rest day (for some)

 On Friday, all three of us went up to Sand Flats for a quick 2.27 mile Practice Loop loop.  Milton loves it up there and covers a lot of ground: he can run way out but, because of the terrain (sandstone domes) he can keep an eye on us.  It was a gorgeous morning and we were early enough that it was really just starting to get busy as we were finishing up.  The campground seemed pretty full, at least the first couple of site groups.

Sandflats selfie

Then, after H fixed A's flat tire, H and A did a 23 mile road ride, with a pause on the way back to watch the start of the Moab 240: 240 miles, most of them trails, on foot, in under 117 hours across some of the Moab area's gnarliest terrain.  We chatted with some racers and spectators at the start and then cheered the racers on as they started.  With GPS and social media, it was very easy to follow the racers' progress, even as they were in such remote locations.  So we picked five racers - our Dutch buddy from the Moab Rim parking lot and four women (one we talked with, two we stood next to and one we had seen running on the bike path earlier in the week) - to follow, in addition to the two men's leaders and the two women's leaders.  We must have picked well because four out of our five selected runners finished and, strangely enough, those four spent most of the event within a couple of miles of each other.  The men's winner - Max Jolliffe finished in 69 hours 22 minutes; the final finisher came in just under the 117 hour cutoff.  It is amazing what humans can do.

And they're off!

We, however, figured we had done enough with our 25.27 mile day (23 on wheels), and later that afternoon, picked up our friend Chris on our way over to Woody's for beers.  It really is amazing what humans can do.

We bought a sticker.  We like the fox.

paths and trails

By Wednesday, H was ready to do his first post-marathon run, taking Milton for a short two miles on Pipedream.  He reported that neither of them was moving super-fast, with Milton recovering from his ten-milers the previous day with A.  After that, H and A hopped on the road bikes for a 25 mile road ride, going a little past Arches National Park to where the hill really begins to climb (gonna save that bit for later).  Late afternoon found us at Woody's, where H and the bartender traded war stories about Saturday's trail race; the bartender had done the 15K.  Consensus: very sandy course.

Road riding goofballs

The next morning, all three of us did a short (just under 3.5 mile) hike on Pipedream, going north this time.  We met two friendly Underdog rescue dogs and saw a Grand County work crew rebuilding a washout.  We also saw the pink and blue flags marking the Moab 240 course.  

Need new handlebar tape

We dropped Milton back at home - it was so nice all week that we were able to keep the back door open, so he could be inside or out in the courtyard at his choosing, even if we weren't there - and headed out on the road bikes.  This time we did 30.5 miles, going all the way up that long (1.6 mile), steep (7% grade) climb to the kiosk at the Moab Brand trails road.  For A, climbing is way preferable to descending, but with the new brakes and new tires, descending was much less scary than before.

Not that tall this fall

not even half a marathon

A wanted to do at least one longer hike, so Tuesday was the Hidden Valley/Moab Rim loop with Milton (10.1 miles; 3:42 moving time with 18 minutes of stoppage).  There were no coyote sightings along Pipedream this time - no sightings of anyone or anything at all, except a rabbit or two.  It's been several months since we've been to the Hidden Valley trail head and when we got there after finishing the Pipedream stretch, we could see that it had gotten hammered again by the August floods.  The drainage that had washed out a couple of years ago had washed out again in the same place, cutting a deeper channel across the trail.

Huge washout

We didn't see anyone or anything in Hidden Valley or once we crossed over the pass to the jeep trails.  The day was bright and I made Milton wear his white t-shirt (now really more dirt-colored than white) to try to keep some of the sun off.  It was warm - all week was highs in the low 80s and overnight lows in the low 50s - but not too hot, and he even found one pothole still with some clean water to wade in.  We texted H from the top of the final descent and when we'd gotten down, past the jeeps and side-by-sides heading up the Moab Rim trail, he was there waiting for us with snacks and beverages.

Nearing the top of the HV climb

During our parking lot sojourn, we talked for a while with Roel, a Dutch runner who was scouting out portions of the upcoming Moab 240.  He seemed psyched about it, in a good head space, and more concerned about nutrition than the distance (240 miles), the elevation gain/loss (+31,000 feet) or the sleep deprivation.  We got his bib number to keep track of him.

In other activities, H finished his "recovery" period and did a 25 mile road ride (1:24 hours) on the bike path whilst A and M were hiking.  And the afternoon and evening were spent at home, reading and hanging out with our neighbor.

Town deer

recovery

 After the big race, H was supposed to recover for 72 hours.  So Sunday morning, A and Milton did 4.7 miles out and back on Pipedream (1:38 hours).  We had to re-route a little bit to give a wide berth to a coyote who was being very vocal about our presence.  (Milton didn't seem to care but A was nervous.)  

Pipedream

When we safely returned, A and H did a 21 mile road ride on the bike path (1:30 hours) because obviously a 21 mile bike ride is "recovery."  And later that evening, we "recovered" further, catching up with our neighbor and her dog.  Milton even chewed on a tennis ball!  (He only does dog things like that when he's with another dog.  Never when he's alone.)

Dog things

On Monday, A and Milton did their usual Millcreek loop (just under 4 miles - I was sure that it was longer than that).  H and A did a repeat of the 21 mile road ride since H was still recovering.  We attempted beers at Josie Wyatt's but the $2 draft PBRs are still flat.  Bleh.

Millcreek

marathon man

 For our vacation, we left a little early on Friday afternoon, to get down to Moab in time for H to pick up his race packet.  Because on day 1 of vacation, H ran a trail marathon.  Let us pause to appreciate that.

Pre race (note Milton 

making new friends)

It was his first trail race and his first marathon: the Mad Moose Events Arches Marathon and Half.  There were actually four possible distances: 50K, the marathon, the half-marathon and a 15K, with about 650 total racers and 100 marathoners specifically.  The well-run event took place out on BLM land in the area known as "Behind the Rocks," starting and finishing in a pretty valley that we'd never been to before.  The road in/out was rough, although 2WD cars could make it.  It was super cool back in there and we would like to go back some time to explore/camp/hike. But not until we have a younger truck that will handle that road better.

Heading out

On Saturday morning, we three got there early - before the sun came up - and although the race organizers offered a 6:30 start to the longer distance runners, so they could maybe get ahead of the heat of the day, H decided to stick to his planned-upon 7 a.m. start.  Which was a good idea since the sun didn't come up until after 7 and the rocky trail would have been treacherous in the dark for anyone without a headlamp.  He was hoping for a 6.5 hour finish, which would get him back around 1:30 p.m. 

Mid-race photo 

A and Milton watched H take off, and then stuck around to watch several of the later starts.  Around 8:30, we did some hiking: up along the cliff behind the start/finish line and then, after all the runners had left, out and back on the first hill of the race course.  That was a long hill!  And a heck of a way to start a race.

Overhead

At 11, we got snacks and then hung around the finish line, talking with finished racers (including a woman from Wiscasset, Maine - the next town over from where A grew up!).  Around noon, A had a feeling to start watching the finishers come in ... and THERE WAS H, finishing well ahead of schedule at 5 hours 9 minutes and 19 seconds!!!!!!!

Almost done

We were so proud of him!!! He reported that the course was really sandy (which had been confirmed by all the runners A had talked to earlier) and had way more elevation gain than he'd trained for.  His hips and calves were stiff, and his stomach was a bit upset from all the sloshing around for 26 miles.  But overall H felt pretty good and recovered quickly enough for us to walk to Woody's for a celebratory beer in the early evening.  Walking over was a good idea too as it helped loosen his legs up.

Race results: H won his age group and was 14th out of 100 for the marathon.  He hasn't gone right out and signed up for another one yet, but he was very pleased with his achievement.  Damn right!!!

csa summer: fourteenth and fifteenth boxes

Before we dive into the desert, here's the final two CSA boxes from our CSA summer.  Since we weren't going to be in town to pick up the last box, I requested an extra box to pick up on the penultimate week.  And since we are at our LIMIT on squash, I requested that the last box be apples and not a double CSA share, which was the other option.  So in addition to a whole box of apples (multiple varieties), we got corn, peaches, two acorn squashes and one butternut squash*, potatoes, onions, a tomato, a couple of apples and some bell pepper.

We ate the corn right away, of course, and while it wasn't the best we'd had all summer, we both thought it was surprisingly good for October corn.  The peppers and an onion went into a tofu tikka masala (sauce from Trader Joe); we ate the peaches and tomato and some apples whilst on vacation, and the rest of the apples will be peeled, cored and cooked down with cinnamon into pie filling.  And, obviously, all that squash will be roasted and mashed for Milton.

*  See - if we'd just gotten a double share, that would have been FOUR acorn squashes and TWO butternuts.  It's just too much.

getting out from under it

 This photo is a literal depiction of Milton "helping" us with the three tons of laundry after our fall Moab vacation.  It is also a figurative depiction of us getting out from under said laundry (which we had to do at the laundromat the day we got back to SLC because our washing machine is kaput), as well as work and weeding and all the other real life nonsense that stacked up whilst we were romping in the desert.  Fear not!  Posting will begin soon ...

fall colors

 I'm sorry, but Utah cannot hold a candle to the northeast when it comes to foliage colors.  New England has it in the bag for vibrant reds and oranges.  That said, the west does yellow very well because of all the aspens.  We've got reds and oranges too but they are usually muted, softer shades.

Crispy

On a recent weekend in SLC, A double-sessioned on Sunday, heading up to Alta after a 3.2 mile walk with H and M.  It was 64F at 9:15 a.m., with clouds moving through.  I did the usual loop I like to do for exercise: park above Albion base area, walk up the summer road a little bit, continue up through the meadows to the Catherine's Pass trailhead, go up to Catherine's Pass, across the top of Catherine's Area and then back down through the campground.

Coming down on Rock N Roll

It is definitely fall up at Alta.  The wildflowers are brown and crispy and the hikers up there are looking for foliage now, not flowers.  I only saw a handful of people out on the trail, which was a welcome change from the summertime hordes.  The upper parking lots were all full, though, so I guess most everyone was hiking to Cecret Lake.  Aspens must not like to grow much above 9,000 feet because that's where the best colors were, a gorgeous variety of yellows and pale oranges.

Summer road

As I drove back down the canyon to the 90 F valley heat (that is far too hot for this time of year). I was astonished at all the traffic heading up the canyon.  Oktoberfest is still going on at Snowbird and I guess people were heading up there to enjoy the nice day.  There was a solid line of cars from Snowbird entry 2 all the way down to the mouth of the canyon and beyond, all along Wasatch Boulevard - almost as bad as on a powder day.

Not pictured: the four times it rained

on me on the way up

segue out of summer

 When we went to Moab for a long weekend towards the end of September, we definitely noticed an uptick in how many people were there.  Labor Day weekend was still quiet but three weeks later, there was lots more traffic, both vehicular and foot varieties.  This is good for local businesses, many of whom have said that this summer was really slow.  Well, it's busy season now and not slow anymore.

Last of the flowers

On Friday, while H did a four mile trail run, A and Milton did their now-patented Millcreek loop.  We didn't quite as early a start as we have been, mostly because the sun isn't coming up until after 7 a.m.  We were still early enough to be ahead of the heat - which wasn't all that hot, relatively speaking, only in the low 90s - and the people, and there's still a good amount of water for the dogs to splash and wade in.  After everyone's trail time, H and A did a 20.85 mile road ride from the house: out along the river and back, up to Arches National Park and back to the river, out along the river again and back home.  We noticed more traffic on the bike path too.

Oh, no, maybe this is the last of the flowers

When we had arrived Thursday evening, we popped over to our neighbor's house.  She mentioned that she wanted to do the Grandstaff canyon top-down hike and was getting a small group together for Saturday morning.  Did we want to go?  We did!  At least, A and M did as H had a twelve mile trail run planned.  So Saturday at 6:45, A and Milton piled into her truck with her dog and met the crew at the Grandstaff trailhead, after a quick stop at the Love Muffin Cafe (where A got a vegan apple/cinnamon muffin).  We arranged to shuttle vehicles and then drove up to Sand Flats where six people and five dogs commenced the hike.

Most of the crew

Funnily enough, for a group where five of the six are fulltime Moabites, A was the only one who'd done this hike before.  We opted to walk in the wash the whole way instead of the bench trail; this was because there's so much water for the dogs.  The canyon creek is spring-fed and everyone was amazed at how much water there was.  We were also amazed at how quickly the one golden retriever got completely covered in burrs.  There was a little bushwhacking and a little scrambling, and we found a little pool of quicksand and a little snake (non-rattling).  But everyone got out safely, aside from a few scratches and burrs, and it was a great hike with the canyon to ourselves until we rejoined the main Grandstaff/Morning Glory Arch trail.

Snek

On Sunday, Milton only got an extra long neighborhood walk so that H and A could do another road ride (duplicate of Friday's) before heading back to Salt Lake.  

csa summer: twelfth and thirteenth boxes

Box #12 had multiple kinds of peppers, apples, a cucumber, several varieties of peaches, pears, plums, some winter squahes and, not to be outdone, zucchini and summer squash.  If I'm honest, this box seemed a little light.  It's been so hot in Utah, I wonder if crops struggled more than usual.  I mean, we are in a desert.  I made up for it by buying fifty pounds of red Idaho potatoes, which at $22 seemed like a pretty good deal.

Four separate squashes in one photo

The thirteenth box had corn!  And also raspberries!  At the end of September!  We also got acorn squash, butternut squash, apples, onions, potatoes, carrots and tomatoes.  The carrot tops were looking both limp and crispy so I didn't bother to pesto-ize them this time.  The corn was, amazingly, really good - better than the last time we had corn - even though the ears were huge.

Holy moly corn on the cob

What did we make of our bounty?  I snuck the summer squash into a chana masala (chickpea curry) and hid the zucchini in a tofu scramble (also put some jalepeno in there) and burrito bowls.  The burrito bowls also took care of more chilies, green pepper, onions and tomato.  I roasted a bunch of winter squash to put in the freezer for Milton; I also chopped up the carrots and the remaining onions with some celery, sauteed it and then froze it in icecube trays to use for soup starters when we don't have time to chop.  The apples all got turned into apple pie filling for the freezer (also quite tasty on oatmeal).  And I made a smoothie with the cucumber, lime juice and some frozen watermelon - surprisingly refreshing.