An "Ultra" Hike
Wednesday, July 25, 2018
I thought we were beating "jet-lag" but maybe not!! Seb was up at 6:00 a.m. this morning, Annabelle closer to her "normal" at 7:00 a.m. I was up early too to do a workout with Ursula at 8:00 a.m. Annabelle appeared towards the end, but didn't join us. She said "it looked hard!!" Considering she is pretty hard core, that was a compliment!!!
Ray took Annabelle and Sebastien over to meet our neighbours Don and Valerie who had offered us the loan of their badminton set. It was a go, so Ray set it up in the garden and the two of them played a little and then retired to the "gym". It is truly amazing the ability of both of them to do pull ups. I can't remember the exact numbers but they were up around 26 assisted pull ups over a period of time. What is also amazing is the commitment to fitness. It is a part of their lives, not because it is a fitness enhancer, but because they enjoy the movement. Kudos to them both!!
We, had promised them a hike! And so we set off around 1:45 for a hike up The Smoke Bluffs. We chose the route because we thought the kids would enjoy seeing the rock climbers (which they did), we would have a little "up-hill," and then we could walk down the river which would keep us cool. , but also we wanted to see what they could do if we were to go on a mountain hike, or did the Cheakamus Canyon! We found out!!! And remember, it is some years now since we have lived with young people, and we have totally forgotten any reference point for their capabilities. You will recall Monday's post when Ray and Seb went over to see the bmx races. That is our "norm" now, and it is hard to remember that many of the residents in Squamish are into "extreme" sports!!
We set off from the house to walk to the trail. It was hot and we had all donned our sunscreen and taken hats, and water. The first part, they knew. It was flat, on pavement, and in the shade. By the time we hit the only real "climb" on the trail, they were lagging. I took a sidetrail to see if we could see the climbers. We didn't, but we found some rocks. The kids were in their element!! Flat rock surfaces set at an interesting climb angle. They scrambled up, and up, and did really well. Then a section that was just out of Seb's stretch flummoxed him; he had a slight "oops" moment, which sobered him. Annabelle was right with him but I encouraged them to come back down as they didn't have "helmets, nor the proper footware".....It worked. They turned and started down. But it was one of those spontaneous moments when they were both really focused and totally enjoying the challenge. We did find the climbers, and watched them for a while, then continued up the Bluffs to re-connect with Ray. You know the feeling when you are forging forward and you feel a string pulling you back? That's what we felt! It was hot, the kids were tired, we were about 3k into the walk. But, we Annabelle, Seb, and I had our "sticks". Or maybe Seb had discarded his and one of Annabelle's by this point. Can't remember! They'll tell you!! So we soldiered on. Ray and I decided we would "cut the walk short". We ended up totally not knowing how to get ourselves back to the point we wanted to reach...the Stawamus River dyke! So, I said to the kids: "Here is the situation: we tried to cut this short, and now we are confused as to how to get to where we need to be. We know you are feeling hot and tired, but let's get through this the best we can." And they are troupers. We reached the river dyke, and found the spot we needed to be to take the trail back to Hwy 99, cross the road bridge over the Blind Chanel, and onto the trail that leads up Logger's Lane past the cut off to our house. When we hit that trail, the kids hearts soared; they knew where they were!! Everything changed, the walk became fun. And when they were their most tired, they were most energetic!! Annabelle took off running the last 300 metres to the house to be the "first at the there;" Seb was the first "through the door."
When we got home, Seb disappeared to his bedroom for some quiet time; Annabelle, helped me to put the spaghetti together by chopping onions, garlic, red and green peppers, and mushrooms. She did a great job and was very confident and knowledgeable about what she was doing.
Supper, was a little later than ideal....about 8:00, I think. Both kids ate heartily to replenish the calories they had expended on the walk. I think Seb went to bed about 9:30 p.m. and Annabelle about 10:10 p.m. So, I think we are starting to get back to their normal hours. Right???
Toby and Keri: we apologise if we took the kids to their limit....but when you see the pictures at the end of the ordeal you will see that, happily, there was still more energy there to be tapped!! They are truly amazing!! They walked 10.94 k and we were out for 3 hrs 43 minutes and 20 seconds in 30C temperatures! They suggested the most they have walked before was 10k. We have tried to make them feel that they are "achievers". They are!! I promise that tomorrow will be an easy day!!
Once again, I totally failed on the "photo journalism!!" The pictures were all taken in the last 3k of the walk, and the energetic ones in about the last k!!!
I thought we were beating "jet-lag" but maybe not!! Seb was up at 6:00 a.m. this morning, Annabelle closer to her "normal" at 7:00 a.m. I was up early too to do a workout with Ursula at 8:00 a.m. Annabelle appeared towards the end, but didn't join us. She said "it looked hard!!" Considering she is pretty hard core, that was a compliment!!!
Ray took Annabelle and Sebastien over to meet our neighbours Don and Valerie who had offered us the loan of their badminton set. It was a go, so Ray set it up in the garden and the two of them played a little and then retired to the "gym". It is truly amazing the ability of both of them to do pull ups. I can't remember the exact numbers but they were up around 26 assisted pull ups over a period of time. What is also amazing is the commitment to fitness. It is a part of their lives, not because it is a fitness enhancer, but because they enjoy the movement. Kudos to them both!!
We, had promised them a hike! And so we set off around 1:45 for a hike up The Smoke Bluffs. We chose the route because we thought the kids would enjoy seeing the rock climbers (which they did), we would have a little "up-hill," and then we could walk down the river which would keep us cool. , but also we wanted to see what they could do if we were to go on a mountain hike, or did the Cheakamus Canyon! We found out!!! And remember, it is some years now since we have lived with young people, and we have totally forgotten any reference point for their capabilities. You will recall Monday's post when Ray and Seb went over to see the bmx races. That is our "norm" now, and it is hard to remember that many of the residents in Squamish are into "extreme" sports!!
We set off from the house to walk to the trail. It was hot and we had all donned our sunscreen and taken hats, and water. The first part, they knew. It was flat, on pavement, and in the shade. By the time we hit the only real "climb" on the trail, they were lagging. I took a sidetrail to see if we could see the climbers. We didn't, but we found some rocks. The kids were in their element!! Flat rock surfaces set at an interesting climb angle. They scrambled up, and up, and did really well. Then a section that was just out of Seb's stretch flummoxed him; he had a slight "oops" moment, which sobered him. Annabelle was right with him but I encouraged them to come back down as they didn't have "helmets, nor the proper footware".....It worked. They turned and started down. But it was one of those spontaneous moments when they were both really focused and totally enjoying the challenge. We did find the climbers, and watched them for a while, then continued up the Bluffs to re-connect with Ray. You know the feeling when you are forging forward and you feel a string pulling you back? That's what we felt! It was hot, the kids were tired, we were about 3k into the walk. But, we Annabelle, Seb, and I had our "sticks". Or maybe Seb had discarded his and one of Annabelle's by this point. Can't remember! They'll tell you!! So we soldiered on. Ray and I decided we would "cut the walk short". We ended up totally not knowing how to get ourselves back to the point we wanted to reach...the Stawamus River dyke! So, I said to the kids: "Here is the situation: we tried to cut this short, and now we are confused as to how to get to where we need to be. We know you are feeling hot and tired, but let's get through this the best we can." And they are troupers. We reached the river dyke, and found the spot we needed to be to take the trail back to Hwy 99, cross the road bridge over the Blind Chanel, and onto the trail that leads up Logger's Lane past the cut off to our house. When we hit that trail, the kids hearts soared; they knew where they were!! Everything changed, the walk became fun. And when they were their most tired, they were most energetic!! Annabelle took off running the last 300 metres to the house to be the "first at the there;" Seb was the first "through the door."
When we got home, Seb disappeared to his bedroom for some quiet time; Annabelle, helped me to put the spaghetti together by chopping onions, garlic, red and green peppers, and mushrooms. She did a great job and was very confident and knowledgeable about what she was doing.
Supper, was a little later than ideal....about 8:00, I think. Both kids ate heartily to replenish the calories they had expended on the walk. I think Seb went to bed about 9:30 p.m. and Annabelle about 10:10 p.m. So, I think we are starting to get back to their normal hours. Right???
Toby and Keri: we apologise if we took the kids to their limit....but when you see the pictures at the end of the ordeal you will see that, happily, there was still more energy there to be tapped!! They are truly amazing!! They walked 10.94 k and we were out for 3 hrs 43 minutes and 20 seconds in 30C temperatures! They suggested the most they have walked before was 10k. We have tried to make them feel that they are "achievers". They are!! I promise that tomorrow will be an easy day!!
Once again, I totally failed on the "photo journalism!!" The pictures were all taken in the last 3k of the walk, and the energetic ones in about the last k!!!
 |
| Where the energy started to kick in! |
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| A pretty flower in "Rose Garden" |
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| Energy rising at the thought of getting home! |
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| Yippee!!! Almost home! |
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