A middle of the pack runner's take on the events at the Boston Marathon

For those not familiar with the marathon world here are some insights on today's events from the perspective of a middle of the pack runner.  Running is my world.  I love it, I cherish it, it is my escape from other parts of my world.  I've run several marathons.  I'm well entrenched in training right now for the Seattle Rock and Roll Marathon.  I was well aware that today was Boston Marathon Day.  As I was driving around doing my errands this morning, I was thinking about how when I got home I should check to see who had won the Boston Marathon and also check out the New York  Marathon website to see if registration for next fall’s race was open yet (I've been trying to get in for 3 years).   Sadly, the news I was confronted with, I could have never imagined in my wildest dreams.  The first thing I did when I heard was to message my brother who is training to run the Seattle Rock and Roll with me.  This could have been me or my brother.  When the explosion occurred runners like me, 4 hour marathon finishers, were crossing the finish line.  At this stage of the race these are average normal folks who probably didn’t get in to the race by time qualification or if they did they are in an old enough age group such as age 70+ where the time qualifications are lower.  Case in point, the already iconic photo of the fallen runner being proctected by Boston Police at the finish line is a 78 year old runner from Lake Stevens, WA just up the road from me.  Even if you are fast enough to qualify for the race, you aren’t guaranteed a spot as the race fills within minutes of registration opening.  If you don't time qualify, you can get in through other programs but they are usually tied to a charity and you are usually raising a substantial amount of money to get in. The Boston Marathon is a goal on many a runner’s bucket list (including mine) and it is not an easy road to get there. 

Many many months if not years of running, planning, sacrifice and finances go into the preparation.  Countless personal goals are realized at the finish of any marathon.  As you cross the finish line of a marathon your extreme exhaustion is overcome by your extreme elation of finishing.  You can see this on the footage of the blast where runners are pumping their fists in the air, unaware of what has just happened.  This is a once in a lifetime event for many and people often have loved ones eagerly waiting at the finish line.  In recent years, the numbers of women in running has risen dramatically so now more than ever groups of kids, parents and grandparents are a familiar and frequent sight on the sidelines and especially at the finish line.  That is why my heart broke all the more hearing that one of those lost of was an 8 year old. This could have been my 7 or 9 year old.  Multiply this finish line picture, the culmination of all this hard work by hundreds or thousands of individuals and this is what you had today at that finish line when the bombs went off . . . so many people there to celebrate remarkable accomplishments . . . so many there with expectations of impending joy.  My beautiful running world that was all about goals, health and fitness, dedication and determination and all things positive feels violated . . . makes me feel like going out on a run.

The Blog will go on . . . just in a new format for 2011

As much as I desperately wanted to capture each day in 2010, I sit here Dec 20, not having had time to update for a very long while.  Even though the blog leaves off in August, I took notes through the end of November and could probably still take notes on the beginning of Dec so I have the whole year accounted for.  At some point, I could recreate the year if only for myself.  We had a lot of fun adventures in late summer and fall that I would have loved to share about, and maybe I will in some flashback posts.  From here forward, I will be blogging more or less on a weekly basis or when there is something good to blog about.  In addition to my family's active pursuits, I will mix it up and talk about other things we like to do together like cooking, traveling, boating.  If we do it together as a family, it is fair game! 

Day 222 and 223 - Nature Hikes at Grace Harbor and Loss

The Leech Lake at Grace Harbor

We moved over to Grace Harbor for a couple of nights.  In Desolation Sound, the destinations are fairly close together, so we tend to stay in one place for 2 or 3 days then move on to another anchorage.  UJ got to do his 1st stern tie.  This is where you drop your anchor, then send someone to shore in a dinghy with a stern line that they tie to a tree on shore.  It is not an easy task, but UJ did great. 
 

 
The first day, my mom and I got some much desired "quiet" time while everyone else went for a hike on shore.  The next day, John and my Dad got the respite and the rest of us did the hike.  My mom is such as trooper, making it all the way to the lake and back, I don't think she will ever trust me to take her on a hike again though.  It was a little farther than I had remembered.  We affectionately refer to this lake as the "Leech Lake" because both Haley and our friend Tara got leeches stuck to their legs when they swam in the lake last summer.  There was no swimming this year, the lake was not that desirable last time because the entrance to it is not very clean.  It seemed even worse this year, more weeds and bugs.  Both days we spotted black snakes and big bugs in and around the water. 

Mom made it to the Lake

We lost things in Grace Harbor.  UJ lost the paddle off an oar when he was rowing - that can be replaced.  On that same excursion, Haley dropped one of the handheld radios in the water - it was retrieved, but never quite worked right after that.  We lost something much more profound in this Harbor- our Uncle Harold.  Cell communication is not reliable up here.  We learned that my uncle was gravely sick and he had actually been ill for a few days.  We were all so hopeful, but the very next day next we learned he did not make it.  This was definitely a solemn couple of days.

Day 221 - Part 2 - Wolf Trail

The last post left off in the middle of the tale of the Wolf Trail.  John dinghy'd us over to the bay where we thought the trailhead was.  The tide was still low enough that the entire bay was high and dry and at least a quarter mile long.  As we approached the bay, a family of four was walking toward us and flagged us down.  They had just been hiking for the previous 2 hours, and either couldn't find the trail that led back to where they had started or realized that the hike would be much further than they wanted to go.  They asked for a ride back to their dinghy.  John took the Dad while UJ and I hopped into the knee high water to quiz the rest of them about the trails.  They were able to tell us how to locate the trailhead, but the mom warned us that she had heard that there were agressive wolves on the trail.  UJ and I decided to find the trailhead while we waited for John, so we trudged, across the mud, soon we were sinking rather than walking and muck would be a better way to describe what we were attepting to walk through, it was pretty gross!  When found the below sign at the trailhead, I was instantly way less excited about the trail, while UJ was beyond ecstatic at the thought that we could see some wildlife.  We both thought the mom had been over reating when warning us about "agressive wolves".  We felt this was just a general sign that is likely posted in many places on the island and didn't indicate any recent wolf activity.  I still didn't like it.  We decided to come back after the tide had risen so we could get closer to the trailhead with the dinghy. At this point we still assumed John was coming with us.

John could not be convinced to come with us, but he did row us back over to the trailhead later in the afternoon.  This time, there was ample water in the bay (too much!).  There was not a good landing spot for the dinghy so we had to wade in.  This was NOT a good start to our adventure.

wading to the trailhead

Prepared with pepper spray, sticks and a radio

To get to the shore we had to balance on bobbing, rotting, logs and once we started off, there was no turning back.  This was not a well established trail.  This was a narrow path.  The vegetation was ample, tall and we were constantly brushing past it.  There would be absolutely no warning if anything untoward was on the path.  I cannot ever remember being so worried as I hiked along.  My heart was beating a mile a minute.  UJ was of course leading the charge.   We did a radio check, and John was able to hear us and respond.  After a while, the path widened and I could tell we were now at the high point of the island.  OK, so far so good, maybe this isn't so bad after all.  A few more minutes down the path, I could see glimpses of the bay on the other side of the island.  We had made it to the other side of the island - halfway!  And then hanging from a string on a tree . . .

The note reads, "Aggressive Wolves on this trail 8/05/10"

Yikes! This note was dated 2 days previous.  All those feelings of dread came rushing back and I was feeling super vulnerable again.  Now even UJ was freaking out.  Umm, now I see why the woman had used the phrase, "agressive wolves".  As we were hightailing it back in the other direction, we wondered what exactly the note meant.  Who wrote it? What does "agressive" mean? It didn't say "attacked" - was that good? Are the wolves still here?  For the rest of the hike, we talked . . . very loudly!  I swung my sticks onto a tree trunk every few steps. If there were wolves there, I was going to make sure they heard us.  We tried to radio John to come get us and got no answer, not a comforting feeling.  We finally made contact with him when we were nearly back to the trailhead.  I had never been so happy to be done with a hike.  UJ said that just seeing the note made the whole trip worth it  - good, because I am not doing that trail again - no thanks!  We were anxious to tell the story of our little adventure. The girls and John loved the story, our Dad, however, was Mr Skeptical.  He figures it was written by someone who just didn't want boaters on the island.  Was the note real? We'll never know, but my fear, I'm afraid was real enough for me.

Day 221 - The Rapids and the Wolf Trail

Monday Aug 9 – still at Squirrel Cove.  Checking out the rapids outgoing and incoming.  Exploring Hannah’s island with Daddy and dinghy exploring.  Wolf Trail.  2 mile run/walk. Stargazing party.

There are some cool rapids in Squirrel Cove created by the tide and a lagoon which is higher than the cove.  However, the main story of this day was the Wolf Trail.  Let's start off by saying UJ desperately wanted to see some wildlife and I definitely didn't.  In an effort to get off onto the island and get in some exercise, UJ and I decided to find a trailhead that I had heard of but had never looked for.  The trail would take us over to another cove on the other side of the island.  We found the trailhead

TO BE CONTINUED . . . .

Day 220 - We're Here!!!!

Sunday Aug 8 – gray foggy weather, Squirrel Cove by 4pm.  2 mile run/walk on shore.  Girls got dinghy ride with Daddy and Papa and water play on the beach.

Montague Harbor, Early Morning

This was a transit day, we spent all day just getting the boat organized. We crossed the Straight of Georgia (open water for an hour or two).  It can be trecherous at times, but it wasn't too bad.  My brother Jonanthan, who will here by be referred to as UJ (Uncle Jon) probably would say otherwise.  The scenery is simila all day and then you turn a corner and all of a sudden you are at the gateway to Desolation Sound and it is breath taking.  I knew it would be good, but I forgot how good.  It was cloudy on the mountain tops, but still spectacular.  I knew we'd be there long enough to see it without clouds.  The mountains up there drop off right into the sea. They are very tall and just a few feet from shore, the water is very deep.  The area has been likened to the scandinavian fjords. 

When we got to Squirrel Cove, we got off the boat as soon as we could.  John and I were the ones who did the run.  UJ is trying to get back into running after many years and has been working out a ton over the summer, so the goal was to keep up his fitness level during the trip.  I was also interested in maintaining some fitness since at this point, I was still planning to run the super Jock and Jill Half Marathon over Labor Day weekend.  I had never walked past the beach area on this island so it was fun to explore the little community which ai think is First Nations Reservation.  We found an old church and stopped out run to take pictures. 

After traveling all day, you turn a corner and see this - more beautiful than I remember

Running on Cortez Island

Day 219 - Anchors Aweigh

 Now here's the fun part, I get to look through the tens of pictures we took each day and decide what is worth sharing or at least what captures the day's activities.  Since the next 16 days or so was all of us no more than 65 ft away from each other and since we had a healthy dose of activity on all but our transit days, we pretty much had quality family time and exercise each day.  Even though our transit days were low activity, there were many days on vacation where we packed in enough exercise to more than cover for these days.  In my opinion anyway.  I will focus more on something worth sharing from each day. 

My memory from day 219 is fog, gray and pouring rain.  I remember being disappointed that my brother would not get to see the spectacular scenery as we traveled all the way through the San Juan Islands and into Canada.  He didn't know what he was missing and I knew I just had to be patient and that the scenery would be even more breath taking in Desolation Sound, our destination.  When you've seen how beautiful it can be in the Islands, it is disappointing to have visitors not see it in all its glory. Jonathan took a ton of pictures on our stop for fuel at Friday Harbor.  Later on that day, he realized he did not bring the charger for his camera battery, so his camera was pretty much useless for the remainder of the trip. We cleared customs at Bedwell Harbour, South Pender Island, BC and anchored for the night in Montague Harbor, galiano Island, BC.

Just went through the locks, girls still in their pjs

If we go back to the start of our morning, we got up at O'dark thirty and headed for the locks.  We had to wait awhile for the small lock to open and I don't think I've ever seen so many salmon jumping. It was quite a show.  My brother Jonathan got his first taste of what crewing the boat was going to be like.  This direction through the locks was pretty easy for those of us helping, for John it was hard because the boat stretched across pretty much the entire width of the lock which makes manuevering very tricky.

Oh, this is going to be hard limiting the stories I tell about each day. But I did journal as I we went, and I'll need to go back and review that now, but hopefully my writings on the trip will suffice for what I want to record here in this blog. Below is the surprisingly for me brief account of the day from my journal.

Saturday Aug 7 – rain rain rain, Friday Harbor, pouring rain.  Customs at Bedwell.  Anchor at Montague.  On the boat all day.

Waiting at the customs dock at Bedwell Harbour, note the pouring rain