Snow Day! Snowshoe Workout

Donna leads the way

We finally have snow during what has been a rather mild winter in New England. I'm not a huge fan of snow, but it hasn't felt like a true New England winter without it. On Friday we received 11" of powdery fluff, and with rain in the forecast for Sunday, Donna and I bundled up to go snowshoeing on Saturday despite temps hovering just above 20 degrees. You gotta pick your days.

The trails were quiet, with only a half dozen or so people hiking through mid-calf-height snow or on cross country skis. We were the only snowshoers out there. We did an out and back hike with a few joggles to give us a little over a mile and a half total distance, (Strava). It was a great workout! Despite the frigid temps, I was quite toasty until I got home. (Then the chills hit. Brrr.)

Tons of fun and hopefully we'll have more opportunities to get out there this winter. (Equipment note: MSR Evo snowshoes for both.)

Donna at trail's end. There were swans in the harbor.

Exit Glacier Hike

Black bear spotted near Exit Glacier!
(Yes, I had a telephoto lens)

Hiking day! My calf was starting to feel a little better after a few days rest, so on Tuesday I decided to hike to Marmot Meadows at Exit Glacier. Ohmigosh I’m so glad I didn’t skip this hike! The minute I could see the glacier in the distance, I felt my adrenaline spike and I couldn’t wait to start hiking. Wow. Just, wow.

First glimpse of Exit Glacier

It was still fairly early in the morning when I arrived at Exit Glacier National Park, with only a few dozen cars in the parking lot. It wasn’t a difficult hike to start, but as it started to take on some elevation, I noticed another woman about 50 yards ahead of me stop and take a photo and move on. When I reached the same spot, there was a gorgeous view of the glacial fields below and I, too, stopped and took a photo. That scenario played out again... she stopped for a photo and then I stopped for a photo... until I caught up to her on the third photo op and we both laughed. Her name was Annie and we hiked and took photos together for the remainder of the trek to Marmot Meadows.

On our way back down the trail, we were thrilled to see a black bear in the distance! So, so cool. It wasn’t a threat to either of us but a reminder that we were in bear country — and I was glad I wasn’t alone.

When I returned back to base, I stopped at the visitor’s center for water, checked out the exhibits that included historical photos of the glacier, (which sadly is rapidly receding), and made a donation towards the park’s conservation efforts. No doubt the next time I visit, if that opportunity ever comes, it will be a much different place. So sad.

Exit Glacier

Ascutney 2019

Purple Trillium on the mountain

We finally landed a sunny Saturday -- the first since March 16th, (I'm not kidding on the stat! It was reported by a newscaster) -- so Mike and I drove up to Ascutney to open up the cottage for the season. We had a great and productive day cleaning and sorting and sprucing up. My cousin Rich and his wife Becky also came up for the afternoon and Rich installed the water. Mike managed to attract 2 ticks within an hour of each other -- or perhaps he got them at the same time. Hard to know. He's now being called a "tick magnet", which amuses my pun-happy husband in crazy way. Lol.

The wet, rainy Spring brought more than ticks -- it brought mud. The road through the lower pasture that leads to the cottage was pretty dicey to drive through, and we risked getting the car stuck each time we passed through it, so when Mike and I woke up to a gray and damp day on Sunday, we closed up the cottage for the weekend rather than return after breakfast. We then headed out to the Windsor Diner and went straight to the main mountain entrance for a hike afterwards.

Arriving at the main gate at Ascutney State Park, we discovered the main access road was closed to cars, (until Memorial Day weekend), so we parked off the road and climbed under the gate to head to the Futures Trail.

For some reason, looking at the sign, neither one of us noted that the Futures Trail was TO THE LEFT. We both went straight. Lol. We hiked for an hour up the mountain, not really on a trail but seeing imaginary trails through the woods, following haphazard lines for a mile before calling it a day and turning back. In all, it was only two miles roundtrip and not exactly what I needed for training, but it was fun. A great day for a hike.

Next time, we'll take the actual trail.

The Futures Trail. GO LEFT.

The sounds of the stream lead us back

Adventures with Chip - Breakheart Reservation MTB

A gorgeous day to get a little lost.

It looks like we're on the Blue trail...
but we ended up on the YELLOW
#hike-a-bike

Like a dog, Chip can't pass a good stick without picking it up.

Adventuring

I somehow convinced Chip to head out for a ride at Breakheart Reservation with me a few weekends ago. I knew he was feeling tired from a hard week of football -- and wasn't really keen on heading out for an adventure -- but with the promise of food he rallied for a ride. (It was a little manipulative on my part -- I know can entice him to do anything at the mere mention of food.)

We had brunch at The Iron-Town Diner in Saugus -- a fantastic place which Chip rated a "Ten outa ten". (Impressive.) We then headed off for Breakheart Reservation and a quick little adventure getting "lost" with a ton of hike-a-bike on the yellow trail. 

My side goal while we were there was to find some easy hiking trails for the Cyclopaths, but realized as we were riding (and hiking) that the trails we chose were a little too challenging for our gang. I have a little more exploring to do.

We had a great time, though! Can't wait to go back!

Iron-Town Diner

The burger was as big as his head....
but he finished it in three minutes