Training Log Archive: Funderstormin

Day 2: Cox Lake to Serpentine Lake

We had a relatively leisurely morning but also had a goal of leaving camp by 10:00 as we knew we had a long day ahead of us and wanted to get to our site by happy hour (a very important institution for any Funderstorm trip!). We had a long route with 7 portages, all of which required two trips because of the heavy ass kayak I rented and the amount of gear we had (beer takes up a lot of space!). Our first portage of 900m set the tone for the day with regard to the challenge of carrying all that gear in the heat amidst the bugs! It was a long tough day delightfully broken up around 2:00 with an impromptu stop at the Anstruther Marina for a cold drink and a few more supplies. By the last few portages we were all real ready to be done, but that just made the first view of our spectacular site (223 on Serpentine Lake, if anyone is curious) all the more welcome! We arrived at camp about 6:00, which is a little later than ideal for happy hour, but we rolled with it and made it work!

Kawartha Highlands paddle trip Day 1: Long Lake Access Point to Cox Lake

Browner and I had booked this trip at the exact 5-month window that you are allowed to. I relied on her knowledge of the park from previous trips and was thrilled she knew exactly which sites we should book, as I'd never been! Our plan was a relatively short paddle Friday, long paddle Saturday then two nights at the same site, and a moderate paddle out on Monday. We also planned a partial rather than full loop by leaving cars at two access points so that we could explore more of the park.

Beautiful afternoon and only two portages meant we were all in great spirits when we arrived at our site for happy hour. Beer and swimming were first on the agenda, followed by one of Browner's gourmet dinners! We had a beautiful site for watching the sunset and the bugs weren't too bad. We all started with our flys off of the tents but were roused to put them on during an unanticipated thunderstorm in the middle of the night!

The aftermath of WS100. Hopefully I can kick it before the next adventure!

I was on pacing duty for Timato from Pointed Rocks (93.9) to the finish. Even though I knew he already had 90+ miles under his belt, I was still a bit nervous about running with Timato as we've never run together before and I wasn't sure I could keep up. 'Bent reassured me I'd be fine and by the time he arrived, I was super excited and couldn't wait to run. I can't believe I got to run on the WS100 course! Timato was in excellent spirits, and we joked and laughed and told stories the whole way. No Hands Bridge was super cool even in the daylight, and the climb up Robie Point gave me a smidge of a taste of what Timato had been going through the past 24 hours. Mrs. Tiny was waiting for us at the top of Robie Point (98.9) and we ran down the hill together, picking up the rest of the crew including a very excited Aubrey at the entrance to the track.

It was so incredibly impressive to see Timato complete this goal, and to be able to be a part of it. When most of the other runners were dropping off like flies and slowing down, he seemed to get stronger and stronger, picking off 120 runners from the middle of the race onwards. It was very clear to me after this experience why the race has such a cult following and people return year after year.