2/27/2010 The River is Low

This past week there have been a couple of articles in the local paper about the PUD asking people to conserve water. Now we live in a wet corner of the earth, so this is odd to hear, but if you have followed my blog, a few weeks ago I mentioned how low the Skagit River seemed to be when I walked on the dike. Sure enough--that's the problem. Today I wanted to walk the Dike Trail again to see if it was any different. I actually think it is worse now. You can see the sand bars in this picture.

Those sand bars weren't there the first time I walked this trail in January, so we have to do our part to conserve water--shorter showers, fewer flushes, and turning off the water while we brush our teeth are a few easy things we can do to conserve.
It really never quit raining today like I expected it to, and I finally bit the bullet, piled on my REI rainy weather gear and headed out. Have I said enough times yet how much I appreciate my REI clothing? By the end of my walk, I was plenty warm, still dry, and the rain finally slowed to a halt. Supposed to be quite nice tomorrow. 

I didn't expect to see much today, being it was a Saturday and it was raining, but the area was hopping. At one end the police were checking out some guy parked down by the boat ramp. Then the dike district was out cutting branches from trees. Remember the picture I posted a while back where I thought some homeless person might be sleeping? Well, that entire tree is gone today and any low branches that reached the ground on the trees along the river are now all sawed off. I think it's a way to keep people from hanging out, but there is probably a much more boring and saner reason for cutting them off.  You can see my route here:  http://www.trimbleoutdoors.com/ViewTrip/630616

2/26/2010 Search and Rescue

I just about had to call out for Search and Rescue today. Have you ever gone somewhere new and another person has driven, so you paid no attention to directions or where you were? I have walked the Port trails many, many times in the past 2 months, but quite often I have been with my friend Christie, who has led the way. Today I tried to follow one of those routes, and had no idea where I was. I ended up by the headquarters for the Sherriff's dept. Search and Rescue office, and thought about stopping in...but I didn't.

Yesterday I was talking about how lucky I was that I hadn't been rained on in my walks--well, I spoke too soon. About 23 minutes into my walk, it started sprinkling, and it was really coming down the last 10 minutes. It was an ugly day--windy, rainy, temp in the high 40s.  Truly not nice out.  I never really felt comfortable during my entire walk. First I didn't know where I was going or where I was during the walk. Then I got too hot--wrong clothes on. I am having a hard time figuring out how to layer and what the layers should be; then it seemed my shin and hip hurt a bit; then it started raining--just not a great walk. But, it was a walk.
Today I read my friend Kathy's blog on her Mediterranean Cruise she is on. She makes my blog look pathetic--she is such a creative writer while I am a technical writer.  When we worked together, I would write a piece first, including all the details and information, and then have her put what we called "the fluff" into it. Made for a good team. Makes for not too interesting of a blog on my part.  Three more days and it will be two months. Wow! You can see my route here: http://www.trimbleoutdoors.com/ViewTrip/629705

2/25/2010 Around the Loop

I have been so fortunate this week that I have been able to walk every day and never in the rain. Hope I haven't spoken too soon. Even though it rains at night, it seems to clear by the afternoon. Actually, if you know this area, we have less rain here than in Seattle. Anyway, today I did my neighborhood 2.5 mile Country Club loop. Just to mix things up, I decided to go the opposite way I usually go, not sure it made any difference. In order to walk this loop you have to go up and down hills--no matter which direction.  Everything is in bloom, rhodies, azaleas, crocuses, daffodils, cherry trees. It's really quite pretty.

I thought this picture did a good job of depicting the day, sun shining on the cherry tree, with a looming black sky in the background.

Walking around the country club is pretty interesting from an architectural point of view. Most of the houses lining the golf course are of the 60s ranch style and haven't been updated. Others are the 70s style split level houses. It's sort of like going back in time. The newest homes are along the back side of the country club. It's a well established area with huge fir, cedar, hemlock, and spruce trees.

A lady who was at least 15 years older than me smoked me on my walk today--and I thought I was going fast. Well, I was for me: 2.9 MPH today (remember my goal is 3 MPH), and that was average and included a few stops for pictures, so I think I am there.  Good workout today!  See my route and data here:  http://www.trimbleoutdoors.com/ViewTrip/629133

2/24/2010 Parking Lots

Today it was rainy and gray, but still in the low 50s. The weather report said it was going to let up in the afternoon, so I opted to walk later in the day. By 4:00 PM I still hadn't gotten my walk in and needed to go to Costco, so I put the two together, and went for a walk before going into Costco. I am amazed at how far we can walk in 30 minutes. I started off from the Costco parking lot, headed to the local Outlet Mall, around it, and then down the main street back to Costco. 1.29 miles, 30 minutes. I decided anyone who saw me walking would just think I was hurrying from one place to another. Since I was able to walk this entire route in 30 minutes, I am embarrassed to say that I normally drive between Costco and the Outlet Mall, what took me maybe 5 minutes to walk today.

It was quite windy (as evidenced by the flags) but not raining, which was nice. I am saddened to see all the shops that are closed at the Outlet Mall. I would venture to say that close to half the stores are empty. A sign of the times, I guess. A new company took them over this last year, painted things, gave everything a new look, but slowly the stores have left; Samsonite, Liz Claiborne, Kitchen Collection...some new things have arrived, but they aren't outlet stores--Weight Watchers, Curves, a restaurant. Then as I was walking down the main street, I passed the Saturn Car lot--gone and closed up. Furniture still in the showroom, though; looks like they just up and left one day. Too bad.

My feet and legs hold up much better on trails then on sidewalks, I decided. It's not near as comfortable to walk on the cement surrounded by automobiles, and believe me when I say pedestrians are not meant for Costco parking lots!

My route today can be seen here:  http://www.trimbleoutdoors.com/ViewTrip/628600

2/23/2010 The Olympics (and not the mountains)

Since we live less than an hour from the Canadian border, my friend Christie and I headed to Vancouver today to experience a bit of the 2010 Winter Olympics, so my walking, nearly 4 miles, was all around the city.  We drove up and parked near one of the SkyTrain stations and then rode it into the city. Took us a total of 2 hours from my house to the waterfront where the cauldron is burning. Even though we walked a lot today, we also stood in line a lot.  After we got off the SkyTrain at the waterfront we walked the few blocks to the cauldron and got in line for the viewing platform. It took about 30 minutes to reach the top, but we were able to get some good pictures and take our time and enjoy the view. On our way, we saw 13 members of the Czech Republic team at the loading docks for the sea planes. 

After viewing the cauldron, we were standing around enjoying people watching, when we learned the Royal Canadian Mounted Police were on their way for a photo op, so we stuck around. What a great catch! 30 horses marched in and lined up for the picture. It was something to see.  After that we headed to Robson Street, where the center of action seems to be for the fans. Robson is where the zip line is; where you can still get tickets for events, if you can afford them, and where sleds, luges, and cutouts are just waiting for you to sit in or on for pictures.  After lunch, we stood in yet another line to get into the Hudson's Bay Company Olympic SuperStore for souvenirs. It was worth the 20 minute wait--they had every sort of shirt, coat, sweatshirt, pants, hats--they had it all emblazoned with Olympic logos. The streets were full; in fact some were blocked off to cars--just pedestrian traffic. Fun for us, probably a nightmare for the Canadians who have to work downtown.  We saw multiple areas where people were trading for pins. That seemed to be one of the most popular things to be doing. In the late afternoon it started raining pretty heavily, so we decided to pack it in and head home since we didn't have tickets for an event.  It was a great day, though, and a great way to get some exercise in.

2/22/2010 Home Again and Sun!

"I dreamed a thousand new paths. . . I woke and walked my old one."  Chinese proverb

I opted for the Port of Skagit Trails again today. I got home from Colorado at 2:00 AM this morning. Oh, my bed felt good. After accomplishing a few things this morning, I headed out for my walk a little after noon.  I did a nice combination of a couple of loops that totaled 2.8 miles, and walked about an hour. It was nice. I was alone today, the sun was shining, upper 50s, heaven! No coat necessary--just my sweatshirt today. Last night (or should I say this morning) when I drove home from Seattle, the half moon was shining brightly in the low sky. Today it was still there on my walk.

Sometimes I wish I had a microphone with me on my walks, because although I can take pictures of the scenery around me, and keep them for posterity, I can't save the sounds I hear on my walks.  Today I made a loop around the wettest area of the Port, filled with Cattails, and thus, birds and frogs.

 On one side of the pond I heard birds singing like crazy, and missed either a hawk or duck landing in the pond--all I heard was a huge splash. On the other side of the pond, I heard a chorus of frogs, but could see none. I thought they might stop when I approached, but they just kept on making their music. Maybe I can upload a video here one day with sound and picture. As I was heading down the last part of the trail, right near this pond, a young man passed me with his dog, a large black lab.  Suddenly I heard a huge splash and realized the dog had gone for a swim. At first I smiled to myself, knowing how much labs like the water, but then I wondered about all the wildlife in there. I suppose he won't hurt anything; he just wanted to swim; but I was glad I was able to walk through the area while it had been quiet and peaceful. You can see my route and data here:  http://www.trimbleoutdoors.com/ViewTrip/626645

Tomorrow my friend Christie and I are heading to Vancouver for the day to mingle with the Olympians!

2/21/2010 The Denver Airport

I actually didn't do ALL my walking at the Denver Airport. I taught all day and then drove to the airport, only to find my flight delayed over an hour.  I had dismissed my class a bit early today because of the weather and road conditions, so I had plenty of time at the airport. I had already clocked over 2 miles just teaching--if only I had worn a pedometer for all those years I taught...I must have really racked up the miles.  Anyway, back to Denver. The temperature was COLD--15-18 degrees today, and snowing, but in spite of that, I ended up the airport over 3 hours prior to my flight. Time to have a good sit-down dinner--and yes, there are some good sit-down restaurants at the Denver Airport. After dinner, I still had over two hours to go before my flight, so I opted for an "aerobic" walk.

I attached my carry-on to my suitcase and off I set to make a loop around Concourse B at the airport. Certain areas of it were pretty much deserted, as you can tell in this picture. All in all, I figured the terminal is close to a mile from one end to the other and back, gates 15-61.  It is the largest concourse at the airport.  My time wasn't the greatest, but mind you I was pulling at least 30-35 pounds with me--even with a roller bag, that adds up when you are walking on carpet. I think all airports should have tile floors; it's much easier to pull your bags on tile.  Not too much exciting to see on my walk; with security measures now, you don't get to see those tearful goodbyes and joyous gate-greetings anymore.  I did see a couple of athletic teams arrive--Colorado State softball and a soccer team from England, but that's about it.  Most important is that I walked...