked Pikes Peak. I’ve summited Mount Washington (twice), along with numerous other peaks in New Hampshire and the Adirondacks, as part of yearly winter mountaineering adventures. I never would have dreamed of doing these things, but the path of Operation Life led me to a place where they were and are possible.

Mountaineering crew on Franconia Ridge (I’m on the far right in the green jacket)

Ten years after Operation Life began, it’s fun to look back at it all. This is such a far cry from where the journey started! From sporadic weightlifting, basketball, and walking to half marathons, marathons, obstacle races, and mountaineering?!

All this reminiscing has challenged me too, because I’ve noticed myself coming full circle lately…and not necessarily in a good way. You see, I’m not as healthy or fit as I’d like to be at the moment. I’ve slipped into some not-so-great food habits, due to convenience or general disappointment with things, and I need to snap out of it! I’ve also scaled back on my exercise because I sometimes feel (or think I feel) too tired at the end of the workday. Sound familiar? Sounds like me a decade ago!

What better time to start getting back on track with renewed focus and intention than on the 10-year anniversary of the launch of Operation Life? Let’s do this.

I had no idea where Operation Life would take me, but I’m so grateful for this journey. And I’m so grateful for wherever it leads me next.

The Great Toenail Saga of 2017

Instigated by mountaineering. Exacerbated by running.

Be warned: This tale is not for the faint of heart. There are quite a few gross toe pictures (with blood) ahead!

Someone once asked me if I would ever get a pedicure, and I just cringed. Sure, my feet aren’t horrific, but I would feel a bit awkward making someone try to beautify them. My feet were especially bad in 2017. I lost four or five toenails over the summer and fall months, but one was especially memorable because my trials with it spanned most of the year.

Let’s welcome today’s guest of honor, Big Toe Right Foot (BTRF).

BTRF in happier times

The toenail and some of its neighbors, including Everest Toe Left Foot (I know it’s called Morton’s Toe when the second toe is taller than the others, but I like Everest Toe better), were on the receiving end of some outdoors action during my mountaineering trip in March 2017. For some reason, my boots and my feet were not getting along toward the end of the trip, and the result was some multicolored toenails, along with some other flaws. Fun!

So pretty!

I kind of expected those two toenails to fall off within a few weeks, especially as I began training in earnest for a half marathon that spring. But they lingered, and they looked cooler and cooler. The discolored area on BTRF, which had been close to the bed of the nail (see above), maneuvered higher and higher up as the nail grew. But the nail areas on BTRF and the Everest Toe didn’t hurt. Eventually, the Everest Toe’s nail fell off when I was on a mission trip in Belize over the summer. One down, one to go.

In late August, I started noticing that BTRF’s nail was superficially cracking horizontally. But, again, it didn’t hurt, so I let it go and figured it would work itself out.

Which it did, come September. By cracking the whole way down through the nail, even though the horizontal crack only went part of the way across the nail. Like so:

No comment.

Somehow, this thing was still not causing me pain, so I took my normal “ignore it and it’ll go away” approach, figuring it would be easier to let the broken nail grow out than try to remove it since part of it was still attached. Also, I had a bunch of athletic events coming up, and I didn’t want my training to be affected by an injured toe should something go wrong when I removed the nail. So I trained for and ran my eighth half marathon. I did some 5Ks. I prepared myself for the Acre Breaker, a 4-ish-mile mud run with approximately 20 obstacles. Good ol’ BTRF hung in there like a champ.

The Acre Breaker took place on a late October morning, on the same day as an evening masquerade gala to benefit an organization I’m involved with, Ryan’s Birthday Party Foundation. Things were going fine at the Acre Breaker until I exited the third obstacle, at which point I noticed that BTRF wasn’t happy. “I’m going to have to do something about that toenail ASAP,” I thought, running to the next obstacle. BTRF throbbed more noticeably as the race progressed.

I wasn’t able to deal with BTRF’s needs before the masquerade gala – making myself look presentable-ish for the gala after being coated in mud at the Acre Breaker took a while and I didn’t have time – so I decided to just grin and bear it.

But by the time I got out of the car at the gala, BTRF was throbbing like crazy and was actually painful. My chosen footwear (heels) didn’t help, either. I’m super awkward walking in heels anyway (despite lessons from my sister), and walking in heels with an unhappy big toe increased the difficulty level exponentially. When I was seated, I would slip off my right shoe to appease BTRF. When I was standing, I’d try to position my foot to take the pressure off BTRF. And when I was walking, BTRF screamed at me.

So the next morning, I took nail clippers to BTRF and ended up with this:

Mud from the Acre Breaker was still wedged into my toenail somehow…

The original crack was about halfway up the nail (see above). I believe BTRF had been hurting so much because the attached part of the nail was still growing UNDERNEATH the cracked part (see the little bit of “new” nail above the original crack on the left side?), so there was some sort of weird double nail situation going on.

With that strangeness solved, BTRF was happy. I was happy. Everyone was happy, and I thought that we would live happily ever after.

And we did…for a few weeks. In early December, my sister and I were working on a photo project. For part of it, I had to set up a camera and quickly kneel down on a bedsheet. As I did that, BTRF caught on the sheet and I heard a *rip*. No, not the sheet. The top right part of BTRF was starting to tear off. (Yes, there was a bit of blood.)

MINOR TOE BLOOD BELOW:

Poor BTRF.

But after BTRF was cleaned up, all seemed fine.

A few days later, I (an assistant basketball coach) was helping my girls warm up before a game by providing some light defense during their layup drill. I jumped to fake block a layup and felt BTRF’s toenail catch on the inside of my shoe. I stopped jumping after that, and I bandaged BTRF up for a few days to prevent further such experiences.

All dressed up and nowhere to go!

Not long after that, I finally decided to remove the rest of the troublesome part of the toenail. The writing was obviously on the wall, and I had no major athletic events coming up to interfere with its removal. And so I did it, and it wasn’t pretty (that’s code for “DON’T LOOK IF YOU’RE SQUEAMISH, BECAUSE THERE’S BLOOD AND JUST GENERAL NASTINESS”):

The end of an era.

 

Fast forward a few months. BTRF and I are happily coexisting. The nail has been growing back in nicely, and it survived another mountaineering trip earlier this month. Way to rebound, BTRF!

BTRF is just about all better!

Now…which toenail will be next to bite the dust? Whichever one it is, I’m hoping it’s a much less dramatic experience.

Any guesses on the next nail to bite the dust?

Operation Life: 2017 Edition

If I had to guess, 2016 was probably the most lackluster year I’ve had in terms of fitness since 2009, the year before I started this health/wellness journey called Operation Life.

There are a handful of reasons for that, some of which I’ve delved into in previous posts. An additional reason for my lack of fitness efforts in 2016, I’ve come to believe, is that I didn’t set any goals. I mean, I knew I was going to run the Pittsburgh Marathon, and I figured the rest of the year would just carry on on its own. But I hadn’t accounted for certain life happenings (including my absolute worst nightmare coming true) that would make it difficult for me to exercise. Maybe if I’d had some goals in place, that would have helped. Also, thanks to moving twice in eight months, I’d lost track of my workout log, so I stopped writing down my workouts…and so I lost track of how much – or little – I’d been exercising.

Leaving 2016 in the dust (YAY!!!!!!!) and greeting 2017, I decided it was time to write down some fitness goals to keep me focused. I’d done that for 2013, and it had been a huge motivator for me. It just helps me to have something to work toward instead of aimlessly or haphazardly  working out. I also have a new exercise log, so I can keep track of my workouts and stay on target to meet my goals.

Starting to chip away at those 2017 goals in my new workout log

 

When I wrote down my 2017 exercise goals on New Year’s Day, I put a moderate amount of thought into them. Some of them are going to be pretty difficult for me, and I’m aware that maybe I won’t accomplish all of them. But at least I’m aiming for something!

So, without further ado, my fitness goals for 2017:

-Run 700 miles. This works out to less than 15 miles per week, so in theory I can accomplish this. I think my mileage PR for a year is 620 or so, so this would be a new PR for me. Plus, it’ll help me gear up for what I’m hoping my 2018 goal will be: 1,000 miles. (It’s important to note that running is only one of many ways I get my cardio, so while 700 miles may not seem like much, to me it is because of all the other things I do!)

 

-Walk/hike 300 miles. I chose this number because, coupled with my goal of running 700 miles, this will mean that I’ve traveled 1,000 miles on my feet in 2017. Nice.

-40 hours on the exercise bike. This was kind of an arbitrary number (it works out to 46-ish minutes per week; I think I was aiming for 45 per week and then just rounded up? Oh, my brain…). Anyway, this is more than I aimed for in 2013. Also, since I own an exercise bike, it’s something I can easily do when the weather’s icky.

-50,000 crunches (any variety, including “cousins” like Russian twists, six-inches, etc.). OK, OK, say what you like about crunches not being effective, but I like them. And I hate them. But, when all is said and done, I actually like them. I was able to top the 50,000-crunch mark in 2013, so here’s hoping I will again!

-250 minutes of planks. Again, SO RANDOM. I did a plank challenge in July and promised myself I’d keep doing planks regularly in the ensuing days/weeks/months, but I didn’t stick with that as much as I’d hoped to. So…enter 2017, when I start my regular planking again!

The 30-day plank challenge I used back in July

 

-126 sessions of weightlifting. This probably seems both vague and specific, so here’s the explanation: I use a full-body weightlifting routine that’s supposed to be done three times a week. So my goal for the year reflects that, leaving room for a few weeks off. (Also, counting sessions was easier than measuring the amount of weight lifted in a year or aiming to increase the amount of weight I lift by a certain percentage.)

-Immeasurables. I’m leaving room for other forms of exercise that don’t lend themselves as well to goals. For example, I really enjoy playing sports (basketball, tennis, racquetball, football, ping-pong, etc.), and I don’t want to shy away from them because they don’t get me closer to any exercise goals I’ve set for 2017.

Racquetball!

Basketball!! *swish*

-Read the Bible in a year. It contains wisdom, comfort, relatable people/experiences, and inspiration, as well as some things I don’t fully grasp. You can’t go wrong with digging deeper into it; you never know what God will reveal to build you up or to help you know Him better! It’s good, life-changing stuff!

So here’s to 2017! Now, back to lifting weights…

And Now for Something Completely Different: Week 9 in the ADK!

Since Dec. 29, 2014, a decent portion of my life has revolved around running. Such is the price of marathon training! There was one week, though, that I ran zero miles. 0. ZERO.

That’s right. My Week 9 training abandoned the Hal Higdon plan in favor of something different: mountaineering.

This was my fourth year going on a mountaineering trip. In 2012, a group of friends and I went to the Adirondacks, followed by two years mountaineering in New Hampshire. This year, we returned to the ADK. Even though the group members and the peaks we hike vary somewhat from year to year, there are a few things we can always count on: that there will be fun times, great memories made, and awesome time spent in God’s creation.

The trip was Feb. 25 to March 1, which included two days of travel, two days of mountaineering, and one day of ice climbing (or, in my case, watching people ice climb). Feb. 25 was obviously our travel day. Matt, Aaron, Bekah, and I rode up in one car, and Bill, Terri, and Evan drove up in another (Brandon drove up by himself the next day). We had rented a cabin from Random Scoots in Keene, N.Y.; we arrived in very good time and dropped our stuff off. It was the same cabin we’d stayed in three years ago, so it was just like coming home!

With an entire evening ahead of us, we drove to Lake Placid and walked around a little bit before heading back to Keene and grabbing dinner at the ADK Cafe. The food there is unbelievably amazing. I have been waiting for three years to eat here again, and it didn’t disappoint. SO GOOD!

I love you, ADK Burger.

After filling up on all sorts of delicious food from the ADK Cafe, we headed back to the cabin and those of us who were planning to go mountaineering the next day got prepared for the hike: Algonquin. Then we went to bed. Bekah and I shared a room, which was freezing! With a bunch of layers, we survived. 🙂 (It turns out that our thermostat was broken, but we did get it fixed. Yay!)

Day 1: Algonquin (5,114 ft.) and Wright Peak (4,580 ft.)

I was pretty excited for this hike, to be honest. We had done it in 2012, and I’d had a blast. In all, it was about an 8-mile trek.

The weather was just about perfect. Temperatures were supposed to be a high of 2 degrees (not a typo!), but when you’re moving along, you don’t even realize how cold it is. Since it was a weekday, there was only one other car in the parking lot at the trailhead. Thankfully, though, the trail was well broken, so we didn’t have to spend extra energy plowing through deep snow.

Trekking along

Looking straight up offered a really cool perspective.

Evan and Aaron double-checking the map

One thing I love about this hike is how the views take you by surprise. The trail steadily climbs upward but is wooded, so you’re not thinking about how high you’re climbing. Then, you get to a partial clearing and look behind you, and – BAM! – beautiful views!

Check it out!

At one point, the trail to Wright Peak (which wasn’t part of our plans for the day) split off from the trail to Algonquin. Since it was only 0.4 miles to the summit of Wright Peak, we decided to give it a go, especially since it offered a stunning view of Algonquin. Not knowing what the terrain would be like, we left our snowshoes on. That was fine for most of the trek, but above treeline there were a lot of rocks and not a whole lot of snow, so we would have been better off up there with crampons*. We took it slow and steady, and it was worth doing, in my opinion. So beautiful!

*Crampons are not what they sound like! They are these spikey things that you attach to your boots so you can walk on ice.

Standing on Wright Peak with Algonquin in the background

The rocks on Wright Peak

Once we returned to our Wright-Algonquin crossroads, we resumed the Quest for Algonquin. It wasn’t far (although we weren’t sure exactly how far because that part of the sign had been broken off), but it was steep. At a certain point, Evan decided to layer up and wait for us to summit and come back. We handed out radios in case anything would go wrong on either end (nothing did) and continued our trek, chatting with Evan on the radio every now and then.

We climbed quickly. It wasn’t long before we went from being below Wright Peak to level with it to wa-a-ay above it. When we got above treeline, I was fully expecting to have to put my balaclava and goggles on, but there was no wind! So we got to see the world from 5,114 feet up untainted by goggles.

Bekah, yours truly, and Aaron making the final push to the summit

It was a beautiful day. We hung out a little bit (not too long, because we didn’t want Evan to get too cold waiting for us), snapped some shots, and enjoyed the view before heading back down.

My traditional summit pose

Group shot! (I’m not going to post the unsuccessful one, even though it’s hilarious.)

Aside from a few breaks to eat or adjust our layers/packs, we absolutely booked it on the 4-ish-mile trip back to the trailhead. It’s hard not to go fast when you’re going downhill for that long! Thank you, gravity…

Thankful for such a great day, we headed back to the cabin, where Bill and Terri were preparing lasagna for us. Delish! We told stories about the day, looked at pictures, got ready for ice climbing the next day, and waited for Brandon to arrive (which he did, and not too late in the night, either!).

Day 2: Ice Climbing and Lake Placid

The day started off the best possible way: with breakfast at the ADK Cafe! I got French toast (which, again, I had been dreaming about for the last three years). SO GOOD!

Bekah and I love you, French toast.

Then Bill, Matt, Evan, and Aaron headed out to Pitchoff Walls set up the ropes and stuff for ice climbing (it takes a little while), and Bekah, Brandon, Terri, and I hung out at the cabin for a little while to give the first group time to get everything set up.

When the four of us arrived at Pitchoff Walls, Terri stayed in the car and the other three of us hiked up a wooded hill along the side of the road to the site of the ice climbing location. The weather, again, was perfect. The trees blocked most of the wind, and the sun was out, making everything warm. Since I don’t ice climb (I tried it twice and am fine with that), I usually end up putting my down jacket on because I get cold. It was so nice out that I didn’t end up wearing my down jacket at all!

Even though I don’t enjoy actually ice climbing, it is always fun watching everyone else. It does look cool; it’s just not for me.

I want to say that this is Matt and Brandon.

There’s Bill, showing everyone how it’s done!

I think this is Evan.

It’s Aaron!

After a few hours of ice climbing, we packed it in. While Matt, Aaron, and Bill undid all the roping (there’s probably a better term for that), the rest of us headed back to the vehicles, which were parked next to a frozen lake. We couldn’t resist taking a little walk…

Brandon, Evan, Bekah, and I on the frozen lake

You know, just doing some planks on the lake…

When all was said and done, we all headed to Lake Placid for a bit. We walked around, shopped, and got coffee before driving back to the cabin for dinner.

On a cold evening, it only makes sense to get warm beverages, like Brandon, Matt, and Bekah did. Oh, but Bill got ice cream.

Over dinner of lasagna and tacos, we discussed our plans for the following day. One idea was to hike Mount Marcy, the highest of the 46 peaks in the ADK (this would be a 14-mile hike). Another idea was to do a shorter hike. Since Brandon hadn’t gotten to try Algonquin (the second-highest peak), he was all game to try Marcy. So, after a bit of discussion, that’s what we decided to do. Matt, Aaron, Brandon, Bekah, and I would tackle Marcy, while Bill and Evan would try out a different trail and also walk around Heart Lake with Terri.

Day 3: Mount Marcy

I was looking forward to this hike, even though I knew it would be somewhat tough. We’d been told that it was a long, gradual uphill, and I felt I could handle that as long as it wasn’t super steep.

The weather was absolutely beautiful…and warm (relatively). It was a Saturday, so the trails were fairly full. We made really good time for the first few miles, so despite the fact that we got a later start than we’d wanted to, I still felt OK about how things were going. Once we reached Marcy Dam (about 2 miles along), we stopped at a lean-to for a quick food break and ended up chatting with two older guys who have been mountaineering for decades. It’s always fun to talk with other people on the trail.

Shortly after our lunch stop, the trail started to go up. It was a gradual uphill at first, which was fine. But then it got steep. And it stayed steep. For some reason, I really started to struggle. I don’t know if I hadn’t fueled properly or if I was still tired from the Algonquin hike, but I guess the reason doesn’t really matter. I was just gassed!

I remember the trail pretty much like this: Gradual uphill for a while, then very steep uphill for a long time. Then more gradual uphill followed by a never-ending very steep uphill. Then a brief flat area with maybe a short, slight downhill. And then more gradual uphill…and then a long section of a steep uphill. Here’s pretty much how it was:

“I’m not enjoying this right now, but I hope I will at the summit.”

I can’t even begin to say how many times I was so close I was to quitting. But for some reason, I didn’t. I prayed a lot. I kept putting one foot in front of the other – albeit slowly – and I tried to change my internal messages to myself from “You can’t do this!” to “You can do this, and you are going to!”

It wasn’t easy for me, but I made it to the summit. And it was worth it, of course.

Unlike Algonquin this year, it was pretty windy and cold on the summit, so we donned our balaclavas and goggles and spent a little bit of time at the highest point in the ADK.

Worth the pain!!!!

Bekah and yours truly

Bekah, Matt, and I

Brandon, Matt, and Aaron

Group shot! (I had always made fun of selfie poles before this. I still think that they’re unnecessary unless you’re on a really windy mountain and need to get a group picture.)

We all loved it on the summit (other than being cold, of course). It didn’t matter if it was a first summit (Brandon) or a millionth summit (Matt) or somewhere in between; we all took in the views for as long as we could.

That wasn’t very long, though, because it was later in the day than we had planned and we still had 7 miles between us and the car. So we said goodbye to the summit and headed downward.

Ciao, Marcy!

Not surprisingly, the way back was a lot faster. Thank you, gravity! I was in a much better mood and was able to take in my surroundings a lot more fully. God’s creation is really beautiful when you stop and look at it. I’m not just talking about the Adirondacks; I’m talking about wherever you live. Stop and look! I’m sure you’ll find something absolutely gorgeous – or at least something neat – in creation.

At one point, we were trekking along, and Matt estimated that if we made good time, we’d make it back to Marcy Dam by 6:30 p.m. Well, we got there a lot earlier than that (I forget the exact time, but it was 5-something). Excellent! While we were there, we bumped into two women we’d met at the summit, and we talked to them for a little bit. Total God moment for sure!

Brandon, yours truly, Matt, Bekah, and Aaron at Marcy Dam

We said goodbye to our new friends and began the 2-mile trek to the car. At this point, some of us were well aware that our feet were really starting to hurt. Like, blister hurt. I had put duct tape on my feet in the morning to prevent blisters, but there’s only so much that can do. Because we were on the homestretch of the hike, though, we pressed on! Soon it got dark enough that we needed headlamps, so we put them on and hiked the last mile or so with them. It’s not a true mountaineering trip until the headlamps are used!

Our last mile seemed to take forever, and I think we were all glad to see the trailhead. Exhausted but fulfilled, we hoisted our gear into the back of the car and drove toward the cabin. What a great (tough, rewarding, beautiful) day!

At the cabin, we got cleaned up and enjoyed tacos while watching a few movies and beginning to get packed up for our return journey to Pennsylvania the next day. While we were all sad that the trip was over for another year, Matt and I had one more adventure left.

Day 4: Olympic Bobsled Experience

Months ago, Matt had asked if anyone would be interested in trying the Olympic Bobsled Experience in Lake Placid. Yes, it’s like it sounds: You get in a real bobsled, with a real driver and brakeman, on the real Olympic course (well, a half mile of it), and enjoy the ride! I said I’d be game; I mean, how could I pass that up?

It turns out that Matt and I were the only ones who wanted to try it. So on Sunday morning, after everyone packed up their stuff and left the cabin, we headed to the Olympic Sports Complex. Because our group had three vehicles, some of our crew started the journey home. Aaron and Bekah came along with Matt and me to cheer us on as we flew down the track.

After signing a waiver, Matt and I were transported to the starting point of our ride. We were fitted with helmets and given a bit of detail about the ride itself (it’s a half mile long, it reaches speeds of up to 55 mph, etc.). I was pretty excited, and I felt completely safe in the hands of our driver and brakeman!

Ready for our Olympic Bobsled Experience

Pretending to be scared (but in reality I wasn’t scared at all)

Our job was simple: We had to sit in the bobsled and enjoy the ride while the two experienced guys did all the work. No problemo!

Once we were given the go signal, our brakeman gave us a push, and we were off! At first, we didn’t go too fast, but soon we really started picking up speed and whipping around the turns. We were really flying, and it was awesome!

Bekah got this shot of us flying down the track. So cool!

Matt wore his GoPro, and the footage is amazing! Check it out here.

All too soon, it was over. We both loved it and wanted to go again immediately! Obviously, we couldn’t, as we had a long drive ahead of us. But we definitely plan to go again when we’re back in the Adirondacks!

Totally pumped from our bobsled experience, we stopped at the ADK Cafe for one last burger before we hit the road. I love that cafe. Have I mentioned that before?

We hit a snowstorm on our way home, so the journey took longer than we planned. But we made it home safe and sound…and full of some incredible stories and memories.

Until next time, Adirondacks. It’s been fun.

Looking Back and Looking Ahead

You know what I love about exercise goals?

They keep me from making excuses and getting lazy. If I have a choice between lounging comfortably on the sofa and logging some minutes on the exercise bike so I can meet a goal, I will usually pry myself off the sofa and hop on the bike. Hey, I’m a competitive person. Setting goals for myself and then trying to meet or exceed them is me competing against myself. And I love it.

At the beginning of 2013, I had written out some exercise goals for myself for the year in the categories of running, crunches, exercise bike, planks, and walking/hiking. Halfway through the year, I checked in to let you all know how I was doing; I was great in some areas, OK in other categories, and dismal in a few.

I’m sure you’ve been sitting on the edge of your seat since the summer to find out how I ended up doing. Well, fear not: The time has come for me to unveil my 2013 Grand Exercise Totals!

My official (slightly weathered) sheet of 2013 exercise goals

Goal #1: Run 500 miles.
-Halfway Point (June 30): 290.38 miles, well over my target of 250 miles
-How I Proceeded: I was pleased with that, but I knew I was over my halfway target because of training for the Pittsburgh Half Marathon in May. So then I signed up for the Hershey Half Marathon in October, and I was 99.9% sure I would reach my goal.
-Date Met: October 8, during a 4-mile run.
-2013 Total: 563.1 miles. Woohoo! My previous PR for miles in a year was 420. After the Hershey Half, I slacked off a bit with my running, mainly to let myself rest up.

Yep, 12 of my 563.1 miles in 2013 came on this training run for the Pittsburgh Half Marathon (with Mom and Candace).

Adding 13.1 more miles to my 2013 total during the Pittsburgh Half Marathon and loving every minute!

Goal #2: Walk/hike 250 miles.
-Confession: As I mentioned at the halfway point, my original goal for this was 150 miles, but I’d already exceeded that goal by the end of June, so I increased the number.
-Halfway Point: 158 miles. That number was aided by a winter mountaineering trip to New Hampshire and a few training hikes leading up to it.
-How I Proceeded: I actually love walking; it was one of my main cardio components when I first started getting in shape. So for the last half of 2013, I aimed to walk a mile at work each day, and Mom and I also found excuses to walk into town to shop or grab lunch.
–Date Met: October 26, during a 3-mile walk to get homemade sticky buns, ironically.
–2013 Total: 284.1 miles. This number combined with my running total equals nearly 850 miles my legs traveled in 2013! I’m pretty pumped about that.

Tackling a 12-mile training hike with my pals Katlyn and Matt K.

Yeah, that’s THE Mount Washington…in the middle of winter!

Goal #3: Do 50,000 crunches.
-Confession: At the beginning of 2013, I assumed I’d have no trouble with this one because it averages out to 1,000 crunches per week (with a few weeks off), which is very manageable to me. However, when I reached the halfway point…
-Halfway Point: 18,800. I hadn’t reached the end-of-June target of 25,000, which was really surprising to me! Still, I knew all I had to do was step things up a notch to regain the ground.
-How I Proceeded: I set aside two days each week to do 1,000 crunches each day until I caught up. It honestly felt great to have goals to chase (that’s the competitor in me talking).
-Date Met: December 7, thanks to that day’s session of L.A.W.!
-2013 Total: 51,000. Yeah, I slacked off a bit after I reached my goal, but after logging 32,200 crunches since the end of June, I wanted to give my abs a break from crunches and allow them to focus on something else, like Goal #4.

Here’s my exercise log for August 24, when I somehow added 2,000 crunches (in one day) to my 2013 total.

Goal #4: Do 180 minutes of planks.
-Confession: Yes, I know the goal I listed in my post at the halfway point was 120 minutes. My very first goal had been (and I quote) “180 minutes (120 minutes),” meaning that Plan A was to make it to 180 minutes, but if that looked out of reach, I’d aim for Plan B, which was 120 minutes. My numbers by June 30 were nowhere near 180 minutes, so I kind of ignored Plan A and targeted Plan B.
-Halfway Point: 48 minutes. Yowch! I wasn’t even on pace for my Plan B goal, so I knew I had to step it up a bit (OK, a lot).
-How I Proceeded: I figured out that if I did just three minutes of planks each week, I could at least reach my Plan B goal. But then I caught the plank bug (a good thing) and just went crazy with planking. Before I knew it, I had reached 120 minutes, and my previously-forgotten-about Plan A goal (180 minutes) was in sight. The rest is history.
-Date Met: December 9. And I was so pumped up that I KEPT GOING!
-2013 Total: 200 minutes. That’s right: I did 152 minutes of planks during the last half of the year. Not bad, self!

Ain’t nothin’ like some planks…

…especially when there’s a cat pretending to do planks next to you!

Goal #5: Log 25 hours on the exercise bike.
-Confession/Side Note: OK, 25 hours in a year works out to an average of less than a half-hour per week. Still, I was apparently so focused on climbing mountains and running that I didn’t spend much time (understatement) on the bike during the first half of the year. So I found myself aiming for my Plan B goal of 15 hours.
-Halfway Point: 6 hours and 5 minutes. Whaaaaat? Not good! I remember thinking that I should just aim for Plan B, which I was sure I could achieve, but also hope to reach 20 hours, which seemed like more of a stretch.
-How I Proceeded: When I started training for the Hershey Half Marathon, I logged some minutes on the exercise bike each week as part of my cross-training. Then, as I gave my legs a break from running after the half-marathon, I kept my cardio endurance up by getting much better acquainted with the bike. Also, I found ways to make it fun: reading, listening to music, brainstorming, even doing intervals. I hit the 15-hour mark on October 26, and I kept plugging away. As the end of November approached, I passed the 20-hour mark; the once-seemingly-impossible 25-hour notch was within reach as December began to wane. Did I make it? Read on!
-Date Met: December 30 (25 hours). Yes, that’s cutting it a little close to the end of the year, but I did it!
-2013 Total: 25 hours and 5 minutes. OK, so I barely made it. But I made it! And I didn’t quit! That, my friends, is what these goals are about.

Speeding right along (well, sort of).

No excuses!

I’m definitely pumped about how 2013 went as far as exercise is concerned. Now I’m setting my sights on 2014!
-run 600 miles
-do 60,000 crunches
-log 30 hours on the exercise bike
-do 240 minutes of planks
-walk/hike 300 miles

Let’s do this.

A Day of Surprises

To be honest, I was a little nervous for this morning’s 8-mile run, the final run of Week 3 training. I’d had a really successful 7-mile long run last week, PR-ing on a primarily flat course, so I felt a little pressure to do well this week. Thing is, I wasn’t convinced I could improve or even match the previous week’s pace during this week’s (very) hilly 8 miles.

Leading up to this morning’s long run, my Week 3 training had gone very well. During my 3 miles of hill training, my average pace was 16 seconds faster per uphill than it was during Week 2; as for this week’s speedwork, I shaved a full minute off my 3X400 IW from Week 2. So I’ve been seeing progress, but for some reason, I had doubts that this progress would show during the long run.

Mom and I were ready to start the 8-mile out-and-back at 6:15 this morning. We’ve run this route several times before, and it’s tough (on the plus side, it’s scenic). In fact, my fastest time on this route was just shy of 80 minutes. This morning, I thought it would be cool to run between 72 and 76 minutes.

My plan (as always) was to start off at a slower pace and speed up as I warmed up. I’ve been trying to do that during my training runs, but I always – ALWAYS – end up starting off too fast. As I reached the approximate 1-mile mark, I was convinced I was running a solid 9:30 pace. Nope. My watch read 8:26. I mourned out loud, “AGAIN? Really?” and started to slow my pace so I wouldn’t burn out.

Although I was annoyed by my too-fast start, I was able to enjoy some of God’s artwork in the sky:

Ooooh! Pretty!

I just love this.

Reality set in, though, as I tackled a half-mile beast of a hill, after which there was a slight downhill followed by a second steep incline. Heading up the second notable hill, I was feeling dramatic:

*insert whine here*

Before I knew it, though, I had recovered and reached the turnaround point at 4 miles, where my time was 35:40! I’d had no idea I was logging sub-9-minute miles. I was feeling pretty good, so I wanted to keep a similar pace and hope I wouldn’t burn out on the way back.

Apparently I was trying to conserve energy, as evidenced by this incredibly fake smile shortly after the turnaround point. Rate this grin on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the most fake smile you’ve ever seen:

I’m like, “Yaaaaay. Heh.”

Not long after beginning the journey back, I saw Mom, speeding along toward the turnaround point. My picture attempt:

I think we were both moving too quickly for my iPod to handle.

As the miles wore on, I could tell I was tired. I pushed on, and soon, I was approaching the final portion of the route: a steep downhill followed by an extended incline to take me to the end of the run.

When I was about halfway up that final (very tough) incline, I checked my watch, which read an alarmingly fast (for me) 1:10:24! Trying to speed up, I reached 8 miles at 1:10:59, an 8:52 pace! That shattered my previous PR and was actually a faster pace than I’d logged during last week’s 7-mile run. Crazy! I never expected that at all. I’m still in shock.

Woohoo!

Mom showed up not long afterward, and she also PR-ed, logging 1:25:48, which was eight minutes faster than she ran that route in March. Incredible!

We had post-run chills, so we enjoyed a cup of hot chocolate before heading on to the rest of the day’s activities:

Celebrating a successful run

One of those activities was the EPC walk. The walk is a fun, relaxed wellness activity for EPC employees, their families, and their canine buddies. It’s always a good time, so I invited Mom and Dad, and we headed out. The location this year was beautiful: the East Donegal Township Riverfront Park, which is right on the Susquehanna River and is a stop on the currently-being-developed Northwest Lancaster County River Trail.

Not a bad view!

Just a few EPC-ers

Mom, Dad, and I set out on a nice walk on the trail to the north of the park, which departed from the river but eventually led back to it. It didn’t disappoint:

If you haven’t checked this trail out (and you live in the area), you totally should.

You can’t have Lancaster County without corn.

Hey, exercising on the trail isn’t limited to humans.

Dad leading the way to the river

Looking forward to the views of the river

After a little over a mile, we reached the river, and it was beautiful.

Not bad, Susquehanna River. Not bad.

Mom enjoying the scenery

Oh, and we all skipped some rocks. In case you were wondering, candid/action shots of people skipping rocks really aren’t flattering. Allow me to present the evidence:

Specimen #1

Specimen #2

Specimen #3

See? I told you.

Unflattering pictures aside, though, we had a great time on the trail.

Awww.

Mom and Dad trekking back

My daddy and me

We concluded the afternoon out with a stop at the Green Market Company in Mount Joy, a health food store that sells delicious sandwiches (shameless plug).

Roast beef, mozzarella, and eggplant sandwich with red pepper and Italian sausage soup. Mmmm.

A perfectly satisfying way to end a perfectly satisfying day.