Training Log Archive: Bash

'Bent and I rode a loop at Kolapore after a short walk around Tree Hugger ABC 2.0. Nine more days!



We couldn't resist hiding our bikes in the forest and bushwhacking to the back of our property-to-be from the trail. We hadn't planned on this, so we didn't have map or compass other than our phones.



If anyone is interested in some really heinous bushwhack training, have we got a place for you! The nasty, thick wetland slog took us right to our back fence, which we followed west until the forest opened up. Then we snuck in for a brief look at the back of our future property. If we had been 100 m further west, the bushwhacking would have been OK, as we learned on our way back. We're getting some better ideas on where our new trail should go.

This was the part where we were bushwhacking in bike shoes.

Another Summer Scavenger Hunt challenge:

"Support Local Small Business - Run to a local merchant and purchase something from within... Avoid big box chains, if at all possible, and support the family run businesses. Bonus points are being offered up for the craziest items we see purchased and carried along on the run."

I hiked to a local plaza via the Georgian Trail as quickly as I could and managed to go a little faster than yesterday. I'd much rather be running but at least it's something. 'Bent and I have often talked about running or biking to this plaza for lunch or dinner but it took this challenge to make me do it.

Because of the potential for bonus points, I *really* hoped I would find something in the consignment store that I wanted. It takes some effort to earn bonus points in a race with 2200+ participants since they limit the number of points they allocate across the field each week. But today there was nothing I liked that I could carry 3 kilometres.

I noticed my realtor's office, which I hadn't realized was there. I said hello and wondered if it would be cheating to count our new chalet as a "Shop Local" purchase. Yes, probably.

So it had to be dessert then. I really didn't want to, but there was simply no other choice. I went to the Heavenly Cafe and loaded up on almond croissants and chocolate dip biscotti, which I carried home in a big bakery box. Mmm.

A tale of Detective Work, Mystery Solving and Looking for Bodies

'Bent and Tarno ran in Pretty River Valley Provincial Park this morning. They noticed an older, good quality Jamis mountain bike leaning against a tree just off the Bruce Trail beside a cliff lookout. They yelled a bit in case someone needed help but no one answered. They carried on.



Back home, 'Bent thought about posting the photo in a mountain biking Facebook group. I suggested that he phone the police in case it had been reported stolen.

We figured they'd just make a note but the officer was quite interested. 'Bent was the 2nd person to report this bike. As we thought about it, it was strange that the bike was easily visible from the trail.

- If someone had stashed their bike while they walked somewhere, they would have taken it further into the forest rather than leaving it near a popular trail.
- If someone had pushed their biking partner off the cliff, they would have thrown the bike after them or hidden it.
- There were two sad possibilities that would be consistent with a bike in a visible place: a clifftop selfie gone wrong or a suicide.

The police asked lots of questions about how to get to the bike and how to get below the cliff. We sent a photo of that part of the Snowshoe Raid orienteering map. They were talking about arranging ATVs. As we thought about it, if someone were injured at the bottom of a cliff, we might be able to get to them sooner. We decided to go for a hike.

First we went below the cliff. That trail has been closed so it was partly bushwhacking. 'Bent's memory of the bike's location was a little off so we weren't right below it when we turned back. Next we walked in on the Bruce Trail to see if the bike was still there. From that point, we thought we might be able to look around further. It's a beautiful area but it would be a long way down if someone slipped.



The bike was gone but we weren't sure where it had been. 'Bent had run from the opposite direction and he wasn't expecting to become part of a police investigation so he only had a rough idea of where he'd seen it. So we looked at branches and moss patterns on trees until we found the tree where the bike had been.



It was right beside the most exposed cliff along that part of the Bruce Trail.





We realized that the approximate GPS coordinates 'Bent had given the police were a little off so we got the real coordinates. 'Bent started to dictate the lat/long to Siri to email to the officer but I stopped him.

As we'd gone back and forth short distances on the trail, I'd noticed a middle-aged man with a pony tail who wasn't behaving like a hiker. He barely had anything with him and I'd seen him wandering back and forth to different lookouts but he didn't take photos or appear to enjoy the views. He had walked by us again as we stood at the "bike tree". 'Bent started talking about the police and I noticed the man turn back toward us from 20 meters away. Suddenly, the "foul play" theory seemed more plausible.

With a big, fake, nervous smile, I asked, "Are you looking for a trail?" In a strong Spanish accent, he said sadly, "No, I'm looking for my bike!"

Well, we had a great conversation with Fernando, who is originally from Argentina. Two nights ago, he rode in Pretty River for the first time. The riding is difficult, rocky and slow in places, and he didn't have a map. It got dark. When he realized the trail was running along the edge of a cliff, he abandoned his bike and walked out slowly. His phone had died so he had no light. The trail is rugged and there are deep crevices right beside it. He was lucky. He said he was saved by the white markings of the Bruce Trail, which he was able to see in the dim light. He turned the wrong way (east) on 6th Sideroad and went down the escarpment and through the knee-deep pond at the bottom. He eventually made it to a house where they phoned 911 for him. Paramedics, a fire truck and police came. He mentioned the bike but no one put the stories together - possibly because he isn't super comfortable in English.

Fernando asked if we could explain his story to the police. He pulled out his phone and showed us a photo of himself with the bike in case we had any doubts. We didn't. We relayed his name and phone number to the police dispatcher, who seemed more interested in getting 'Bent's address and birthdate and other information that he hadn't been asked earlier.

Then we all walked out together to our cars. We had no idea if the police had been there. Maybe Fernando's bike was taken by a hiker. At least he knew for sure that he had been looking in the right place and the bike was gone.

His phone rang. It was the constable who had spoken with 'Bent earlier. Fernando wanted us to speak on his behalf once again. The police *had* come out and picked up the bike and spent some time looking for bodies, just like we did. They had the bike at the Collingwood OPP detachment. We texted all the info to Fernando, ensured that he had the right address entered in Google Maps and wished him well.

He wanted to give us something but we said he'd already given us a great story. A while later, this text arrived. :)

Another Summer Scavenger Hunt badge in the final days of the challenge: the Distance Run. Thankfully, it doesn't have to be a run since my feet aren't in great shape right now. "You have 1 hour to run, hike or walk as far as you can!"

I thought of ultrarunner Charlotte Vasarhelyi, who trained her walking speed on a treadmill to get accustomed to walking with a sense of urgency in a long race, rather than treating it as a rest.

I walked to the Georgian Trail and did a hike in that area. 'Bent and the dogs took occasional sniff stops, then scrambled after me. I was aiming for 6 kph and ended up with 6.3 kph. That's probably not good enough for Charlotte but it was fine with me. Sadly, it made my right heel hurt.

This is our last weekend at Tree Hugger ABC. We'll do some packing and some vacationing. The next time we're up here, it will be moving day. It's been a great place for us. When I walked through the door today, I was reminded of how nice it has been, and I felt a bit guilty. I even said, "I'm sorry" out loud. But its next owners will love it too, I hope. On to new adventures. :)

More walking to keep my ankle happy. Today I did the Summer Scavenger Hunt Lite Brite challenge:

"Don your brightest colours and head out to stand out…introvert’s 3rd worst nightmare. Bonus points for wearing actual lights. Neon is your friend and makes you look cool!"

This is one of those challenges that didn't seem fair to do on our usual Palgrave trails. I could go out in our forest dressed as Big Bird or with a lemon meringue pie attached to my head or I could not wear anything at all, and it's unlikely that I would have a single moment of embarrassment.

So... country roads. I wore a fluorescent green shirt and neon pink and cherry shoes. I had always planned to wear a bright purple running skirt for this challenge but thanks to Mr. Creepy, I didn't feel comfortable wearing what I wanted to on my own road. I added an obnoxiously bright, intermittently flashing bike light so I could get the bonus points.

It was a lovely late afternoon and I listened to tunes and cleared my head after a busy day. There's something to be said for this "walking".

I'm still going easy on my ankle so this was another hike after a long day on the laptop. Time is running out for the CMTR Summer Scavenger Hunt so I'm trying to earn badges every day that I can. Today was the Flower Power challenge. I had to pick (or purchase) flowers during my run (or walk) and present them to someone immediately afterward. I gave 'Bent these flowers picked in our back yard.

Here's my attempt at the GPS Art challenge for the Coast Mountain Trail Running Summer Scavenger Hunt - a combination of trails and bushwhacking in the forest around our house. I was hiking instead of running to be kind to my ankle. It's obvious that I drew a Tasmanian Devil, right? Right?! :)

The GPS Art challenge has a minimum time of 60 minutes. I'd planned to keep retracing my steps but my neighbours were out on their trail with a large machine so I didn't want to get in their way any more than I already had. Instead, I went for a walk along our road.

As I approached an intersection with no houses around, I noticed a car just sitting at the stop sign at the crossroad. It seemed weird so I decided to turn left rather than walking in front of him. That meant I walked right past the guy's passenger window, which he rolled down.

I stopped with a polite smile plastered on my face, pretending not to be nervous. (I was effing nervous!) He said, "Excuse me, do I turn right or left?" I said uncertainly, "That depends on where you're going." He leaned toward me, leered and said, "I'm not going NOWHERE!"

I left. And fortunately, he left too. I was constantly choosing escape routes for the rest of my walk, which is not something that usually comes up in our neighbourhood. Grrr, some men are jerks - present company excepted.