White River 50 mile passes me by

Update on White River 50 Mile Endurance Run

I'll start off by saying I didn't run it today :(

But let me go back a few weeks and get caught up. On July 10th, I did the second training run on the course. It was the first half of the course. I didn't bring a camera with me so I didn't get any pix. My run went really well. I felt good--strong, in fact. No blood in urine or abdominal pain. It was an overcast day with a little drizzle.

We parked at Buck Creek campground. The course started out by crossing Hwy 410 to the north side and running west on a trail along 410 for about 5 miles. Then the trail turned north and started heading uphill. It was all under the cover of trees. Near the top of the climb, we passed the location of the Ranger Creek aid station. There is a trail junction here (go left) and a lean-to and hitching post for horses. Beyond Ranger Creek, there was a bit more uphill climbing and then we emerged from the forest on hillsides where I could imagine harvesting blueberries in the fall. I could also imagine gazing upon majestic views of the Cascade Mountains if the weather was a bit nicer. We ran to Corral Pass and turned around. Forty-five years ago, my parents hauled their horses to Corral Pass to take horse pack trips from there on the very trail I was running! The road to Corral Pass is closed now so it wouldn't be possible to do that any more.

After turning around at Corral Pass, we ran back to Ranger Creek and stayed left at the junction to head back down to Hwy 410 on a different trail. It felt like I ran downhill FOREVER. I couldn't believe I had run uphill that far. Eventually, I made it down and crossed 410 and found my car parked at Buck Creek Campground.

So, why didn't I run the race?! Husband has been working out of town all summer. I have been having a hard time these last couple of weeks fitting in training runs while being a single mom and working. I felt like I had tapped out all of my child care options on training runs and had no one to watch my littles while I was at the race. I was feeling very anxious. When I decided not to run the race, it felt like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I have no doubt that I will do this race one day. It just didn't happen this year.

Backpacking in the Cascade Mountains

I have been training for a 50 mile trail run at the end of the month.

 

My hubby has been working out of town most of the summer.

 

Between work, kids, and running, I've been busy! But I managed to squeeze in a backpacking trip with friends and my kids. We drove to Crystal Mountain on a Thursday and parked. We started our hike under a chair lift heading east. There was a lot up uphill involved and many rest/snack breaks. After 7 miles, we arrived at Basin Lake.





 

As a 5 year old, I hiked to Basin Lake with my family. It brought back so many memories. It was just as beautiful as I remembered it.

After the kids got ready for bed, they played cards in the tent. And us moms stayed outside with a cup of wine! 

Family photo on "the rock."

Same rock in 1973 with my dad and sisters. I am the one in the red sweater.

 

The next day started out cloudy. We packed up and headed up the trail to our next camp spot, Big Crow Basin. It is the most amazing meadow with streams meandering everywhere through it.

This lean-to was in much better shape 45 years ago. I was amazed that it was still standing!

Meadow at sunrise.

Eating breakfast in the "kitchen" that the kids made.

We hiked out on Saturday via the Norse Peak trail. It was a wonderful, restorative, but short, trip. We did not see anyone else out there. I can't wait to go again.

White River 50 mile training run - Sun Top Mountain

I am getting ready for the White River 50 Mile Endurance Run! Last weekend I went on a training run that covered the second half of the course. We started at the west end of Skookum Flats and headed east on the Skookum Flats trail. It is a lovely undulating trail in the trees and along the White River. After about 6 miles we arrived at Buck Creek campground. From there, we started heading uphill - to the top of Sun Top Mountain. It was about a 2,000 foot climb. At the top, the clouds separated and Mt. Rainier came into view! There was also an aid station up there, and a lookout tower. I took advantage of the outhouse before continuing down the trail and back to the car. I peed blood and things went downhill from there. I'm not just talking about the trail either. My abdomen hurt so bad that I walked the last couple of miles. It was disappointing, to say the least. I was discouraged and wondered if I would be able to do the training run the following weekend the first half of the course). I decided to do the prudent thing and headed to urgent care to find out what was going on.

Our group gathered at the start of the run.

Beautiful trail along Skookum Flats.

Starting to climb up Sun Top Mountain.

View of Mt. Rainier at the top of Sun Top!

Aid station at the top of Sun Top.

The urgent care clinic sent me to the ER where I was chided for being a little dehydrated. But what can you expect after running 25 miles?! They confirmed I had blood in my urine and that it wasn't rhabdomyolysis, but it left me puzzled. Since I've had kidney stones before, it was possible that I passed a stone and it irritated the urethra on it's way out. I'm just hoping it doesn't happen again. I really don't like trying to run in that much pain! Before I left the ER, they gave me a sandwich and pumped me full of fluids.