Back from my Eastern Washington (and a little bit of Idaho too) Whirlwind Tour

Last night at around 11:30 pm I returned from an 8 day trip that was quite productive and fun and a tad bit exhausting. I apologize for the lack of blog entries during my absence-but I don't travel with a laptop. Wouldn't have had any time to use it anyways even if I did travel with one. So where did I go and what did I do?
Okay-
Book and hiking talk and presentation in Wenatchee.
Run 6 miles on the Golden Tiger Rail Trail in Republic Washington
Hike 10 miles on the northern Kettle Crest and Little Vulcan Mountain
Hike 5 miles in 13 Mile Canyon Roadless area
Book talk and presentation in Spokane
Hike 4 miles on Tubbs Hill in Coeur d'Alene Idaho
Walk a few mils on the Centennial Trail
Run 10 miles on the Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes at Heyburn State Park, ID
Hike 14 miles on Tucannon River Trail and Hunters Spring in the Blue Mountains, Umatilla National Forest
Hike 4 miles in the Juniper Dunes Wilderness
Book talk in Walla Walla
Run 6 miles on the Mill Creek Trail and Bennington Lake Reserve in Walla Walla
Visit the Whitman National Historic Site
Hike Hat Rock State Park, Oregon
Hike Crow Butte
Run a 10K race in Moses Lake
Visit Dry Falls
Drive way too much thanks to a road closure on the North Cascades Highway

Quite a bit of activity there for 8 days uh? Tell me about it! I'm exhausted- time to rest on this Memorial Day Weekend. I'll tell you more about some of the places I recently visited in the my upcoming posts. Its great to be back home!

(photo-Garfield County Courthouse in Pomeroy-the middle of nowhere and one of my favorite corners of Washington)

Cat Napping

One of the best things about working at home is being able to take a nap. One of the best things about being self-employed is being able to take a nap without scorn from the boss. One of the best things about sharing a house with two cats is that they encourage you to take a nap! My big Maine Coon Giuseppe is a lovable feline but not much of a snuggler. Scruffy Gray, the cat that showed up at our deck on one of the coldest nights of the year is now a member of this family. He is a big time snuggler and will crawl up on you at any chance he gets. Matter of fact he is sleeping on my lap right now as I type this entry. Scruffy and I love to take our naps together-and its a good thing he is only 10 pounds-because he is usually plopped down right on my chest. Yesterday, Heather and I did an 18 mile training run (we have a marathon scheduled next month). I'm sure that today's nap will be a deep one! And for the Scruffer, he doesn't need to expend great amounts of calories and energy to enjoy one of life's simpler pleasures-the nap! I can hardly wait to take my first one in an alpine meadow this year. Sorry, Scruffer-the couch will have to do for you!

(photo-Craig and Scruffy Gray catch some Z's-photo by Heather)

Lions and Bears and Owls-

Oh My!

Well, it finally happened to me. It was only a matter of time before I would be attacked by a wild animal. After all I spend an inordinate amount of time in the woods-and it was bound to happen eventually. A bear? Nope! A mountain lion? uh-uh! A randy moose? Nah! How about an owl! Yep! I was off on a trail run in Alice Lake Provincial Park just north of Squamish, British Columbia, when a large barred owl flew onto a nearby limb. Gorgeous creature indeed. I tried to photograph him with my small point-and-shoot that I was running with. Watched him for awhile-tried to focus on him- (her actually) when she swooped down at me! Yikes! I have heard of this happening-now it is involving me! I started running down the forested trail and she came down at me a couple of more times. I start running faster- and that blasted owl kept flying down the trail at me. I picked up a stick and started singing in as a I ran- this would have made good video coverage- a crazy Italian lancing at the air with an alder limb! After about a third of a mile or so, the owl let me go! It was exhilarating and a bit unnerving. Of course there are bears and cougars in this park and I was out on an evening run all alone-but it was the owl that got me! Trust me- her chicks have nothing to worry about-I will not be returning anytime soon to look for them. Be careful out there-its a jungle outside!

Frosted on New Years Day

at the 2009 Peanut Butter Chip Chase

There's an old saying (I think its an old saying, but don't ask me where it originated from!) that goes something like this: Whatever you do on New Years Day, you'll do all year. So trying to live a healthy and outdoorsy life, I run a race every New Years Morning. For the last five New Years Days I have been heading with my wife Heather to tiny Temple NH (population 1,500) in the Monadnock Highlands of southern New Hampshire to participate in the annual Peanut Butter Chip Chase 5K. The race has been going on for 31 years. We jumped in five years ago. Heather and I used to run in the Hangover Classic 10K in Salisbury Massachusetts on New Years Day, but ceased since they moved the race course from the Salisbury countryside to Salisbury Beach, a God-forsaken place where rows of ramshackle beach homes, ticky-tacky shops, and 1970s era dance clubs sporting smoke stained disco balls and mystery stained carpets don't exactly sit well with me for ringing in the New Year!

I grew up in small town New Hampshire and my idea of inspiring scenery is rolling pine, maple and oak covered hills, black-shuddered white trim colonial homes, two-hundred year old meeting houses, churches with cloud-piercing spires, babbling brooks, pastoral byways, picture-postcard surroundings and plenty of friendly folks. I found it in Temple!

While the race can always be counted on for delivering a great experience with lots of friendly volunteers, and ample amounts of home made hot soup and scrumptious home baked cookies afterwards. What can never be counted on is the weather. You just never know what the New England Weather gods have in store for you. This year's race was yet another meteorological surprise. Ten degrees with -15 degree wind chill! Brrrr! And with a storm that dumped 6 inches of dry white fluff the day before, meant that once again I'd be running a course that never saw pavement! But, boy does all of that snow make it pretty.

I finished 1 minute faster than last year when the race was actually held during a snow storm. Never broke a sweat on the course both times. And once again no matter the weather nor my race time, I had a great time! We'll be back again next New Years- you can count on that like you can count on the weather not being something you can count on! To Race Director Bill Moore (a former Washingtonian- hey Bill, we traded places!) and the Souhegan Lions Club, the race's sponsors, thanks and may you have a happy and prosperous New Year! Thanks to your event we have already started our new year on the right foot!

(photo- Brrr is it cold! Race volunteers try to stay form at the finish line)