paradise park, mount hood

Near the end of the school year, my running partner Julie and I realized that if we woke up really early, we could sneak in a good trail run during the week and make it back to Portland in time to pick up the kids. Inspired by the opportunity to hit the trails, we spent much of the summer dreaming of the days school would begin and we could try our new plan out in earnest. Today marked our first successful outing of the new school year.

The 5:00 am alarm was jarring, but seeing the sun rise as we pulled in to Timberline Lodge was worth it.

Our destination was Paradise Park, high on the slopes of Mt Hood for a solid run of twelve miles. The first climb up from the lodge to get on the Pacific Crest Trail had us both sucking wind in minutes.

Thankfully the gorgeous day revived us from our miserable breathing habits.

Armed with a new camera, I wasted little time in recruiting my new found model for some action shots.

This would be a recurring theme. Thankfully she was a good sport for me.

Playing around with some photo effects.

The light was amazing all morning. 

I found myself in awe of the grandness of the area versus our puny selves. 

The trail down to the Zig Zag canyon is full of water. I was so focused on capturing the images that I totally missed the fact that a guy we passed was carrying a gun. He had shot a bear, he proudly told Julie, and then asked if she wanted to see it. It was in his backpack. "That poor baby bear" was all I could think when she told me her story. Now, I don't know if he really shot a baby bear. Or a bear at all. I know it wasn't a large backpack, so it couldn't have been big...this is just the silly thought that kept rolling through my head. We've decided that he was crazy and hadn't shot anything at all, because we like that version of the story much better.

More tricks of light on the ridges.

The entrance to Paradise Park.

A lot of water flows through this area, creating little oases high on the mountain. Gorgeous.

Julie runs up towards the broken rock, one of the coolest sights of the day.

One more photo effect.

A shot of me taking photos. Cracks me up.

The hike information:
Paradise Park, via the Timberline Trail

Total mileage: 13 miles

Rating: INSANELY AWESOME.

why we run far

I've often wondered why we run these long distances, why we choose to strip ourselves down to something essential. Poet Ted Hughes wrote the following in a letter to his son, and I think he eloquently captures what we are looking for when we take on this journey.

"And so, wherever life takes it by surprise, and suddenly the artificial self of adaptations proves inadequate, and fails to ward off the invasion of raw experience, that inner self is thrown into the front line — unprepared, with all its childhood terrors round its ears. And yet that’s the moment it wants. That’s where it comes alive — even if only to be overwhelmed and bewildered and hurt. And that’s where it calls up its own resources — not artificial aids, picked up outside, but real inner resources, real biological ability to cope, and to turn to account, and to enjoy. That’s the paradox: the only time most people feel alive is when they’re suffering, when something overwhelms their ordinary, careful armour, and the naked child is flung out onto the world. That’s why the things that are worst to undergo are best to remember."

I also think he has discovered the reason we act like little children when we get super tired.

winner, winner...

chicken dinner.

I have a new "worst race photo ever".

Seriously?

Damn I'm a good downhill runner.

If you can't laugh at yourself, who can you laugh at?

Now I am off to do about a thousand positive affirmations.

2012 mckenzie river 50k race report

I have started to write this race report four times now. It's hard to put in to words what I'm feeling, I guess.

Elation. That is the first feeling I can name. A fantastic race - stunning trail, fast course, great race organization, fun swag, hot showers and lunch at the finish. As the oldest continuously running ultra in Oregon, the race is steeped in history and tradition. If I were to suggest one race to run in Oregon, McKenzie River might be it.

I wore a grin for all but the last 1.5 mile of the race.

Disappointment is there too.

Not about how I ran.  This was actually the fastest I've run a 50k to date. Rather about the things I said I would do that I did not...slowing down to take photos, running more with my friend Julie, truly enjoying the full day. Instead I found myself calculating times and racing a bit, which would be fine if that was what I truly loved about these races. But it isn't. 

Part of the course runs through an old lava bed, paved thankfully.

At one point during the race, I remember asking myself if I would rather have a new Garmin or a new compact camera to carry on the trail. The camera won. And in the days since the race, I've revisited that question, and the answer remains the same. More than racing fast, I want to soak in the trail and race. That's my first love.

Beautiful Clear Lake. At one point on the trail, you can see ancient submerged trees under the water.

Confusion dwells in me too. Why do I have this conflict between enjoying the race and running it fast? Why isn't running fast more enjoyable? Or why can't I just relax and not worry about my finish times at all? I find this battle in my head rages during the race...I will hurry through aid stations just to stop and take a moment on the trail for no other reason than I want to.

The incredibly clear water.

They say that ultrarunning is 90% mental and the other 10% is all in your head. The more I toe the line, the clearer this saying becomes to me. My mental battle is in the effort needed to race versus my desire to be comfortable and happy. I still have much to learn about the "beast" too, that fatigue that whispers all those sweet nothings about stopping and slowing down. Based on my recovery, I had a lot more to give on Saturday, just as I had a lot more to give on Mt Hood. If I want to give more, I need to learn to deal with those mental demons more effectively. And if I don't want to give more, I need to get that voice telling me I'm lame for running this way to quiet down.

One of the numerous log bridges we crossed during the race. 

As the race fades into memory, there are a few moments I want to remember:

• The thrill of seeing running friends Tonya & Jeff at Clear Lake; what a wonderful surprise.
• The mist of Koosah Falls rising above the rocks as we came down the hill, and then stopping to peer over the edge at the beautiful rush of water.
• The woman who screamed "bees!" behind me; I about fell into the bush. Luckily no one was stung.
• The guy who was struggling behind me for a time, then blew past me when he decided to keep up with the rafters on the river. Never did see him again.
• The way the sun lit up the trees.
• Sitting around the finish line, swapping stories with my friends. This is why we do this, isn't it?

Koosah Falls.  We actually ran down the ridge to the left of the falls in this photo.

Blue Pool: the one photo I snapped during the race.

"Chingoncitos" everywhere.
Rereading Born to Run right now, and Caballo Blanco calls the little rocks & roots
just waiting to trip you up "chingoncitos" -
not a very nice name, but I didn't think much of them either.

Perhaps this struggle to accept whatever happens on the trail is the most important part of the journey. Ultrarunning has not come as easy for me as running short races did. It has been downright discouraging at times, as I struggle to get stronger, mentally and physically. I run with amazing runners who can blast out 50s at speeds I only dream of, and it is so easy to get caught in the comparison trap, to look at what they are doing and feel less than. But this feeling is coming from within me, because I have yet to meet one ultrarunner who gives a hoot about whether you were first or last during the race. The fact that you show up, that you love the trails and running as much as they do is the only thing that matters.

places to run: three creeks lake, or

Discovered a new place to make home base and run this weekend.

High up in the Cascades, about 20 miles outside of Sisters, Oregon, sits Three Creeks Lake, a beautiful alpine oasis under the Tam McArthur Ridge. Trails traverse the area, providing opportunity to climb, explore and discover the breathtaking beauty of Central Oregon and the Three Sisters wilderness.  

I was hiking with my family so I did not have the opportunity to fully explore the area, but what I found left me wishing for more.

The lake was full of toads and hatchlings - the kids could scoop them up with their hands.

The campground: Three Creeks Lake

Potential runs/hikes:
Tam McArthur Rim
Park Meadow & Golden Lake
Squaw Creek
Golden Lake & Tarns
Metolius Windigo Trail

mckenzie river 50k preview...or not

My family had this camping trip planned for nearly a year. I was really excited to be heading to Olallie Lake, which sits high up on Mt Hood - so close, in fact, that the Pacific Crest Trail runs right through the area. I envisioned a nice long run on the trail, exploring a new section I had never seen before.

Except that it turns out that our reservations were not at Olallie Lake, they were at Olallie Campground, about 50 miles to the south on the McKenzie River. Thankfully we figured this out before we showed up at the lake...

My initial disappointment that I wouldn't be able to explore the PCT was replaced with the realization that we would be camping right on the McKenzie River Trail - which I will be running in 3 weeks. I could learn part of the course and see what kind of trail I was in for.

Except that our campground was on the other side of the river.

Doh.

Right through those trees we could watch mountain bikers and runners tooling by all day long. Sigh.

So basically I had no preview of my upcoming run at all.

Not even a run to stretch out the legs.

At least I managed to get a few nice shots of some of the more beautiful spots in the race.

Clear Lake. We will run all the way around this lake. The color of the water is amazing.

Sahalie Falls. We were on the waterfall trail - the race trail runs along the far side. Notice a theme?

Even this late in August, the water is roaring through here.

I hope there aren't stairs on the proper trail!

The course map for the McKenzie River 50k.

nick eaton ridge loop

You know how some trail runs are magical, and you find yourself marveling at how awesome nature is and how wonderful it is to be alive?

This was not one of those runs.

On paper, it looked like it would be a challenging loop, similar to the Beacon Rock loop, with perhaps a bit more climbing.

On paper.

In reality, it was a bush-wacking, spider avoiding, poison oak dodging, relentless climbing, punishing downhill super challenging day on the trails. One of the ones you call character building.

An early shot of the trail. Doesn't look too bad, does it? Everyone must start turning around near here, because it was about to get ugly.

A peak-a-boo view of Mt St Helens, I think.

Hwy 84 and our car is way down below...

Megan was a machine on the trails. She just kept running and running. Me, not so much.

Awesome view of the gorge spreading to the east.

A huge field of boulders and scree. At this point, I wondered how high up Mt Hood we were getting. Also, where do all of these come from?

Mt Adams through the haze.

Could not properly capture this waterfall as at this point, I was having a bit of an asthma attack and was really struggling. However, I did hop right in to it like a shower, and it was the most amazing feeling ever.