Camano Chill

Went on my first ride with the Seattle Randonneurs today. What a great group! Way more people than I expected. There must have been 70 people or so. Everyone convened in Stanwood. That worked pretty well for me because I was up in Bellingham helping Ruth with her move to Ellensburg. I rendezvoused with Ken, who drove up from Seattle. He was a couple minutes late, but I was more late, and this group does not wait around! They shot out of the parking lot a minute before 9, and I was still scrambling to put on my stuff. Then I was in such a rush that I forgot my water and food, so Ken and I had to run into a convenience store to get my fuel that I would need for this 50 mile ride.

So the ride started out a little rocky, and the temp was about 31 or 32. So I was worried about ice as we were pedaling hard to catch the group. One bridge in particular gave me pause. Lots of traffic, and a little ice would not have been good. But there were no problems. Ken and I caught the folks at the back after several miles, then caught the main group at Camano park after about 15 miles when they stopped for a break. The ride had already been good up to that point, because the day was beautiful and the mountains were out. These were back roads with very little traffic. But the ride got better as we started to meet some of the Randonneurs. They're all into cycling, but in a fun way that I can relate to. They don't just talk about gear, and it is not at all a competitive ride. Everyone is out to enjoy cycling, get some exercise, and be social. Plus I met up with my old friend Jeff who I hadn't seen in 15 or 20 years. I think last time I saw him we were climbing Rainier.

The south end of Camano was particularly good, because there was so little traffic. I think our route on the east side could have avoided the main road more than it did this time. I need to study the map before the next ride. Also, I think it would have been much better to start out on Camano, rather than Stanwood. The highway from/to Stanwood was no picnic.

Workout at Sun Mountain

This was the last day of our long weekend in the Methow. We watched a few of the racers in the Methow Pursuit. Amazing energy and skill. That inspired us to head up to Sun Mountain. The last time Cath and I were skiing there together was more than 15 years ago, with our friends Bruce & Gro (unfortunately I remember that trip for the blisters more than anything!). I was there just last month for the ski camp, of which my memories are still fresh and very positive!
Cath and I parked at the Chickadee lot, and skied the easy trails from there. Warning to newcomers -- the easy trails at Sun Mountain are a bit like the intermediate trails down below on the Methow floor. At least that was our impression. But that was not a problem. After all, this was our fourth day of skiing, and we were no longer worried about little hills! Plus the snow was good (temperature in the teens), and as usual, very few people.
After an hour or two, I decided to try some intermediate hills. So I headed up Thompson Road trail, which was a challenging climb. Got to the intersection with the Upper Inside trail, a black diamond, which near as I could tell, headed straight down. No thanks to that. Instead I turned around and had the ski of a lifetime going down Thompson Road. Highly recommended. Not so steep that you go out of control with your edgeless skate skis, but steep enough that you can really get cruising and have fun with V2. Plus you have the satisfaction of knowing that you really earned that downhill run. I savored every second. Then Cath and I had a nice lunch at Sun Mountain lodge, enjoying the jaw-dropping view. The drive home that afternoon was pretty good - the scenery along the Methow is just beautiful in the winter. We'd been warned the night before by Dave & Jean about the multitudes of deer along the road. They were right - we had one close call when one jumped out in the dusk. I braked hard, it ran, we missed.

Exploring Mazama trails

Well, if scenery, easy skate skiing, and solitude are your thing, then check out the Mazama trails where Highway 20 deadends in the wintertime. There's even a couple warming huts out there, and a place to get hot chocolate at the end of your ski! Cath and I got the tip from our new Spokane skiing buds Beth and Sharon - who shared their enthusiasm for the trails over drinks the night before. They were right. Jack's Trail, River Run Trail, and the others were pretty much perfect. The weather and the snow were great. The only hitch was that the snow under the trees could sometimes get a bit messy with fallen twigs and stuff, or even clumps of ice that you might trip on. But not a big deal at all. Also, we learned that it pays to know which way the wind is blowing before heading out. If the wind is blowing down the valley (which I suspect it usually is), then go counter-clockwise around Jack's trail. That way you are both going with the wind and down a gentle slope in an exposed part of the valley, which is really fun. But if you're going up the hill while fighting the wind (which we did on the first lap), it is more of a slog for that particular stretch. There's a rustic place called Basecamp not far from the trailhead that rents cabins and rooms. They also have a little counter to sell beverages and snacks to the skiers. A nice spot to recoup.


We had very nice dinner that night with our new friends Dave & Jean at their cool new place in Timberline Meadows in Mazama. They rent it out most of the time. Just contact Timberline and ask for their place. You will love it. Great view, comfortable, nice kitchen and everything.

Methow skate skiing

Cath and I arrived yesterday midday here in the amazing Methow valley. Everyone talks about how much snow is here. Seems like a lot to us, but we don't really know any different. We're staying at Nancy & Nigel's Eagle Pine chalets. Fun, but no heat when we arrived. Got hold of N&N in California, and they told us where to find some space heaters. Got things fired up so by the middle of the night we woke up to an oven!

Skied the main trail around Winthrop yesterday. Just could not believe how nice it was. Mostly flat, hardly any people, along the river part of the way. We skied several miles together, then I continued up to Wolf Ridge and back via Power Plunge. That was beyond my skill level for sure! But there wasn't anyone around to make fun of my style so I went for it anyway. Later I learned that there are a few hungry cougars around looking for idiots like me on lonely trails on ridges at dusk.

Today we met up with Ed & Char in Mazama, then skied together up to the suspension bridge. Easy trail, spectacular going through the woods and over the streams - really cool. Then Ed, Catherine, and I continued on for more easy skiing through the forest up to Mazama Country Inn. Char met us up there and picked up Cath. Ed and I gave ourselves a good workout skiing back. Really a nice run. Then had a delicious soup with Ed & Char at their wonderful Mazama home.

Met with Beth and Sharon - yet more wonderful cross country skiing people - at Duck Brand this evening and they told us all about trails at the end of the road. If the weather is ok tomorrow, that's what we'll do!

Late start but good skiing on Iron Horse trail

We were all getting a little tired of the chill and ice on the Seattle streets, so Chris and Randy called Sunday morning to suggest that we head up to go skate skiing up at Snoqualmie on the Iron Horse trail. Cath and I were dropping off Theresa at the Amtrack station, so we agreed to meet at REI to rent our stuff. Good idea, except that everyone else had thought of it earlier. We arrived at REI to find R&C looking less chipper than usual, dialing away trying to find some place that was open and had gear. No luck. We hatched a backup plan that involved borrowing snowshoes from Dwayne & Lorelle (very generous!), combined with a wishful thinking plan that had us renting gear from the Nordic center at Snoqualmie. Well, the wish came true. We finally got underway well after 2 pm, and headed down the trail for a great ski. Cath sprained a thumb in a fall in the first few minutes, but managed to keep going and still have fun. It turned out to be a very nice afternoon. We all got back feeling tired and glad we pushed ahead.

Icy, but made the most of it

This past Saturday morning Randy, Gary, and I set out determined to kick off the new year with a long, hilly training ride in anticipation of our big Arizona ride coming up in April. We got as far as Montlake before both Randy and Gary went down on an ice patch. Gary was hurt badly enough that he decided to pack it in for the day. Randy and I camped out for an hour or more at a coffee shop waiting for things to warm up. After we thought we done enough time, we stepped around the corner to look at the place where he'd fallen. At that moment we watched several more cyclists fall in exactly the same place. We got on the road anyway, taking a slightly different route to I-90. We rode cautiously to the bridge, then picked up our speed and headed out to Cougar Mountain. Had a nice ride up to about 900 feet, when we hit ice again. That meant we had to abandon our plans for the hills that day. Instead we headed north around the east side of Lake Sammamish (including about 10 miles on the new Sammamish gravel trail, just for kicks), then up through Redmond, and lunch in Woodinville. We did jog down to Juanita and back to pick up one respectable hill. Got in about 65 miles, but can't recommend the route too much because of all the traffic. As soon as we get a chance we'll try again to do the intended route up and down Cougar Mountain.