Training Log Archive: JayXC

Easy ride around Mendon.

Event: ROC - Black Creek Park [2012 Sprint Series #3 Score-O]
 

Drive from Portland, ME to home.

Sort gear, breakfast feast, awards, travel to Portland, ME for a great seafood dinner on the waterfront.

Looking at the maps there was 2 options. Paddle the packrafts in the swampy looking slow moving head waters of the Dead River or to hike in on the trail we had ridden along earlier. We chose the hike option as the river looked to meander around quite a bit. We arrived at the Grand Falls Hut at sunrise, plotted the points for the Packraft-O down the Dead River and then dressed for being wet for the next 9 hours.

Somewhat amazed that we plotted the points correctly as I was falling asleep while reading the numbers to Dave. I’d get the first 4 digits read out loud, he’d identify their location and I’d be asleep when he was ready for the next digits…

C • Bad scale 1

Heading into this I thought we’d be cold the entire time but once in the valley the air was significantly warmer and the water release (around 1800 cfs) appeared to be off the top of the reservoir as it was quite warm and the sun was out. We could have planned this portion any better if we tried. A, there was water flowing so we didn’t have to hike it, B we could see it in the daylight and C, it was warm. The next 5-6 hours were a complete blast boulder-hopping down the river with the rafts through endless class II rapids. The rafts handled the water and rocks particularly well with the exception that they would fill up kind of quick and we probably stopped along the edge to dump them out 15-20 times.
Eventually the rapids tapered off as we approached the Dead/Kennebec confluence where we picked up a number of CP’s before taking out and packing up the rafts. From there we climbed up some muddy dirt roads for 2 more points and then descended to Northern Outdoors for the finish line ending up 5th overall, 4th Co-ed Pro team.

Overall, I loved the course, especially all of the paddling. I forgot how rugged the ME mtn biking could be. Thanks to Grant, his family and all of the volunteers!

Intended to take a nap for 1.5 hours and set alarm for 5:30pm. Awoke at 9 pm when the neighbors were arriving and I had my turned-off alarm in my hand.
Ok, dinner at 9pm instead.

As we approach the summit we get an excellent nighttime view of the area and a cool breeze on Burnt Hills’ bald summit. We check in with the manned CP and discuss the approach to the summit of Sugarloaf Mtn. There are 2 options: 1- Bushwhack across the ridgeline to the ski trails and climb 1000’ to the summit or, 2- descend 1000’ down the hiking trail to a creek and then bushwhack to the ski trails and climb 2000’ to the summit. We make an attempt to try the ridge route but memories of the Bosebuck ridge trek from the 2010 UNE stop us 10m into the thick vegetation and we opt for the safer descend route. When we arrive at the manned (Sony of AP fame) summit CP we’re informed that Squarepants had used the ridge route and found a trail for a portion of it. I’ve now chose the wrong route 2x now…

The descent down from the summit is very steep and I’m happy to have my trekking poles. We arrive at the TA , eat and find a place for some sleep which ends up being only 1:20 worth and marginal in quality.

We leave the TA and pick up the next CP on our way to the Poplar Hut for the O-relay. When new arrive we realize our next mistake. The hut is very nice and has bunk houses for sleeping. Since we would be going out one at a time on the relay each of us would have some significant time on our hands while waiting for the others. Unfortunately the Frappacino I had drank at the last TA would prevent any sleeping here. Our initial impression was that we would be out in the middle of some bug-infested nowhere, not the Taj Mahal. Dave and Erik both struggled with a common point on the Long and Hard and Short and Hard maps that was off (Hilltop, #40 I think) as did S. Pleban, BMeyer and just about everyone else I talked to. Michele and I were pretty clean on the courses we ran. I heard that Dan from the YS took 2:45 to complete his leg, ouch.
Once done with the relay we took off on an out and back for the next CP and then a road ride to the paddle put-in, stopping at a gas station along the way for some cool drinks and AC. Very refreshing.

Long and Easy leg of O-relay.

From Stratton we paddled a series of lakes and channels until we were back on Flagstaff Lake, picking up a number of CPs along the way. I struggled early with drowsiness but another Frappacino brought me back around. As we crossed Flagstaff heading north we noted that the wind was very favorable for sailing and it just so happened we had our sail. We punched a CP just off shore and returned to the boat to find that the wind had died and we were on our own. Quite a letdown actually, especially since I would be holding the sail . We caught and passed the 2nd Danish team just prior to our portage option. They sat and watched our progress for awhile and even paddled to the beginning of the mat walk. Not sure if they followed further.
The portage would cut off a 7k paddle back to the east. Unfortunately the small cove we were going to approach it from was filled with drift wood which collects there with the prevailing west wind. There did appear to be one option which was on the edge of the cove and somewhat sheltered from the debris. Unfortunately it was too shallow to paddle so we had to walk the boats 400-500m in the knee deep water on the floating moss pad below us. Every step was slightly concerning as you never knew when you’d just drop through a “trap door” in the mat and we joked about never being seen again. A slight confidence boost was the fact that we were following in someone else’s path and they seemed to make it through apparently. Once on land it was a short bushwhack with the boats to a road and then about a 750m carry to the opposite side of the peninsula. FYI- It takes a strong will not to just drop a canoe and swat at the swarm of mosquitoes around your head…

The rest of the paddle in the dark was again very enjoyable on glass-like conditions with a ton of stars. We took out at Long Falls Dam and prepared for the last packraft/trek section to the finish not knowing what really awaited us since the points on the Dead River would be given out at the Grand Falls Hut. We did know that we would need about 12 hours of food from here and warm clothes given we’d be in whitewater with our packrafts.

After the pancakes we hiked down to the shoreline and inflated our rafts along side ImOnPoint. We are to paddle across Flagstaff Lake to the west shore picking up a series of points along the way. It was a fantastic night for a paddle with about a billion stars in the sky. About half way thru it a storm approached from the north and provided a great light show in the sky and some guidance around the rogue Growlers (D. Lamb term for rock) waiting to flip us in the water near shore. Unfortunately for the teams behind us the weather forced the closing of the ropes course early.

We pulled out of the lake just after dawn and transitioned to trekking over the Bigalow Range. Loaded up, my pack must have weighed over 30 lbs as everything in it was soaked. I managed to forget to put trekking shorts and calf sleeves in the bag at the last TA so I had to trek over the mountain in my soaked bike shorts and no shin protection. Not good. Within minutes we run into the YS on the jeep trail heading towards the mountain and we traveled the next few hours with them. The mosquitoes made their appearance about this time and fortunately I had packed the DEET which proved very successful at keeping them away. It would have been murder without it. We eventually found our drainage and climbed to the correct elevation, found the CP and continued on while the YS took a break. From the CP to the top was 2000’ of climbing bushwhack and very steep.
We reached the AT on the ridge and then spent a considerable amount of time finding the correct saddle prior to descending the other side. There were numerous drainages there and we needed to be in the correct one to find the next CP which we did in short order with great teamwork between Erik and Dave. We heard horror stories afterwards of teams wandering around from drainage to drainage going up and down looking for it. From there it was a series of trails and then a short road stretch to the Sugarloaf Outdoor Center for the next TA.

As we arrive at the TA we are given 8 supplemental points to plot for the MTB-O. Just as we head out Thule arrives back at the TA and we learn this next section has taken them over 4 hours. Dave picks an efficient route and we run into Squarepants as we both punch the 6th control. From there we jockey back and forth while collecting the last 2 controls and race to the TA. Once there we complete the Conservation Project (obstructing an unauthorized mtn bike trail with debris) while discussing sleep options coming up which Randy records for abuse at some future moment. We decide to sleep now and fire up the Jet Boil and eat some ‘real’ food which was a good call. However, when I come back from filling my bladder the plan has changed and we’re going to sleep after the Alpine Trek.

With full stomachs and significantly lighter packs we head up towards Burnt Hill towards the hiking trail to the summit. We run into Squarepants again in a logged out section where everyone loses the trail. They give up on the search just as Dave finds the trail and we merge back together again 10 minutes up the trial. We make our first mistake here as we walk right past the control in a dry creekbed and don’t realize our error until a few hundred feet from the summit. We finally realize the error and have to climb back down 300’ to punch it. Our embedded photographer (Dave Romilly) had seen it as we walked by and found it and kept his secret very well until we discovered it. This is easily a 30 minute mistake.