Hiking

Crankin, I look forward to seeing pictures when you've a chance. It sounds incredible!

Speaking of incredible, Emily I love YOUR pictures, and you look great - and happy - on the trail. Thanks for sharing!

Today is supposed to be the warmest day in a week for Indianapolis, and it will get to 72, they say. I really feel the need to move, to do SOMETHING, and I can't lift, don't know how to swim (shoulders probably couldn't handle that anyway), so I may try a very short walk on dirt and see what happens. When I mean short, I mean 1 mile or less, and the trail doesn't really connect with any other so that will decrease the temptation to go longer. I've also been told my hiking boots might be part of the problem so will try it with my Keenes.

We had a 20 degree decrease in temperature from yesterday and it was windy today. Cloudy, too.
I can say, this was the hardest hike i've done. I didn't let any of the others hear my complaining, but there was a good deal of rock scrambling in the beginning. I was still the third one up, but I was crawling. So were others, though. At least today we had clear views of Echo Lake and the ocean, along with a variety of flora and fauna. Many of these people are naturalists (amateur and pro), but I am just not that interested in the 20 kinds of moss!
There were some tricky chutes/rocks when we had to get down from the peak (I can't even remember the name of the mountain), but I managed it. The peak had a fire tower, which was closed. Anyway, between my eye hurting, my knee aching, and the wind, it was all I could do from melting down. I am proud I did it, and it started to drizzle just as we were getting back. I had become chilled from stopping for lunch, although I really was dressed correctly. We hiked about 6 miles, with 1K ft. of climbing. I still can't believe some of these people did this, between some being over 80 years old, one with cancer, and 2 extremely overweight. The are motivated.
We are going into town on our own for a bit, before happy hour, and then out to dinner. I hope I can move for tomorrow's short hike.

Crankin, sounds incredible! Thank you for the description, you are a strong woman indeed. Hopefully tomorrow's hike is more of a recovery hike. Looking forward to any pictures you may have been able to take. I hear you about not caring about 20 kinds of moss ;)

Today I just did an extremely easy 1 mile loop in my hiking SHOES (Keenes), not my lovely Solomons just in case that's part of the problem. It's a few hours later and my left shin is complaining a little, so back to resting it. Well, at least it was a 1-mile FLAT, totally boring test. Not that long ago it would have been a mountain bike trail test, so perhaps I'm finally learning something.

While over-use injuries are never good things to have, I don't think it such a bad thing that I'm having to deal with such things at as I celebrate my 57th :cool:

I missed where you are, Crankin. Somewhere in New England? Congrats on finishing a tough hike -- I completely get how you were feeling! I almost, almost melted down on the long one we took a few days ago because DH took off to the summit without me. This is the hike that was nearly 3000' of climbing in the 4+ miles up (and the same descending on the way back). I thought my pace was decent, given the grade, but he is a much faster hiker than me and gets impatient. He did the same thing on the way back. I was proud of myself as I didn't pitch a fit or start a big fight with him afterwards; just calmly asked him why he took off without me and told him how it made me feel. He had a reasonable explanation having to do with the GPS and photo opportunities at the summit, but I asked him, in the future, to please tell me this ahead of time; don't just take off. He said he would and apologized.

It was one of those Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus moments, I think!

Sorry you're not able to hike much but glad you at least got in a little walk. Hope you will continue to heal up and be back to the type of hikes you like very soon!

Happy Birthday, Catrin!!

Happy birthday, Catrin! I like your attitude. Hope you had some port or beer to celebrate.
So, our last day of our trip, the sun came out and it was 50 degrees, but still windy near the summit of our climb, and by the ocean. We had fabulous views.
We drove into the park, this time, where I purchased a life time senior pass (I really disliked this) for 10.00, as they are going up to 80.00 next year. We parked at the Mt. Gotham lot and proceeded to hike... it started out rocky, and pretty much stayed that way, only difference being the rocks were different shapes! No scrambling, once DH grabed my pole and pulled me up, since my short legs put me at a severe disadvantage. I found out that I prefer to jump down from rocks, rather than doing a steep step down, which hurts my knees more, even with poles. The view of the Schoodic Peninsula was awesome, and I could see the places we visited with our kids, about 18 years ago. It was our last vacation, where no one was cycling. We went down another trail, and then walked about a mile on a path along the ocean.
Some interesting facts about the other participants... one man is 88 years old, which means he could have been a friend of my parents. His wife is 82. There were quite a few in their 70s, and about 6 others around my age. All educated, accomplished people. So, no bragging about how fast I was, given who I was hiking with. But, I could keep up with the one person who was fast, besides DH, except on the really technical stuff.
We had lunch in Bar harbor and then the long drive home; since we were going into rush hour traffic near the end, it took longer than the trip up. Glad to be home, but also really glad I went.

Whoop hooo, just walked 2 miles and as long as my shins don't complain later I hope I'm back on target to lead a 4-5 mile hike on Nov 5th, weather permitting.

Crankin, thanks for speaking more on your hikes, it sounded like a lot of fun. I hear you about not being happy about purchasing the lifetime pass...

Thanks for the birthday wishes! I DID have a Kahloua and cream (actually whole milk) on the rocks. The "rocks" were frozen cubes od some wonderful Mexican sigle-estate decaffeinated coffee :)

Here are just 2 pics. I have to get DH to make a link to Flicker with all of them.
The one with the waterfall was at the end of a downhill trail. We crossed the carriage road and then went on more trail.
Geez, I look a little lumpy here, with all of my layers...

You both look great and I love the shot of both of you on the bridge!

So excited, we're heading over to a state park tomorrow and going for a nice longer hike (that means over a mile for me). There's a trail that follows the river, I haven't been able to hike it in the last 3-4 years, I can't wait!

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Originally Posted by Pax

So excited, we're heading over to a state park tomorrow and going for a nice longer hike (that means over a mile for me). There's a trail that follows the river, I haven't been able to hike it in the last 3-4 years, I can't wait!

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Whoohooo! Sounds awesome, have fun!

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Can't wait to hear about your hike, Pax.
We've had a bout of rain, which we need, so I went to a tabata class this morning. I have figured out why I have had less motivation to ride in the past 6 weeks or so. Usually, when I get to the end of October, I look forward to hiking, the gym, and getting ready for x country ski season. But this past year, I rode through the winter, with a lot of riding last October, November, and December. So, I kind of felt like I usually do now, in September. I am OK with it, too! Instead, I did more hiking at the height of the season, which has helped my balance and dexterity greatly. I noticed this in my tabata class today.

OK, here's the link to my Acadia trip.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/stevem...57672265881484

Enjoy!

WOO HOO, I did it!!!!! It was probably only a mile total and I had to switch over to a different trail at one point, but it was amazing!! On both trails I could only go so far because of steep sections that were slippery with leaves, but I still managed some elevation changes and some tight single track type stuff; my poles were worth their weight in gold, I almost felt like a normal person.

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Originally Posted by Pax

WOO HOO, I did it!!!!!

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....:):).....and a wonderful smile on you too

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Originally Posted by rebeccaC

....:):).....and a wonderful smile on you too

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Thank you. I stopped at one point and just cried, I've missed it all so much.

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Originally Posted by Pax

WOO HOO, I did it!!!!! It was probably only a mile total and I had to switch over to a different trail at one point, but it was amazing!! On both trails I could only go so far because of steep sections that were slippery with leaves, but I still managed some elevation changes and some tight single track type stuff; my poles were worth their weight in gold, I almost felt like a normal person.

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Congratulations an I love that smile! I'm looking forward to our hike next year :cool:

Thanks, catrin, me too!

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Originally Posted by Pax

Thanks, catrin, me too!

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So we encourage each other to keep putting one foot in front of the other :)

While I'm still getting occasional cramping, I am (very carefully) getting back into walking. Very conservative distances so far and not yet on dirt. I've also been researching the role of calcium, magnesium, and Vitamin D (and potassium of course). I passed the vascular test (yayyyyyy). I don't believe in heavy supplementation but I have added some magnesium citrate, and a small amount of calcium + Vit. D. Small amounts, we will see. Also going to try my lighter hiking shoes on the local dirt trails to see if my hiking boots played a role in the splints due to being too rigid. Hopefully my feet will agree with the change, there was a reason why I chose those boots. I do think (hope) shorter hikes will be fine with them though - no 11 mile hikes again for some time to come.

Excellent on passing the test!! Hope the minimal supplementation will help with the cramping.


I wore my newer Merrell Moabs on my hike and have to say, two thumbs up! They were comfortable and gripped like glue on some slippery stuff. I've switched to low cut shoes from a hiking boots and my knee is much happier, much less stress transmitted up the leg.

Great hikes, ladies!

Thanks for sharing! :)

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Originally Posted by Pax

Excellent on passing the test!! Hope the minimal supplementation will help with the cramping.


I wore my newer Merrell Moabs on my hike and have to say, two thumbs up! They were comfortable and gripped like glue on some slippery stuff. I've switched to low cut shoes from a hiking boots and my knee is much happier, much less stress transmitted up the leg.

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Glad to hear the Merrells are working for you Pax, I really did like mine until it became apparent that they just didn't fit my feet properly.

Never thought about stress being transmitted up the leg from my beloved rigid Solomon's causing shin splints before I threw in an 11-mile hike until my doctor suggested it. I am going to experiment this weekend with a 2-3 mile dirt hike in my Keene hiking shoes, I'm a bit nervous that my legs may need the opposite of my feet, but I need to strike out and experiment. I won't know until I try!

I hit my small toe on a chair last night. It's stiff and there's bruising on my metatarsal area, but it's not broken. I can point and flex it, just some pain when I really apply pressure. It was a stupid accident.
Glad I have no hiking plans for this week. I went to spin this morning and I have some riding planned tomorrow and Saturday. Not sure if I will be able to do tabata. I only felt pain in spin class when I was standing on the pedals and my foot leaned toward the left. Using Arnica and did some icing.

Sorry, Crankin!

I broke my pinky toe on a chair leg last winter. Not fun, especially going up and down the stairs to/from our third-floor apartment. And I had to lay off yoga for awhile. Fortunately, cycling did not bother it as my cycling shoes protected it. Hope yours heals up fast!

What is tabata, by the way?

Basically, varying versions of high intensity interval training. Sometimes the intervals are cardio oriented and sometimes they are strength oriented. 45 minutes of sweat!

My foot is better this morning. The bruising is decreased a lot. I can see, though, how going up and down stairs would hurt like hell. I am going out on a ride in about an hour or so. Now that the weather looks better for Sunday, maybe some mild hiking will be do-able. DH is not really into wanting to do 63 miles on Saturday (riding my age for my birthday), and I don't really want to do 63 miles alone. So, if we ride less, I definitely will try hiking on Sunday. I can already feel weird imbalances and other pain starting, because I was kind of walking funny yesterday, to protect it.

Almost fell flat on my face going into the grocery store this morning, stepping into a dip with my bum leg. Wonder if it would look weird using my hiking poles in everyday life? :D

Youch Crankin! Glad you're feeling a bit better and that you have a nice weekend whatever you choose to do. I certainly understand wanting to ride your age, but glad to hear there are other options should your DH decide against it.

I hear you Pax, hope nothing was strained from that almost-fall. I swear If we could just have radar that would warn us about this dips in advance. We could look all prescient :cool:

That would be great! I stepped into the depression and my bad knee started to give, my quad quivered like crazy trying to keep me upright (way to go quad!) and I managed to stay on my feet. I have got to start paying closer attention to the ground when I walk, I'm typically staring at the clouds instead.

I would do that, and I don't have any issues with my knees or legs! And, when I hike I *have* to keep my eyes on the ground. Not head fully down, but in order for my brain to integrate what to do with my feet, I can't just leap ahead, like some do. I am going faster now that I have figured out how to put it all together. In fact, after the trip, I have noticed I am just more coordinated at everything, which is why I want to do more hiking.
My foot hurt clipping in a bit today, but it was pretty much the same as when I did spin class yesterday. Will try icing it later and elevating it, too.

I do that a lot more these days, after my fall last year at work that led to knee surgery.

Tried a little 2 mile hike today in my Keenes. Feet weren't as happy as they are in my boots but they typically are less happy at that park anyway as there is lots of gravel. Dirt is much easier on me, will try it again Saturday in another park that has actual dirt trails and see what happens. I will have my boots in the car just in case.

Almost 80 today on November 2! We broke a 150 year record for this date. We are going to cry when the cold finally comes...

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Another hike today in a different state park, gorgeous day out there, we had so much fun!! A bit of uphill and downhill, with two small bridges over the tiny little creeks running through the park.

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Another hike today in a different state park, gorgeous day out there, we had so much fun!! A bit of uphill and downhill, with two small bridges over the tiny little creeks running through the park.

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You both look great and it sounds like fun! I love the smiles :)

Another hiking test for me tomorrow. My shin splints have improved but are still there - but no more cramping. A little test tomorrow to see if I can use my Keens for longer hikes on real dirt (rather than gravel). Last weeks test didn't do so well but there was a lot of gravel, I never do well with that. I'm supposed to lead our little hiking group from church next week and I need to decide pretty quickly if I should cancel...

Thanks, we were tickled to be out and about. We also had packed a picnic lunch and just enjoyed sitting outside in the sunshine!


I was reading about some hikers on the AT, they use trail runners or low cut hiking shoes instead of boots, but have to use an insole like superfeet to add stability. Maybe some insoles would help your feet in those Keens?

I need to use my hiking boots almost all of the time. I usually wear the lower cut light hikers for local trails, but, most of the time I wish I had my hiking shoes on. In fact, when we were in Acadia, I felt like I wanted those really high up hiking shoes; my ankles always feel loose. No matter how tightly I tie my shoes, they loosen. I don't have weak ankles, but I feel like I need more stability. I love my Lowa boots, though.
On another note, I feel like my foot/toe is never going to heal. I wore flats all week, except one day, where I wore a pair of chunky, lower heels, because the top of the shoe is very stretchy and loose. I cannot get into my normal "kitten" heels I wear to work, because they are stiff. Been using Arnica, some icing, and the bruising is much better. But today, my foot hurts more. We plan on doing a hike today and I hope I can get into my boots. The thing is, I know I am walking differently, to avoid direct pressure on the left side of my foot, and that is making other things hurt.

Are you sure your toe is not broken, Crankin? Even if not, sounds like a really bad sprain. I hope you can manage your hiking boots and hike, but if not, your body needs time to heal. Annoying, but a part of life, right?

Well, I didn't have an x ray, but it's not swollen and the bruising is more on the top of my foot. Besides, even it was broken, there's nothing to do for it but rest. Cycling seems OK, but I will definitely have to modify more than I did last week in tabata. I figure another week of flat shoes and probably more icing. I have not been very good about that.

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Originally Posted by Pax

Thanks, we were tickled to be out and about. We also had packed a picnic lunch and just enjoyed sitting outside in the sunshine!


I was reading about some hikers on the AT, they use trail runners or low cut hiking shoes instead of boots, but have to use an insole like superfeet to add stability. Maybe some insoles would help your feet in those Keens?

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That would be good if I didn't HAVE to have my custom orthotics, I will experiment later today. Of course, it COULD be that my beloved hiking boots would be fine for dirt only, and for distances no more than 5-6 miles. The orthotics have REALLY calmed both my feet down and my podiatrist doesn't want to see me in any shoes without them. Have no idea how that actually works but even my severe metatarsal joint arthritis has calmed. I used to think that custom orthotics were nothing but expensive arch supports, and while some may indeed be, these are far from that.

Crankin - hope that heals soon and crossing my fingers for you today.

I am off to experiment with my Keenes. If this works I may explore (next year) and see if Keene makes the same hiking shoe that goes higher up the ankle.

So, going hiking wasn't probably the best way for me to spend 2 hours today... but now I know.
We went to the Middlesex Fells, which is a huge recreational area, in a more urban area, actually very near my son's house. I've read a lot about the trails, and pretty much it was all correct. Tons of trails, they are well marked, but it's confusing. The Skyline Trail is the most difficult, actual rocky/technical hiking. Our plan was to include a small part of this today. It's also noted to be crowded. Our hike started out fine, but as soon as we got on the more technical stuff I couldn't do any jumping down and I had to be extremely cautious on technical stuff. My foot just hurt. Plus, there seemed to be a large group trail run on this trail, and it wasn't peaceful. So we re-routed and it was quieter and easier. At one point, we stopped by a reservoir and then we were stopped by a young couple, carrying their dog, no water or food, and in street clothes, with sneakers. They couldn't find their way back to their car. We showed them on our All Trails map, and of course, they went the opposite way. Oy.
It had been spitting rain on the way there, but it stopped and then started again after we ate our lunch. We only had about half a mile left, but it was on an unmarked (but on the All Trails app), sort of bush whacking trail. Then we saw a trail runner, so we knew we were almost back. As soon as we got back on the highway, it started raining really hard, but it was sunny back at home.
We went 4.1 miles. This place is a gem for city dwellers, but frankly, not sure if I want to go back. I'd like to try the more difficult stuff; maybe going earlier, when it's colder out would help. Or wait until I can snow shoe there!
I haven't taken my sock off yet, to see if there's more damage to my foot, but I will be icing 2X a day for sure. No hiking for 2 weeks, when we are signed up to do a group hike up Mt. Wachusett.

Crankin and Catrin, hope both of you have happier feet asap!


We did another tiny hike at a local park today. It started out paved and knee didn't like that at all. Switched to dirt and had an "ahhhhhh" moment. Short but very sweet, did see a small snake which gave me instant willies, but a puppy just down the trail made up for it, she was adorable.