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Updates and Shoes and Pictures and Weekends (OH MY!)

Jul 12th, 2011
by gazelle.
6 comments

I finished out Thursday with a great trail run with Sarah and then got to sleep in a bit (’til 7:30!) on Friday.

Friday started off fantastically. I had a great morning yoga class and then spent the rest of the day doing homework and packing for our camping trip.

The architect got home about 4:45 and we loaded up the truck and were off!  We stayed at Elk Creek Campground in the Coast Range. It was really pretty, if a bit too close to the highway (6) for my taste. Next time we’ll leave a bit earlier and get one of the more tucked away campgrounds.

Friday night we started the fire, set up camp, roasted weenies and marshmallows, and relaxed.

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Sometime in the middle of the night, some crazy person started yelling obscenities and being a general crazy, disturbing nuisance. I slept through it.

Saturday morning, we were up and at ‘em wicked early (i.e. 8 am!). We had a lovely breakfast of instant coffee with hot cocoa stirred in and organic pop tarts.  HEALTHY! :)

We were going to do a long hike that day, summitting two nearby peaks. We grabbed the day pack, the water filter and the camera & headed to the stream to fill up the water bottles for the hike.

As the architect filled up the bottles, I decided I needed a picture of that. And that’s when I realized that the camera batteries were dead.

Shortly thereafter, we also realized that the water filter was dead.

This was not an auspicious beginning!

We reevaluated our plans, and since it was now nearing 11 am, decided that the 8-10 hour extremely (according to the trail map) difficult hike with only 32 oz of water might not be the way to go.

So, we took the moderately difficult option instead. We did a 7 mile hike, which took 3 hours and all 32 oz of water. We did see an elk that crashed through the  forest and crossed the trail ahead of us, so that was cool!  It was a pretty, steep, and fun hike.  The way back, I rolled my ankle, bruised my heel, and almost fell in a hole (not to mention the stinging nettle that I traipsed through), and was sure glad to get back to the tent!

We split a beer and napped before getting down to the business of more fires, more roasted weenies, and more toasted marshmallows!

I fell asleep hard that night, and about midnight was woken up by the sound of rapid gunfire not too far away. There were a LOT of shots, and it was really nerve-wracking. The architect tried to tell me that it sounded really far away, but I didn’t believe him (although I appreciated him trying to assuage my fears).  After the shots finally died down for good, the campground became a swarm of activity. A couple groups packed up their cars and got out of Dodge. All the flashlights bobbing about & the hushed conversations did nothing for my nerves. It took me forever to fall asleep again, and then I had dreams about being shot the rest of the night.

Sunday morning, the whole campsite was pretty much packing up & leaving early.  We loaded up the car and headed to Kookoolan farm to pick up Colin!

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Doesn’t he look delicious? Plus, bonus Ikea bag for all my open water swim needs! :)

We started on our way home, stopping Forest Grove for lunch and then spending a lazy afternoon at home.

Yesterday was my first “work at home” day, and it was wonderful! I got so much done, had fewer distractions at home than work, and generally felt way more productive.  I took off & picked up Jen so we could head out to Klineline for a swim. It was perfect weather – a little overcast to keep us cool. We did two long loops in the lake and it felt really great!

Last night, the rain woke me up and it’s still gray and drizzly today. I love a break from the heat & sun every couple of weeks in the summer, and my rain barrels and garden need the break, too!

Speaking of the garden, check it out! Baby ‘maters and peppers!

Baby Tomato!

 

Baby Black Hungarian Sweet Pepper

 

 

 

Daisy!

 

The other great thing that happened yesterday? My new Kate Spade shoes arrived! Huzzah!

Happy week!

12/4/10 Reverb Writing Prompt #4: Wonder

Dec 5th, 2010
by gazelle.
Comments are off for this post

Prompt: Wonder. How did you cultivate a sense of wonder in your life this year?

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This is a difficult question. I feel that overall, I didn’t. This year was (and continues to be) a year of hardness, of facts, of chores. There was very little in the way of flights of fancy, hopes, dreams, or wonder.

That, perhaps, is the problem.

I need to spend more time outdoors, where I generally do find a sense of wonder. I need more hiking, more running, more camping, more sleeping under the stars.

The architect and I took a couple weekend trips this year (in fact, we just got back from one, which is why this is a day late), and although they were great (love a king-sized bed and cable TV), they weren’t wonderful.

I think I have a new goal for next year.

Holiday Weekend

Jun 30th, 2010
by gazelle.
1 comment

I am just getting to the end of my insane three-day work-week. I still have to reach the end of my school-week (I’m estimating about 11 am tomorrow morning), and then I’m free and clear to head out for the weekend – no worries, no school, no internet…wait a minute! What have I gotten myself into! ha!

The architect & I are headed out for a camping trip (our first of the year!) tomorrow as soon as my homework is done. We used to do a LOT of camping – back before we spent our weekends gardening and building sheds and driveways and training for marathons and other random crap. Now, we get out a couple of times a year. Which is ridiculous!

However, since I am doubting my ability to do any backpacking (stupid Damian), we are car camping this time. Near a lake. And the Pacific Crest Trail.

I’m bringing my trail running shoes. Just in case.

I’m bringing my yoga mat, too. Just ’cause I’m in the woods doesn’t mean I can’t get my zen on, right?

I’ll probably bring a few books. And a camera. I am really looking forward to a few days away from all distractions, and spending that time with the architect.

We get back on Sunday – and will spend that afternoon with a few friends, including the newly married kick-ass neighbors who will be newly back from their European Honeymoon.

The next few days, though, are all about this:

Where Were You When We Were Getting High?

Aug 17th, 2009
by gazelle.
12 comments

I had the best weekend – it was seriously the battery recharge I needed.

A bit of background – when I first started dating the architect, the first activities we really did together were camping & hiking stuff – and it was our first hike together that really made me realize that I needed to lose weight.

Anyways – so, we hiked. And camped. And it was fun! And then we moved to Portland. And bought a house. And I became a runner. So, instead of hiking every weekend & camping every 2-3 weeks in the summer, we started gardening (which, of course, I love), and household projects, running many miles, and drinking with our neighbors, etc. SO – this year, I told the architect that we were camping at least THREE times – once a month in June, July & August.

June came around – the first weekend we had picked out got pushed back due to party attendance (for once, not me). The second weekend it was storming EVERYWHERE we thought about going. 50 mph winds, hail, etc. Nice to watch – unless you’re in a tent.

So – July….and we had a weekend! But then, we had an out-of-town guest instead.

Finally – it was August – and nothing – not an 18 mile run, not a pulled groin muscle, nothing – was keeping me at home.

We had selected our August camping spot a few months ago. There is an area in the Cascades of northern Washington that the architect did his Master’s thesis on. Anyone who knows the architect well would know that he LOVES old mining sites. And I love ghost towns. And often, they go together, so it’s worked out well.

He’s been telling me about Monte Cristo for about 7 years now, and finally I got to see for myself.

There isn’t a lot left at the townsite – most of the buildings are from the 50s when there was a resurgence of interest in the area. There is only one building standing from the town’s heydey in the early 20th century.

But it is beautiful.

Friday – we drove all day, stopped in Seattle for coffee with a friend (yay) and then headed out. We parked about 4 miles from our campground & started backpacking. It was grey and misty and pretty.

It got dark quickly, and the architect started looking for a campground he knew existed on the way. Finally, we had to give up & make camp so that we weren’t in the dark.

I slept so well that night – crawled into my sleeping bag at about 9:30 & slept until 9 the next morning. Guess I was tired!

Saturday morning, we packed up & hiked the remaining 1.5 miles to the campsite. About 50 feet past our sleeping spot, we passed the campground we’d been trying for the night before!

After arriving at the Monte Cristo campground, we set up camp, and then headed to the town site & then for a hike.

Rusty Wheel - Monte Cristo townsite

Rusty Wheel - Monte Cristo townsite

We did this crazy-ass hike up to a place called glacier basin. I was a little worried about my torn groin, but after about an hour, I didn’t even feel it anymore.

Glacier Basin

Glacier Basin

When I say crazy hike, I mean pretty crazy. There was a lot of rock scrambles & some bouldering. In two places, it was so crazy that there were ropes (and some people actually BACKPACKED up & down this section…..glad it wasn’t me!)

We stopped & just enjoyed the view a few times – although the architect was struck by how much the glaciers had receded in the eight years since he’d been before – there were only a few small ones left.

After the hike to & from Glacier Basin, we were soaked! There was so much new growth, now that the snow doesn’t cover everything for as long.

Unnamed falls - I suggested renaming to Amy Falls Down

Unnamed falls - I suggested renaming to "Amy Falls Down"

Once we got back to the townsite, I wandered around with the map created by the Monte Cristo Preservation Association and tried to piece the town back together.

The sun started to break through the mist just as the day was winding down. We went and had our dinner, and then went out for another small hike. There had been so many landslides in the past decade – a result of the glaciers letting go of large rocks that then wipe out bridges, and roads – so we kept singing Oasis’s “Champagne Supernova.” The architect always sings, “someday you will find me, carpeting the landslide” so that was a never-ending source of entertainment, of course!

On our evening hike, I spotted this:

So we were extra careful to hang our food that night -and warned our fellow campers that we might not be alone.

It rained Saturday night – but we were well-protected by our tent & the trees.

Sunday morning dawned foggy – it felt like we were caught in a fairy story. But by the time we were ready to hike out, the fog had burned off, and we had our only sunny day. I kept saying, “I guess you weren’t lying about the presence of the mountains!”

The backpack out was more challenging. My groin really started to complain. Apparently bouldering is good, but carrying an extra 30 lbs on the back = not good.

One of the places a bridge was washed out.

One of the places a bridge was washed out.

We didn’t make it back in time to get to Lake Stevens to see these guys finish their 70.3, which was a bummer, but even with the fact that my groin muscle is STILL angry, I wouldn’t trade this trip for anything in the world.

It was a much needed break for both of us – and we’ve pledged to make this an annual trip. It was great to spend time in a place that meant so much to the architect, and I know he enjoyed sharing it with me. And we really got a chance to just be together – something that hasn’t happened in too long, what with unemployement/money woes.

Best weekend ever.