Lassen Volcanic National Park-September 12-15, 2013

Gotta love friends who plan in advance. My good friend Heather who loves the outdoors and traveling booked a cabin at Lassen Volcanic National Park about 4 months ago. More specifically-Manzanita Lake pictured above. Luckily she invited me, GK, and Elsie to join her. There was extra room and so my dear running friends Lisa and Virginia also came along. Heather could not have picked a better time to make a reservation-the weather was absolutely perfect.

Before you judge us for calling staying in a cabin "camping," the cabin we stayed in was seriously basic-no electricity, no restrooms, even Elsie was prohibited from coming inside. We arrived on Thursday afternoon and took a picturesque walk around Lake Manzanita.

 Elsie takes water safety very seriously

Unfortunately national (and most state) parks are not dog friendly. Elsie was confined to a leash and not allowed on any trails. However, she entertained us the entire weekend by snapping at flies and accidentally hog-tying herself multiple times.

Lassen Volcanic National Park is home to smoking fumaroles, meadows freckled with wildflowers, clear mountain lakes, and numerous volcanoes. On Friday we decided to hike to Bumpass Hell and then on to Cold Boiling Lake.  

Back in the 1860s Kendall Vanhook Bumpass stumbled upon the area and his leg was badly scalded when it broke though a thin crust above a mud pot. He told his friends and townspeople about it, describing it as "hell." A newspaper editor was interested in the story and convinced Bumpass to take him to this place. Unfortunately, Bumpass' leg broke through the crust again - this time it had to be amputated. We chose to stay on the boardwalks.

After an easy 1.5 miles we were at Bumpass Hell. It's surprisingly unintimidating and striking at the same time. Sulfur filled the air while we checked out the fumaroles and bubbling ponds.

 Lisa, Virginia, & Heather obeying the rules.

 After taking in the sights at Bumpass, we decided to power on to Cold Boiling Lake for a longer hike. As we hiked away from BH-we found this great viewpoint-note the boardwalks in the background.

The hike to Cold Boiling Lake was moderate and less populated. The hike was beautiful and really showed off Lassen's scenery. However-Cold Boiling Lake consisted of one measly bubbling pool that could have been caused by an underwater frog. But Virginia, Heather, and Lisa don't judge and instead embrace the beauty. We stopped here to have lunch and within about 10 minutes, it started hailing. Couldn't have been more perfect. We finished our meal standing underneath the trees, catching ice chunks in our hands.

Survived the ice storm-Virginia, Lisa, & Heather. Entire hike was 6.70 miles.

While we were gone-GK & Elsie had some adventures in Lassen too.

Overlook to Helen Lake. 

On Saturday the ladies headed out to hike to the peak of Mt. Lassen but due to the heat and because the peak is actually only open a few times a year-they ended up hiking to Brokeoff Mountain. GK and I left the park to explore some dog friendly trails.

27-week belly shot

Elsie and I before the start of our hike.

 

The temperatures hovered in the low 80s. While there was quite a bit of cover, Elsie is sensitive. She typically hates water but when we neared Hat Creek she happily splashed around in it (only up to her ankles) to drink some water and then plopped herself down in the shade.

After our hike, GK took a kayak out on Lake Mazanita while I napped and Elsie guarded the cabin.

Unfortunately I failed to take pictures of all the amazing meals we shared. Since 3 of us are vegetarian/vegan-we had quite the spread-vegan Frito Pie one night, vegan fajitas, baked sweet potatoes with braised spinach and chickpeas in a coconut sauce, leftover breakfast burritos. I was also introduced to Cards of Humanity and will never think of musicals quite the same again. After 3 nights of relaxing and just plain enjoying ourselves-it was sadly time to head back to the bay area.

But not before we stopped at the Sun Dial Bridge in Redding:

A footbridge that crosses the Sacramento River and it's environmentally sensitive. The tall pylon and cable stays allow the bridge to avoid the nearby salmon-spawning habitat there are no supports in the water while encouraging public appreciation for the river. Apparently the Sun Dial only works on the summer solstice. But still-it's pretty cool. Plus they sell dairy free Italian ice.

Our family portrait. Getting Elsie to look directly at the camera has been one of my biggest challenges of 2013.

Lassen Volcanic National Park is a decent drive (5-6 hours) from the bay area if you leave at a time where you can avoid traffic. Another perk is that the roads are not that curvy and it would be pretty hard to get lost. The Manzanita Lake cabins were not only affordable but really convenient and allowed easy access to all that the park has to offer.

Vegan Endurance Mice meet the Trigger Point Performance Roller

A few weeks ago GK saw a mouse in our house. His response was to lock Elsie in the bathroom which accomplished absolutely nothing, only resulting in a confused dog. I didn't think too much of it until I came home one evening and saw a little mouse in my bedroom scurry into a hole near our closet. GK patched the hole up. Then, a few days later as I was getting ready for my long run I found this:

That was my mocha flavored endurance bar from http://vegasport.com/ that I had been saving for a challenging long run. I had been storing it in my closet along with my running gear. Fast forward a week and I started to notice an.... odd smell in my closet. I did some investigating and found that the mouse had invaded my stash of shotblocks, gels, and drink powders. At this point it was on with this well nourished, energized, vegan mouse.

A few years ago I thought I had a mouse problem at my old place and purchased these humane traps that I found on the PETA website. Turns out we had some other type of critter that was quickly evicted by our landlord after a small hole was patched up so I never caught anything. I pulled the traps out of storage, made some peanut butter crackers, and placed one in my closet.

 These traps don't hurt the mouse. Just isolates it and then you relocate it elsewhere after it has had a complimentary meal. I had visions of walking Elsie to a park or field to relocate the little sucker.

However, after a day of no mice in the smart trap-my closet still smelled, a smell I just couldn't explain. GK commented a few times that maybe a mouse had expired in my closet. I realized that I needed to take a closer look since I had cleaned up all the fuel/food that had been in my closet. And I found a very sad situation. Two mice had somehow got trapped in my Trigger Point Performance Roller (used to roll out sore muscles associated with exercise) that I had placed upright in the closet.

The slick plastic on the inside prevented them from escaping and my guess is that they succumbed to starvation. What a terrible way to go. What is also sad is that this also tells you how often I use my roller. I provided the two mice a proper burial that included a Tom's shoebox casket in the compost bin.  I now plan to store my roller on its side and keep all food items out of my closet in order to keep these little guys at bay.

Registering

Shortly after I went public with my pregnancy, friends started dropping off baby supplies. Lots of clothing , swings, slings, books, you name it. As I've been told by multiple friends that babies outgrow many things so quickly and I've come to realize that the baby industry will suck you dry-I feel incredibly fortunate to have such generous friends. I checked in with a close mother friend (J-Gil) who not only appears to have had success with parenting (she has 2) but also researches important stuff like safety and durability and requested that she tell me what it is we really need. Her advice seemed solid.

Once I finally decided I had a decent collection of gently used items and it was time to register. Since I took last Friday off to see Flight of the Conchords with GK, I figured that he could entertain me by coming along to register for the big items at Babies "R" Us before the concert.

Here we are contemplating heading inside. See the calm/smug look on GK's face? Apparently he thought registering was just completing paperwork at the store. About an hour later he was like a trapped mouse looking for an exit route.

While I was finishing the initial paperwork-GK told me that he found something he wanted. This seemed encouraging and I assumed that he had been checking out the baby monitors next to the registration desk. I should have known it was more something like this-a double breast pump, "because we can't have lopsided boobs," he told me. Seriously-how difficult can it be to register? I have to admit I was totally I overwhelmed myself within about 30 minutes.

When you register at Babies R Us you're given a list of "must haves" that includes items I've never heard of. I did my best to stick to the basics-car seat, stroller, playpen, sheets. They have many of the products on display so I took advantage of this opportunity to introduce GK to some of the gear.

Here he is successfully (post-sales clerk demonstration) folding up the Snap n' Go stroller. I encouraged him to pick out some of the prints for swaddle blankets and he gravitated towards the ones that had animals that looked like Elsie. He did good and once he started pacing I told him we could leave after we made our first actual purchase for the baby. This:

One of the perks of having a baby in the winter-it's completely legit to dress them up like animals on any old day. I've always had a soft spot for polar bears. Ten fun facts about these gorgeous creatures-my fav., they're obsessive about staying clean.

The following day I went online to add a few things and it was surprisingly much easier than being in the store distracted by the variety. I prefer to sort items by highest rated as I completely trust what 400 people seem to agree on. My goal is to try to complete it by this weekend and then have J-Gil review and give the final stamp of approval.

What would you recommend as your must have baby item?

Bay Bridge Trail-September 8, 2013

Back in 1989 part of the Bay Bridge collapsed during the Loma Prieta earthquake. Clearly bridges are not supposed to fall apart and those of us in the East Bay have been more than deserving of a new bridge for quite some time. After multiple weekends of bridge closures over the past few years so that work could be completed on the new span and the temporary addition of the scary S-curve, the new eastern span of the Bay Bridge opened right after Labor Day complete with a pedestrian path!

I needed to get a long run in last weekend and missed my group run on Saturday so I planned to try out the new Bay Bridge Trail that starts near IKEA. I had received many warnings from friends NOT to park in IKEA's parking lot so we parked on Horton right off of 40th St. in Emeryville-just about a half mile from the trail head.

Here's GK basking in the beauty of the trail head across from IKEA-you can't miss it, it's right next to the crosswalk.

The first few miles out will take you underneath the MacArthur maze. Exciting primarily because it's all new. There's a marked bike path and then a hard packed trail next to it for runners/walkers. While dogs are allowed along the path (and on the new span), Elsie stayed home due to some recent self-cannibalistic behavior brought on by allergies.

The old span with some unknown male checking out his armpit (photo credit: GK).

A comparison of old v. new.

The run from the trail head to the new span is very flat and then you have a very slight, almost unnoticeable gradual uphill on the span. Again the path is wide enough to allow walkers, runners, and cyclists to exist together peacefully (nothing like the unpredictability while running on the Golden Gate Bridge). Here I'm feeling pretty good as I was able to use one of the porta-potties before starting the climb over the bay. However- 5+ miles without a bathroom break at a 12:45 pace proved to be incredibly challenging. Luckily-a potentially awkward/illegal situation was avoided.

Right now you can only run to the first tower as the expansion to Treasure Island cannot be completed until the old span is demolished. The part of the span that you can currently run on is about 2 miles total. I ran to the end for a much needed stretching break and we took pictures just like everyone else who reached the dead end. Quite striking.

GK just before the turn around on his bike. I may have promised to watch football later in the day in exchange for getting up early to be my sag wagon. He entertained himself with my new iPhone 5 and snapped a million pics of our trek.

Happily exceeded my goal of 9 miles! This run was definitely a confidence booster-much needed as the San Jose Half Marathon is only 4 weeks away. I now know that this race will not be a problem as long as there are available restrooms to use.

I highly recommend this trail for its accessibility, views, and very low level of difficulty. While I had GK guarding me, as long as I ran during light hours (span is actually closed at dusk), there are so many people utilzing the trail that I never felt unsafe. If you want a shorter distance, you can start from Maritime St. in West Oakland. Depending on your distance I would also recommend bringing your own water as there did not appear to be water fountains available on the trail yet.

Fit Mama Maternity Running Skirt

While I had been running in my regular running shorts and a tennis skirt for the past 6 months of my pregnancy, I'm not gonna lie-it was starting to get uncomfortable. Since I'm registered to run a half marathon when I'll be well into my third trimester, I decided it was time to purchase some proper gear. After a reasonable search on the internet I found the Fit Mama Maternity Running Skirt at www.runningskirts.com. While I was actually looking for a pair of shorts, I was immediately sold on the versatility of the skirt. You can adjust the band to fit your needs-double or single fold so the waistband sits just below the belly or as you get bigger, pull the band to cover your entire belly.

The skirt arrived just in time for my maiden voyage along the Bay Bridge Trail across the recently opened eastern span. I loved the thick, sturdy material and found that double folding it to sit about halfway up my belly to be the most comfortable way to wear it for now. Underneath the skirt are very comfortable compression-like shorts that help prevent chaffing. Depending on how you wear the skirt-the length of the waistband will allow you to continue wearing your regular shirts. While my shirt rode up a bit-I never flashed anyone.

What a difference the right gear makes. I should have made this purchase two months ago. I also recently wore the skirt on a moderate 6.7 mile hike and it passed with flying colors. Because of the durability of the fabric-I think this skirt will also work well post delivery.

 (September 8, 2013)

Almost 27 weeks and 9 miles later!

The Fit Mama Running Skirt was a reasonable $48.00 and with taxes & shipping I ended up paying a total of $60.00. Because I've obtained the majority of my maternity clothes second hand from friends-this purchase was an easy justification considering that I've been able to maintain a modest amount of activity during my pregnancy. I highly recommend this skirt-there are multiple fun designs to choose from and if you look just hard enough-a few sale items.

Steam Trains at Tilden Park

Labor Day weekend marks some very important events-primarily, Fantasy Football draft weekend. While I would love to have absolutely nothing to do with football-unfortunately I was born into it as my brothers are obsessed with professional football. It all started in '92 I believe and for a few years I assisted in being the "draft girl" which consisted of me keeping track of the teams like a game show host. I think I was paid in potato salad. With technology and my common sense-this is no longer necessary. A few years ago me and some of the football widows started getting together for brunch on Sunday. With the addition of many children who are now at the age where they cannot sit still at a table-this is much more challenging. This year the meet up was at the Steam Trains in Tilden Park.

That's right-a real steam train that is primarily geared towards children. But imagine my excitement when I found out that DOGS RIDE FOR FREE. GK and I had been discussing taking Elsie and this was a perfect opportunity since we were the only people in the group that don't have a child. (*While GK does like football, he is not obsessed).

 GK was not confident that Elsie would be willing to ride the train and said he would stay back with her if needed but I told them both-we came to ride the trains and we're riding them. Decked out in her red bandana you can see Elsie's keen interest in the caboose.

Most people choose to ride in the open carts in the front but that would have required us to pick up a 60 lb. dog so we headed to the back of the train where you ride in little covered cars. Elsie immediately jumped right in. The train twists through gorgeous Tilden Park in the Berkeley hills. Elsie and Gk were mesmerized.

I don't know who loved the train ride more-Elsie or GK. GK wants to build one in the backyard now.

Elsie was very popular on the train. Obviously.

I'd like to thank the above for motivating us all to meet up for this adventure (from L to R): Sienna; Shane; Morgan; Brady; Quinn; Lilly; & Evan. Come to think of it, I should have put Elsie in this pic.

 (almost 26 weeks-looks more like a beer belly than a baby)

Afterward we headed to Lake Anza to relax on the lawn. This proved to be a disaster just one day later. We think we have figured out that Elsie's skin allergies are exacerbated by grass. As I type poor thing is drugged up on Benadryl, coned, with her paws doused in olive oil.