Fri 4/19 - AM 3 hours, Barr Trail

Not exactly how I would have planned it. Got a late start after staying up until the wee hours following the goings-on in Watertown on twitter, unable to pull myself away. Woke up feeling decidedly not refreshed as a result. Some dawdling before finally hitting the trail late morning. I don't think it's possible to go any slower than I was and still be running on the lower steeper stretch of the Ws. Being very deliberate so as not to blow up. The packed snow that I came across almost immediately upon hitting the trail only reinforced this idea. Where the trail meets the Incline I stopped for a look at the throng ascending and decided as a lark to go up the rest of the Incline, the last 1/3 or so. 

 looking down from the "bail out"

 pet owner of the year walking her dog down the Incline, the dog looked thrilled

snow is deeper at the top

From the top of the Incline it was a no-brainer to put on the yaktrax for the rest of the trip up. It was also quite clear I wouldn't be making it as far as Bottomless Pit as originally planned/hoped, and Barr Camp would be as far as I would go. Unsurprisingly, the snow got deeper as the trail went higher, while there was some previous foot traffic lower down to pack the snow soon after the Experimental Forest it was just me making fresh tracks. This quickly became tiresome, and the last 1.5 miles or so leading up to the camp were even more drawn out than usual. The yaktrax kept slipping on the unpacked snow, not what they're made for of course but quite frustrating anyway. 

 snow was packed at this point

 not so much here - summit in the distance

 it collapsed a minute after photo was taken

looking down from just above Experimental Forest

Approaching wit's end by the time I got to the camp, took a leisurely break. It took right around 2 hours for the ascent. I was acutely aware of how pleased I'll be not to running in any snow for a good long while after today. Hoping I would be able to get back down in half that time, which ended up being the case. As it was now mid-day and the sun was out, the snow was rapidly turning to slush and further down the trail was a shallow stream in places. Despite legs being tired from the sloppy ascent, barely a misstep on the trip down. 

Thu 4/18 - double, 65 minutes total

AM - 35 minutes, Tenderfoot Mtn. in Salida. Made it to the top of Tenderfoot aka S Mountain although it took longer than expected. The altitude and 1-2" of snow on the ground likely had something to do with that. The climb up was somewhat tough on the right calf which is getting tighter by the day. The trip down put more strain given that I took the direct route which meant some downright perilous descents on barely there billygoat paths.

the snow was gone by lunchtime

 view of town from the top

 Arkansas River and Collegiate Peaks

view to the SE from the top

PM - 30 minutes easy, Manitou Springs. Jogged pretty much from one end of town to the other and back. Calf remains alarmingly tight and every uphill seems to dial it up a bit more. In an attempt to loosen it up and get a little turnover in, finished with the most scenic set of drills I've ever done on the Manitou Springs HS track. Hard against a red rock outcrop with the Garden of the Gods staring you in the face on the backstretch, just me and the four mule deer grazing on the infield. Left my camera in the hotel. 

Wed 4/17 - double, 75 minutes total

AM - 30 minutes very easy, Tenderfoot Mtn. in Salida. Traded being battered by winds in a tent or scrunched up in the backseat for a warm bed. Awoke to a form of frozen precipitation I can't really identify falling heavily. A cross between snow and hail, pea-sized nodules everywhere. Made for interesting traction on the trail, not as slippery as I would have expected.

PM - 45 minutes, Methodist Mountain. Out along the powerline access road, back along Little Rainbow trail. Visited this spot on the recommendation of the hostel owner, glad I did as it was an interesting spot with varied terrain. Some steep rolls here and there, lots of twists and turns as well.

looking south along CR 108 towards town, S Mountain in the middle 

Little Rainbow

Found myself getting pooped out near the end, cut the length of the run short a bit. The morning's whatever it was still on the ground but more compacted. Overast and the wind continues blasting away, a constant companion for this spring sojourn. I've made my peace with it at this point although having indoor accommodations for the duration of the trip undoubtedly has something to do with that.

Tue 4/16 - AM 130 minutes

Roundabout route to St. Mary's Falls, followed by a much more direct way back. Took a while to get going this morning after another day waking up to snow. My original plan was to head up the Columbine Trail to Gold Camp and then on to the 624 trail to the falls, instead I turned off onto Spring Creek Trail part way up. From looking at the map I'm thinking this added something to the length of the run although the upper Columbine trail has lots of turns and switchbacks as well. Quite steep at times to reach the road, then more gradual thankfully on the road itself. 

 in the tunnel

along the road

closed/collapsed tunnel

The 624 was also surprisingly mellow at first, but it became ever more steep towards the top until I finally had to say uncle and start walking. The final 2/10 of a mile were fairly interminable and quite frustrating until reaching the falls, but it was worth it for the view and for standing on a frozen waterfall:

 upstream

downstream

below the falls along the trail and much more modest in size

For the trip back down I knew I wouldn't be able to handle the ins and outs and more importantly short climbs of the Columbine trail so it was straight back down the road express elevator style. Somewhat jarring at times and calves started to tire near the very bottom but a no-brainer. Stopped at Helen Hunt Falls on the way down for a photo op:

Finished feeling pretty wiped out, but feeling better once I had lunch immediately afterward.

Mon 4/15 - double, 85 minutes total

AM - 20 minutes easy, Bear Creek Lake Park. Shakeout on the bike path and main access road. Awoke to the unmistakeable sound of snow falling on my tent. Along with the ever-present wind not fun conditions at all. Would have gone a little longer otherwise but there seemed no point and I wanted nothing more than to eat breakfast and get warm.

PM - 65 minutes, Cheyenne Mountain SP. Despite having stayed here last year, this was the first time on these trails. From the sinuous layout I was expecting lots of steep up and down but it was in fact more of a mellow winding singletrack situation and overall quite enjoyable. Alas, like yesterday afternoon the wind picked up over the course of the afternoon and was hammering away. Before hitting the trail spent a long lunch watching the horrible news from Boston unfold on my computer. One can only feed on tragedy so much, found myself in need of the emotional respite the run provided.

Sun 4/14 - double, 1:45 total

AM - 30 minutes easy. Out and back to near the top of Mt. Carbon with the express purpose of taking these shots:

Denver skyline on the right

Rained overnight, which along with winds made for a fantastic night's sleep. While the clouds cleared out, what was left behind was sticky mud from the clayey soil. Kicking off large clumps much of the run.

PM - 75 minutes, Mt. Falcon. Another out and back for the most part. Up via Turkey Trot trail to Eagle Eye shelter, down via Castle. 45 minutes or so for the climb. I would have liked to spend a few minutes more "am brunnen vor den thore" but the hideous wind that got going mid-morning was still hammering away in the late afternoon. Made what would have been a mostly delightful day into a chore. Felt tired and clunky on the way down, quads heavy and unresponsive. 

Sat 4/13 - PM 70 minutes easy

Bear Creek Lake Park. I think I did pretty much the identical route a year ago when I first visited here, although the pace was slower this time around. A bit bleary-eyed after the day spent traveling, maybe more than a bit. The mellow singletrack trails were most welcome, even if it felt like the last 15 minutes of the run dragged on. Calf torqued up from yesterday's workout of course, hammie stiff as well thanks to both the workout and all the sitting on the plane. Pleasant day on the front range, sunny mild and breezy.