Training Log Archive: coach ld

A slow chatty ski with Luno on nice fast but not icy trails It wasn't as sunny as the other day but it was beautfiul:).

C • So nice! 4

Goose and I joined a group of local Strathcona Nordic masters skiers in their "Tour de Strathcona" informal ski-the-whole -trail -system event. There are about 45 km of trail and their goal was to ski EFI. Goose did it but I missed a 12 km loop when I skied with Luno. Goose and I had a great time cruising on big wide trails that wove and rolled up and down along the side of the mountain. It was fantastic. One portion required riding the chair lit to the top of the mountain where you then take a nordic trail traversing back down. That was a bit out of my comfort zone b and but FAST and panoramic! So fun, really nice people.
Another great day:). How lucky are we? Oh yeah, and we finished the day in Luno's hottub lookingout at the mountains, and sea lions, eagles etc. I even jumped in the ocean! March 17! It was ice cold , but I just back into the hot tub
again!

Another amazing day in paradise. Completely clear blue sky, very light wind, calm water, and friends with toys meant Goose and I were able to use their kayaks today:). We paddles south along the shore from Luno's place around the point and into the Comox marina. We met Luno and Kev for a nice lunch in town and then paddled back to their place. We paddled through a million gulls, terns, etc. who had been feeding on the herring run along with lots of seals and a lot of very loud sea lions. They are so big, and sleek and I learned that they lie on their sides with one flipper sticking up out of the water when they are resting. Who knew? Such a great day, again!.

Took an early ferry from Horseshoe Bay to Nanaimo, drove up to Mt. Washington and met my friend Luno. We did a slow social classic ski with her and then Goose and I skied the Lake Loop. It was unbelievably, stop-dead-in-your tracks gorgeous; so sunny, bright blue sky, big snow-capped mountains, tons of snow, the ocean off in the distance. Such breathtakingly beautiful panoramic vistas! The we went to Luno's new house right on the ocean in Comox. Sea lions and seals frolicking right out in front of the house, the coastal range shining bright in the distance as the sun set on them, bald eagles flying overhead. Amazing.

A rainy day, heavy in the morning. And then, it broke and we skied at Cypress with Miss Bessie in a bit of sun, fog and beautiful light.

Before the rain started Leanimal took Angus and me out on the Lynn Valley/Baden Powell/Mt. Fromme hiking on the mountain bike trails. Sure glad I wasn't on a bike! It was a lot of climbing and scary looking drops and teeter totters etc. we ended up on knee-deep snow. But the rain held off until we were done:).

En route back to Vancouver Goose and I stopped at Mirren Lake and did what we thought was going to be a short easy hike - but turned out to be another steep, rocky climb. It was short but the views were still beautiful on another clear day!

C • Living the life! 1

Goose and I met Leanimal for a ride on a parkway with side loops on surprisingly dry trails, up from Lynn Creek, with a few patches of stubborn snow. It was a gorgeous day that kept getting warmer. We were in shorts and had our jackets off by the time we stopped for a latte and treat at "The End of the Line" cafe. Sure felt like a vacation on that patio:)

By the time Goose and I left to meet Miss Bessie it was 20 degrees in North Van! It was about 13 up at Cypress and we were expecting ski conditions to be slushy and slow, but they were really quite good. The base is so deep and firm that the snow on top was soft but just the top layer. It was kind of velvety, especially where the groomer had just passed:) Sweet skiing on a downright summery day. Goose went off to hammer for a while but I didn't have much pop left in my legs so Bessie and I just cruised back and forth across the mountain without any big climbs thank heavens. Again, the views were unreal!

Another unbelievably cloudless blue-sky day! Goose , the Girl and I headed up the "Chief" trail. The first section is so steep and has so many stairs and big rock steps - and on a sunny Sunday with temps in the low teens, so many people and their dogs! The second section was icier and snowier, with chains and ladders to get up to the second peak and some fantastic vistas of the water, the snow-capped mountains the big blue sky, with fewer people. Easy to see why it's called the Sea-to-Sky region. From there we hiked in fairly deep snow-cone snow through a big ravine and up to the final peak where we sat in the snow and ate our lunch looking over at Mt. Girabaldi, getting slightly sun-burned. It was so warm in the sun, but still cool in the trees. The descent was the hardest part for me. There's still a lot of snow and ice which made it tricky and treacherous in some spots, and hard on the knees. But wow, what a day. And we finished it off with the Girl's famous Sunday Soup night:)