Nightcall

A dark summit - The highlight of the week and perhaps my gutsiest run in the past month.

After bruising my knee on the summit of Green last Saturday I decided to play it safe, taking Sunday and Monday off from running. By Tuesday morning I was itching to get my feet under me. I had spent most of the day on the computer, staring out my window at the sunshine I should have been enjoying. Come 6:30 PM I had resigned myself to a third day off, but it was "motivated" by laziness rather than necessity. Around 7:00 I read a message from a good friend saying, "Just watched In The High Country - I can't believe that's where you live now." Neither can I most days - I literally have mountains in my back yard. I read the message twice, threw on my running gear, and was out the door by 7:30. Daylight be damned, I was going to get on the trails and salvage this one.

I was pretty conservative with my kit despite the fact that temps were well below freezing and winds were gusting between 45-60 mph. My key pieces of gear included my headlamp, a pair of YakTrax, some thick gloves, and a Patagonia windshield half-zip. Within five minutes of heading out I had shed the Patagonia and was feeling very comfortable. At this point, I was tucked into a small valley between Skunk Creek and Mesa Trail, shielding me from the winds whipping across the front range.

I set out to run until I felt satisfied, initially thinking that I would go for maybe 60 minutes. Fortunately, I was digging the solitude and mystique that comes with running alone in the mountains at night. I stopped several times along the trail in order to mute the crunch of snow under my strides and stare back at the groups of glowing eyes I could see just off trail. It's eerie not knowing what kind of wildlife is staring back at you from the darkness, but its exhilarating as well.

Once I reached the junction for Mesa Trail I was feeling warmed up and decided that I would continue south toward Fern Canyon. At that point, the idea of a night-time Bear Peak summit had crept into my mind, but I wasn't sure how icy the trails would be once I hit Fern and things got steeper. Likewise, I knew the intensity of the wind would rise dramatically as I climbed through the canyon and increased my exposure. I would make a game-time decision once I reached the trail junction for Fern Canyon...

In all fairness, it wasn't much of a decision. I reached Fern Canyon and continued making my way up without hesitation. Why? Why not? I was already moving, and the experience was there to be had. I wanted to see the Indian Peaks under the stars. I also wanted to look out over the rest of Boulder, knowing full well I was the only one up on top of the mountain at that moment.

My progress from Fern Canyon to Bear Peak was not particularly efficient, but I felt like I was making solid progress despite the snow and ice. The trail was definitely becoming less packed the higher I went, which required a greater effort. That said, the added heat from this output was welcome in the face of increasing winds and decreasing temperatures. As I scrambled carefully across the last few rocks and reached the USGS dial at the summit the winds were raging and I felt cold for the first time. I didn't linger terribly long, as the wind and lack of movement turned my hands into what felt like fingerless, icy stumps. I was on the peak less than five minutes and the 50 mph gusts cut through me with ease.

I pulled my jacket on for the return and began to feel my fingers again after 10 minutes of descending. I cruised down the majority of Fern Canyon save for a few icy spots, and was back to the long-sleeve by the time I hit Mesa. Entering Skunk Creek for the final stretch back to the house, I was feeling great and once again enjoying the glow of mysterious eyes. I had turned my sedentary Tuesday into a noteworthy day with the help of my legs, some hard work, and a good 3,500' of climbing. By 10:00 PM I was back in my room, stretching my legs and smiling silently. It was the Nightcall - mountains gently beckoning me, "Get off your ass."

Thanks for reminding me why I moved out here, Rev. I appreciate it...

The numbers game...

12/10/2013
2:27, 3,250' - Bear Peak
Night run described above. Great stuff. Frosty paws. Lots of critters.

12/11/2013
:47, 250' - Road Run
Ran north along Broadway. Decent turnover and some random loops here and there. I'm feeling good incorporating one faster/road run per week.

12/12/2013
:60, 1,600' - Mt. Sanitas
Biked to Pearl after work and ran a mile and change to warm-up en route to the Sanitas trail-head. Still icy on the mountain, as indicated by the slow descent. Had my feet come out a few times on the way down and nearly ate rocks for dinner. The trail conditions were in that 'grey area' where spikes and YakTrax would be great in some spots and complete overkill in others. Solid run either way. Mile and change to cool down on the way back to my bike.

12/13/2013
:45, 850' - Mesa Trail
A nice Friday afternoon run with Eric and Gordo. We went up 'the big hill' in back to reach the Mesa Trail. We took Mesa south for a bit before heading back on the relatively new sections of Skunk Canyon. Fun switch-backs on the way home, with all three of us opening up a fair amount. We were stopped by a sheriff about a half mile from the house for having Gordo off leash. Luckily, Mr. Rivera has no felonies on his record - so we were free to go...

After four in a row I was feeling a bit tired, but I can't remember if I got a run in on Saturday or Sunday. I definitely didn't write anything down, but the battery in my altimeter died resulting in me losing all data that was not recorded. To go along with the watch issues, I am very short on pictures this week. I just haven't wanted to bring my phone on the colder, snowy runs. Anyway, here are just a few worth posting.

'Tis the season... 

A beautiful Wisco sunrise - courtesy of my Pops.

This podcast has been killing me the last few weeks.
Worth checking out if you like funny.

Last but not least, its time for some ear-candy. I should apologize for getting this post up so late, but it has been a busy couple of weeks. I'll try to have this week's post and running-logs up within the next couple of days. In the meantime, the following tracks should make up for it. The former, a callback to the title of this post. The latter, a snippet from Red House Painters' Old Ramon - an awesome album from end to end...

Kavinsky - Nightcall

Red House Painters - Between Days