Two week round-up

Is this thing still around?

So, getting home from work and getting back on the computer has just not been all that appealing to me lately. Hence the lack of blogging. Well, maybe that and the fact that I've not been out for a ride in 2 weeks, basically since the crash aside from commuting jaunts. Posting and riding seem to be more heavily correlated then anything else.

The norm for the day. Cassie sprinting around. Come dinner time I found her food all over the bottom of the bag since she'd managed to thrash the plastic baggies in her pack so hard they burst. The whole pack went up with the food sack over night.

In the mean time I've been running a bit more frequently and even got in a swim this week. The back is completely jacked up from the fall so that has something to do with the lack of riding. Amazingly the running seems to be helping to relax things. Swimming was pretty good too; some pain in the upper back area during freestyle but not severe and the hot tub post swim seemed to really help. I was surprised how easy my 1500 yard swim was after not having been to the pool since before Jerseyman. Good to carry over the base.

The Queen of the Valley. Cass poses over the best overlook of the hike.

Last weekend since I didn't have a new helmet yet, I decided to get out and enjoy the weather in a slightly different way. Cass and I headed up to SNP for a quick over nighter. Basically we hiked from Jenkins Gap along Mt Marshall Trail, up the Bluff Trail and onto the AT back to the Gap. In total we put in about 18 miles or so including a couple of side trips, one down Jordans River trail for water and another down the Big Devils Stairs Trail.

Another shot from my favorite outlook of the hike. Cass makes me a little nervous on this the way she jumps around (note the fingers through her her collar).

Like my last back country trip all was not perfectly smooth. While this time I remembered the matches, I brought them in a water proof case with a strike pad on the bottom. Unfortunately that strip was not enough to light the matches. A nearby camper was kind enough to loan me his match box so dinner was taken care of though in the morning I just packed up and took off snacking on what I had. One of these days that piping hot cup of coffee on a cool mountain side will be a reality; next I'll have multiple fire sources.

My favorite part of this overlook was the bird flying nearby. He'd swoop in close, searching for food in the woods down below. You really feel like your up there where the birds fly, despite the fact you just crossed over Skyline Drive a few miles back, if that.

Can't wait for the weather to get nice enough that I don't have to worry about extra warm clothes. It got really nice on Sunday but over night it was below 30. So, without the rain fly on (watching the stars is amazing) Cass got pretty chilly, even though she was wearing my big wool sweater. So, a few times during the night she'd crawl into my bag (way to small for that) until she needed to stretch her legs out again. I'll need to figure something out for that as well. Do they make dog sleeping bags? That seems like a bit much.

Today the AFC Sugar Hill race up at Avalon was called off at the last minute due to rain, though I decided I wasn't going sometime yesterday when I realized how much rain was supposedly on the way. Unfortunately the make up date is the same day as the Cherry Blossom 10 miler so I won't be able to make it. Anyone want a spot?