Sand Creek 1/2 Marathon–the long and short of it

Aleka and I ran the Sand Creek Half this morning. In its inaugural year, this race supports the Bluff Lake Nature Center with a course that wends its way along two creeks near Stapleton. Being a mid-summer run, a 7 AM start time helps beat the heat, so with the sun already surprisingly high in the eastern sky, the start gun went off.

The first half, a simple out and back, passed without incident and I was pleased by my 8:30 pace given the previous day’s 5 miler. The second half, since the race was constrained by residential development, involved a series of loops in and out of the Nature Center. Here is where things went awry. Signage was inadequate and poorly written, I am still note sure what Loop 2 Bypass means, and race officials were offering inconsistent direction.

Operator error is of course what comes to mind, and trust me, I had plenty of time to dwell on that as I was misdirected onto an additional 1.1 mile loop. I spent 9 minutes wishing a pox upon the course official and curious how many other people scored a bonus loop. That will likely never be known, but the other problem I learned of, misdirection shortening the course. Aleka was directed away from a loop and finished having run only 11.6 miles.

This was the sole topic of conversation at the finish area, with the race director apologizing for the confusion. I was beat from my run and Aleka was letdown to have not run a half, so she fired off 1.5 miles upon getting home, showing a degree of dedication I do not possess.

Post-run recovery, buttermilk fried chicken, bacon, cheese and eggs, lovingly smothered beneath a pork gravy

Bloody Mary to restore sodium levels

Little Bear,Blanca, and Ellingwood

Stats:

• Distance: ~13.0 miles
• Elevation Gain: ~7,300
• Start time: 3:20 AM
• Finish Time: 5:00 PM
• Climbers: Alan and Sandy

With highs creeping into the triple digits and Front Range ensconced in the smoke of wildfires Alan and I headed south, seeking refuge amidst the high peaks of the Sangre de Cristo mountains.
This year has lacked big mountain days. Those days with pre-dawn starts, blisters, a huge caloric deficit, and a lot of time above treeline. After bouncing a few miles up one of Colorado’s worst roads, a brief sleep, and an alarm that went off at 2:55 AM, that dearth halted.

We got 4 miles up this road. It took an hour.

An orange sun peering through the haze, including wildfire smoke, in the San Luis Valley

Little Bear Peak is much maligned, all because of the “Hourglass”, a narrow 45 degree climb that funnels rockfall. It can be a shooting gallery if careless climbers are above you. Alan and I avoided the situation with the early start, putting us on top before any other party.

Alan at the base of the Hourglass.

Me, following up.

Skylined, with the San Luis Valley in the background.

There is a traverse along a narrow ridge between Little Bear and Blanca. We had thought about doing it. Alan was up for it. Me? I took one look and said “no”. With narrow catwalks perched 1,000 feet above the valley

The traverse between Little Bear and Blanca

Summit shot

Since we did not do the traverse we had to backtrack and drop ~2,500 vertical feet to the valley floor to pickup the standard route for Blanca and Ellingwood

Headed upvalley, we climbed the headwall left of the waterfall

Alan atop Blanca with Little Bear in the background

Me with Little Bear in the background

It was a brief descent and ascent to pick up Ellingwood, which is connected via a sinuous ridge. From Blanca, Ellingwood appeared a loose pile of choss. Nothing more than granite tiles stacked upon one another, waiting to slide to the valley floor with a hapless hiker facing a quick ride and a quicker stop. Upon closer inspection the trail was obvious and lacking in the perceived danger from afar. We descended different routes, with Alan staying on the ridge proper and me dropping into a couloir, but both eventually meeting on the valley floor.

Alpine tarn with tumbling snowfield

All told, the day totaled over 7,000 feet in elevation, a personal best. It was felt on the hike out, in which every step forward fired nerves letting you know that feet hurt and quadriceps were overtaxed. The ride home featured pizza and fatigue, not necessarily in that order.

Post-Work 14er

Alan and I went from climbing 14ers every weekend last summer to both being booked and having to schedule stuff months in advance this summer. One workaround, and a cure for mid-week mental doldrums, the Wednesday climb. It is all quite simple, by following these steps:

• Pick something within a 90 minute drive
• Leave town no later 4 PM, confident that afternoon storms have passed through the high country
• Pack light and be walking within minutes of hitting the trailhead
• Begin the race between muscular endurance and sunlight, carrying a headlamp to hedge the bet

We took this approach to Mt Bierstadt, a short 14er and a good test piece for the feasibility of mid-week climbs. Greeted by dramatic skies and occasional sunshine punching through a low cloud cover to illuminate the alpine, we pushed non-stop to the top.

A few hundred feet below the summit, and seemingly the clouds

Viewshed cleaved by shadow

The view from the parking lot, 2.5 hours after we began.

My mental well-being is inextricably tied to my physical endeavors. A run, a ride, or hike clears cobwebs through awareness of the moment. While inevitably a rare occurrence, the mid-week climb will certainly remain on the to do list for the remainder of the summer, as the benefits last well beyond the moments of movement.

A Dog’s Bath – In Pictures

Aleka’s dog, Barley, per the norm, does not like baths. Usually mild mannered, he barks and growls, and will twist about to bite the water source, all the while shaking himself to dry off. Knowing this, we don flip flops, old shirts, and heavy aprons, as we will be in the splash zone the entire time.

Looking pleased with the situation.

Doing surprisingly well.

Anxiety creeping in.

Sad eyes.

Flight urge.

Wishing us painful deaths.

Back on the street and completely unfazed

Strawberries and Gin

I am making an effort to throw less food away. Seems easy, but produce often hides in one of three drawers in the refrigerator. Items in plain sight are overlooked. Maybe an unexpected meal out. Suddenly I am awash in wilted produce, its turgidity waning in proportion to my interest in eating it.

At the end of a productive day, especially a day that featured yard work, gardening, and an emotionally bruising dog bath, which was tough on all parties, but surprisingly, the least on the dog, an abundance of strawberries is a welcome find.

Cleaned, capped, and given a whirl in a blender with gin, a few ice cubes and powdered sugar, it is a velvety cocktail that invites the creeping shadows of the evening. Topped with basil, which offers both contrast and earthiness, think mint minus the cloyingness, and it becomes a potential summer mainstay.

Torreys Peak–via Kelso Ridge

Stats

• Route: Kelso Ridge
• Distance: 6.75 miles
• Elevation Gain: 3,100
• Start time: 8:01 AM  
• Time: 6.25
• Climbers: Alan and Sandy

Today marks the end of the alpine break. With approximately 5 months having past since our last foray above treeline, Alan and I literally dusted off ice axes, packed up crampons, and in a bit of early season delight in which you are not racing afternoon thunderstorms, rolled out of Denver at the seemingly later hour of 6:30.

For those unaware of the location of the climb the US Forest Service provides an impressively large-scale map along the trail, which is shown below.

It is true, the climb is in North America

The quick stroll up the valley quickly gave way to the saddle between Kelso Mountain and Torreys Peak. Looking at the craggy path before us, with the wind picking up, we were excited. Rarefied air, a bit of wind driven snow, and vertical gain spilling upward, the mountains demand awareness, and much of the mental chatter simply drops away, and in that moment I am wonderfully content where I am.

The ridge route, we climbed from right to left. Click on the picture to increase size and you can see avalanche debris at the base of the South Paw Couloir.

The climb switches from flats and simple, but steep, walk up sections, to using all limbs in areas where the best advice is simply do not fall.

Alan low on the ridge, before the difficulties began.

Alan topping out a rock rib.

Alan climbing a small snowfield, ending with a slight scramble.

Sandy catching his breath from kicking steps.

Sandy scrambling, in terrain that this photo makes look ridiculously steep.

Crossing a snow covered knife edge.

The going was slow, mostly caused by my sore legs, nagging cough, and lack of acclimation. Yet, it was steady, with us hitting the summit approximately 4 hours after we began.

Summit pose.

The descent was through wet snow, warmed by the increased solar intensity of high altitudes. Sun baked and feeling like we were once again moving through our preferred habitat, the walk to the truck was a lengthy conversation of upcoming climbs. 

White Bean and Kale Soup

When someone I care about gets sick and the what to have for dinner conversation turns towards warm vegetable broth, my inner-cook bristles. Thus, a destined to be salty broth from a who-knows-how-old bouillon cube turned into a white bean and kale soup.

 

A light flavor, perfect for those without a strong appetite, but rich enough to pair with a malbec for the healthy cook. Caveat, the cook will pair a malbec with nearly any meal and be happy.