Tag Archives: Olympic_Discovery_Trail

Mile Marker 13

Posted on February 25, 2013 | 4 Comments

We bottled our third batch of India Pale Ale (IPA) the other day. We’ve found it very challenging to produce a good American IPA — we couldn’t seem to get it hoppy enough, or pale enough, or carbonated enough. Based on our tasting of this batch on bottling day, we think we’ve got the “hoppy” and “pale” parts right… so now begins the two-week wait to see whether this batch will have a rich, foamy head when opened and poured.

True to our tradition, the beer required both a name and a code. We write a code on the bottle cap so that when we open it later we’ll know which beer it is. We have grand ambitions of creating labels one of these days, but for now the code works pretty well.

We had a working name of “Take 3 IPA,” and a code of “T3.” But on bottling day, CFL wanted a more descriptive code so he’d remember that this batch is an IPA and not some obscure beer style that starts with “T.” We settled on “I3″ for the code, but when he wrote it, it looked more like “13.” When I got out my batch log to change the code for my records, I made an amazing discovery! This is our 13th batch!

Well, the 13th batch of beer demanded a name celebrating that fact. I offered up a few ideas like “13th Floor” but nothing was really clicking for us. Then we thought about the trails that we know and love… the places where I run and CFL rides his bike. Those trails have mile marker signs. Our 13th batch of beer is a milestone of sorts.

Voila! Mile Marker 13 American IPA is born!

Well, actually it’s in the midst of bottle conditioning right now, but it will be born in mid-March.

Meanwhile I got to thinking about mile markers, and for the life of me I could not picture the mile marker 13 sign on the Olympic Discovery Trail. Surely the trail construction crew wouldn’t have simply skipped over that sign out of some “unlucky 13″ silliness, would they?

So yesterday I had to go out and run that section of trail to try and find mile marker 13.

I found it!

It was a good five feet off the trail and during much of the year it is probably hidden by brush, but in the dead of February it’s definitely visible. I’ll have to remember to look for it again later in the year…

The hunt for mile marker 13 was a highlight of a rather awesome long not-so-slow 11.3 mile run. This section of trail is flat and fast. Without a great deal of effort I was running at a half marathon PR pace (not counting my camera stop). I wouldn’t have had any problem continuing at that pace for another 1.8 miles and completing the half marathon distance. But unlike my past half marathons, I don’t think I’d need two weeks or more to recover afterwards. I’ll be ready to run again tomorrow.

It’s been a year now since I quit my job and declared myself post-corporate. The time I’ve been able to put into running, hiking, and walking since then has rewarded me with increased stamina and resilience, reduced stress, and a whole lot more smiling! I’m grateful that I can choose to live my life in this way… recognizing that it’s not an option for most people. Still, anyone can choose to do something — anything! — to be a bit more active every day.

Today is day 56 of CFL’s and my activity streak. I’ve logged 155 running miles and 260 total miles. I’ve seen a lot of trail mile markers along the way.

CFL has me beat on mileage, but only because he can go a bit further on his bike in a given time period than I can on foot. We’re totally non-competitive and mutually supportive — we simply make movement a priority in our day. Every day.

We go when it’s raining. We go when it’s cold and windy like today. We walk to most places we go within our small city. And when we’re finished, we relax and have a home brew!

What about you? What are you doing for exercise today? Tomorrow? What mile markers are out there waiting for you to discover?

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Posted in Brewing, Running

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Amazing sights along the trail

Posted on December 30, 2012 | 2 Comments

Today I ran the last 7.5 miles I needed to comfortably meet my running goal of 600 miles for 2012. For the last run of the year, I chose to revisit my most-traveled section of the Olympic Discovery Trail — the part that runs along the waterfront toward downtown. This section has been fully or partially closed since mid-November for a cleanup and wastewater treatment project at a closed mill site. The part of the trail that directly skirts the mill has never been particularly attractive (they keep telling us it will be better once the cleanup project is finally done). But I was amazed at what it looked like today!

In case you’ve gotten the impression that I run in pristine wilderness all the time, let me assure you — not here, not now! The trail, which used to run in a broad horseshoe around the perimeter of the mill site, now cuts directly through the middle of the parking lot — it’s 4/10s of a mile shorter! Weaving through the heavy equipment inside a narrow chute, I couldn’t help but recall the times I’ve been paced by deer through this area. I don’t think the deer would find it to their liking right now! I can only hope that when the project is completed next spring sometime, it will again be a beautiful place where I’ll run again with deer.

Back out along the waterfront, however, it looked and felt more like the waterfront trail that I love. I heard eagles but couldn’t spot them today. Various species of grebes and other water birds were there in abundance — as were “flocks” of birders with their spotting scopes. I think the local Audubon Society may have been on a field trip to enjoy this section of the trail, which has been newly recognized as one of the prime birding areas in the state.

Yet even with all of this excitement, there was something even more amazing along the waterfront trail today: seaweed! The high tides of the past several days brought a colorful array of pink seaweed to both sides of the trail. Bear in mind that the trail is normally 6-10 feet above the water line. I saw scattered seaweed halfway up the bank on the inland side of the trail — a good 20 feet up and in from the normal waterfront. It must have been a crazy sight when those waves were crashing so high up over the trail.

In other areas the power of the tides to shape the land was even more evident. Here there must have been a tidal river heaving gravel across the trail (I suspect some of this debris has been swept to and piled at this spot by our intrepid trail maintenance crew).

In this photo you can see the grass all lying over on its side, flattened by the force of the waves.

Sights like these make it very clear that this piece of land is on loan to us from nature, and that the sea will take it back eventually. I greatly respect the power of water and I know I’m only a visitor here. Still, I’m very glad that I get to enjoy this place while I can!

I hope you had a chance to get outside and enjoy some of your favorite places on this last weekend of 2012. Happy New Year!

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Running to the Elwha

Posted on December 29, 2012 | 4 Comments

In prior posts I’ve written about hiking up the Elwha (here and here) and riding to the Elwha. Well, yesterday I ran to the Elwha! With just a few days left in 2012, I’m only a few miles short of my goal of running 600 miles in 2012. From our prior experience of riding our bikes 6.6 miles on a nearly-level trail to the Elwha River bridge and back, I knew it would be an easy, beautiful out-and-back run.

The skies were gray but there was nothing more than drizzle in the forecast. CFL loaded up his bike and we drove out to the trailhead just west of town. He completed two out-and-backs during the time it took me to do the run, so we had several chances to say “hello” to each other along the way.

It was a perfect day to be outside and active. As usual for this time of year, my feet went numb in the first half mile but I was toasty by the time I’d completed my second full mile. The piles of big-leaf maple leaves that I’d enjoyed running over on my bike were long gone and the paved trail was wide open and non-slippery. With all the leaves off the maples, I could see middle-distance views toward the river.

I stopped to take a photo of the two-level bridge as I approached it. Runners/bikers/walkers use the lower level; the upper level is for cars.

Then I stopped in the middle of the bridge to take photos of the river. It’s still extremely muddy. I read the other day that only about 10% of the century’s worth of silt has reached the mouth of the river since the dam removal process started, so there is a lot more mud yet to come!

Elwha River

After a slow, refreshing several minutes of gazing down at the river, I turned around to head back. The ever-so-lightly uphill trail led me back through the trees, past the airport, and toward town.

Olympic Discovery Trail near the Elwha River Bridge

I picked up the pace for the last two and a half miles, as it was beginning to drizzle. CFL’s post-ride grin was as big as mine! We both enjoyed our exercise highs for the rest of the day.

I’m learning that at this time of year we have to go out and grab whatever exercise we can get, whenever the weather offers a halfway decent chance. This time of year it’s all about seizing the best moment to run, or bike, through the raindrops!

Wherever you are, whatever your weather, I hope you find your ways to enjoy your mid-winter moments… slowly and happily!

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Posted in Cycling, Running

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Riding to the Elwha

Posted on November 9, 2012 | 3 Comments

I keep coming back to the Elwha River, it seems.

And why not? It’s a beautiful place in the midst of an astonishing transformation, as the two century-old dams are being taken down and removed.

I’ve written here several times about our hikes up the Elwha, upstream from the dams where the river has always run free. I’ve written elsewhere about the changes already taking place at the former Lake Aldwell after the lower dam was removed earlier this year. The removal of the upper dam has been slower and more painstaking due to the immense amount of silt that has accumulated behind the dam in Lake Mills. I have not been able to show you photos of the process of draining this lake because the construction company has kept the site well shielded from the public. I have managed to catch glimpses through trees and construction barriers, however, so I have had a general sense of the declining water level.

A week or so ago they announced that the river was finally falling free over the last few remaining feet of the dam, and that the silt would soon be flowing downstream and muddying the lower reaches of the Elwha.

This sounded like an interesting thing to go and see. Yesterday we decided to ride our bikes to the Elwha. We started a mile or so west of downtown, at an access point to a newly-paved section of the Olympic Discovery Trail (ODT). We guessed it would be about five miles each way, but were surprised to see a sign indicating it was only 3.3 miles! Given that we had the afternoon free, we decided to ride at a leisurely pace and enjoy the sights.

This new section of the trail was absolutely beautiful, nearly flat and mostly straight through fields and groves of big leaf maples. Once I got over my initial caution, it was great fun to aim my bicycle wheel toward the biggest piles of leaves I could find!

This being the rainy, wet Pacific Northwest, we got to cross another stream on our way to the Elwha. I couldn’t get a decent shot of the oddly-named Dry Creek — it was running freely but was almost hidden by the thick trees. Maybe that’s the joke? In any case, the bridge was terrific! This style of bridge is typical of most of the small stream crossings on the ODT.

After Dry Creek the trail headed gently downhill toward the Elwha, but it never got steep because it follows an old railway grade and crosses the Elwha at the top of the ravine. I was able to relax and not worry about having to ride up steep hills on the way back!

The bridge is very impressive. It’s a new double-deck bridge with a road on top and the ODT below. CFL laments the loss of a beautiful old bridge that was taken out when this one was built. I remember that bridge – I even drove over it once or twice. It was a bit scary! I’m glad the new bridge is there and I appreciate its human-friendly design that encourages leisurely river watching. Doesn’t this beautiful bridge make you want to ride your bike across it — stopping along the way for a long slow look?

As for the Elwha, yes it is muddy!

Looking upstream straight into the sun the view was difficult to photograph, but the river looked like a roiling cauldron of mud. We spent a long time watching the patterns that emerged in and moved through the cross-currents. The flows, ebbs, and whirlpools are somehow easier to see than they would be in clear water.

In contrast, the view downstream seemed serene. Even here, however, the water was obviously thick and murky. I like the shadow of the bridge in this photo. If you look closely you can see us standing there!

The silt flow is expected to continue for weeks to months. The dam removals were planned as a slow and careful process to prevent too much silt rushing out all at once — but no matter how slowly you take down a 100-year-old dam, everything behind it does get up and move downstream eventually.

We plan to keep coming back to check on the river’s ongoing transformation. We’ve heard that the stark lakebed of the former Lake Aldwell, which we last visited in May, is now lush with new growth as the forest comes to reclaim it. It’s definitely time for a return visit!

Further upstream, perhaps once the leaves are fully off the trees, I hope to be able to sneak a peek-a-boo photo of the former Lake Mills.

You can expect to read more here about the Elwha River… It is a place/time event that does, indeed, keep me coming back.

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