20 mile route UW - Green Lake - Lake Union

URL for this route is: http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=2861706

Easy 5 miler

I cannot believe how easy 5 mile running is now. Ran a easy 5 mile, though still at a place of 12. Don't know how to improve that speed. This will drop down to 4 mile an hour when getting into mile 20 and 6 hr target would be a problem. My leg is bothering me too, so will have to do something about that, its really disheartening.

An easy 10 mile

This was a easy weekend. I decided to run 10 miles on East Lake Sammamish trail. This was a perfect day for that since most of the trail is in shade. I started off lazily around 7:30. Ran through Marymoor Park and only East Lake Sammamish trail. It a nice gravel trail, I am guessing better for the feet than the hard tar road. 10 mile was quite easy. My right leg and knee has been troubling me though. I probably should put an end to hiking for now, cannot let the knee trouble go into June. The next 2 months are going to be all about running and nothing else.

21 mile weekend

Finally, I crossed the 20 mile barrier and in style with hills! Initially I had decided to drive down to Seward Park in Seattle. From there I could run down and back to Rainier Ave, taking the actual marathon course I ran last weekend, and then run up to Montlake Blvd on Lake Washington Blvd, take the bus and back. Seemed like a reasonable route for first 20 miler. But as it happens, the driving plans fell thru in the morning. It was disappointing, as I was really excited to run that beautiful trail. So I decided, ok, I will take the bus to Montlake and then run down and back to Seward Park. Its about 20 miles with the Madison Ave hill, but that is ok.

So that is what I did. I took the 7:30 545 to go to Seattle. I was on train by 7:50am starting at E Lake Wash Blvd from Montlake bridge. It starts out flat and very soon hits the Arboretum. At that place there is no way to run on Lake Wash Blvd anymore, it has not side walk as it winds down sharply. But there are trails inside Arboretum which I though should just lead me to other side and back on Lake Wash blvd. But within 10 min I was lost in that jungle. There are trails that lead to no where and trails that seem to be going noth whole actually going east. Somehow I ended up on a paved motor road. With no clue as to which direction i should be going to join Lake Wash blvd and also if I join it would there be a way to run on it! So I ask someone walking there, where the hell is LWB! They point me to a direction which looks all wrong! I should be going towards the lake, but this seems to be going away. Maybe I am totally disoriented here. I start the way they tell me and soon its not a flat road anymore, its up and down and down and up (well, not that much, but it seems like that when u r running in doubt). But I keep running and hoping its the right direction and I don't end up at the beginning of LWB again! Then I spot a water fountain and that just helps, at least there is water. I take 2 min rest, refill my bottle. Another 5 min and I see a map. Oh great! bless the soul that bothered to put it there with "You are here" marker. Its clear now that LWB is 500 ft away, what's still not clear is if it has side walk to run on. So I run upto the road, and there is a sidewalk to run on. Awesome.

Now I am at LWB, just couple of miles into my run, its looking nice. Another 10 min of running and I hit Madison Ave. Awesome! Now I know where I am. Cool.

Beyond Madison Ave, LWB starts winding down steeply and there is no sidewalk. So cannot run that way. No problem, I know I can take Madison Ave, and then McGulliver (or sthg like that) and that will take me back to LWB. So I happily head right on Madison Ave. Hmm, there is this huge hill. Oh! the Madison Ave Hill, I know all about it, we used to dread it while training for Seattle half. Still, something is not right. I am suppose to go towards 42nd St and number are decreasing here. So I did the only logical thing I could do, ran up that steep hill to see where is the lake! On top of the hill, I am pretty much dead from the steep uphill run by now, totally demoralized as I am lost in space. I see a waterbody behind me. So that should be the lake. Wait a minute, is that Puget Sound? More confusion! So finally I ask someone on the street, where the hell is that lake! And as feared, I was running in wrong direction, the lake is on the other side, so I climbed that stupid hill for no reason. No worries, its practice and from now on its all downhill. Running back towards LWB, crossing it and heading in right direction this time. And wait, one more hill, so that is the Madison Ave Hil!!!. Anyway, its fine, I know where I am, things are looking good. I am back on Seattle Marathon course and that makes me feel good.

Things are looking familiar now, so I know I am going in right direction. Soon I hit Galer, and all purani yadein aare taza. How we used to run up Galer to practice hills. This time, I am running down it, onto McGuliver blvd. From there is a easy-breezy 8 mile run down to Seward Park. There are minor hills here, but mostly flat along the lake. Running is fun again. As I hit I90, I realize the long way I have come since starting Seattle Marathon 2 years ago. I love the part after I90, its beautiful. Most of the cherry flowers are gone, still there are petals on the road, and shade of trees, its a beautiful sunny day. As I near Seward Park, I am hitting the 11th mile. Things obviously start getting tough now. I feel like turning back, still I want to get there, I have to get there, I have to complete my 20 mile today. So I get there.

At Seward Park I meet Atul. He is also still doing his run. After I stop, talk to him, eat GU, drink water, I have new energy. I am feeling good, a little fatigue, but not much. And well, at this point I only have to run 10 mile back to the bus! I run a little bit into the park as I want to make sure that I am not even 100 meter below 20 mile. I want to run upto 1/2 mile mark to give me that extra buffer, still it seems pointless after a bit and I give up and return.

Run back from Seward Park was uneventful and long. There was one person I overtook and that felt awesome. Once I reached I-90, I had new energy, its not far now another 5 miles max. So I keep running. GU and inertia has kicked in by now and stopping or walking is more painful that running. Back on McGulliver, I feel great. Not far now. I am definitely walking up the hill of Galer to Madison. Now things get fuzzy and dizzy. My legs are really tired and won't let me run anymore. On top of that its hilly, God! send a bus, do something. Nothing happens. There is still the uncertainty of finding my way back from the mess of Arboretum. I see a bench and shade. So I sit down. I am sure I am still at least 4 miles away. So I sit for few minutes, drink some water and then start again. I am at my 17th or 18th mile and things are outright nasty at this point. Even running downhill is a pain. I cannot believe I am doing this, I am still running! Somehow I reach LWB. Ah! bless that sight. There is shade and downhill run. From there Arboretum drive comes really quickly. I have new energy now. I am going to make it! Somehow I cross the road and start running on Arboretum Dr. I refill my bottle on a water fountain and keep running. Soon I find the point where I am suppose to get into the Arboretum, its marked by Japanese Maple sign. I love that sign, I want to hug it and tell it how much it means to me. From here I know that I am trust my direction sense to take me back to LWB, from where I can easily go down to bus stop. And I am right. Once on the trail, it was not hard to find my way out. I was soon running the last 1 mile on LWB headed towards 545 bus stop. It was just awesome! I managed to survive and I knew that at this point if there were 5 more miles to run, I could do it.

A 20 mile route from Seward park to 520

URL for this route is: http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=2804461
This is a 20 mile route starting from Seward Park, one way up to Montlake Blvd bridge (to catch 545 back to Redmond). It covers part of Rock'n'Roll (till I90) and part of Seattle marathon (after I90) course and all of it is really beautiful. The best thing is that its one-way!

20 mile on Lake Wash Blvd

URL for this route is: http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=2790804 + another round of Seward Park.
An out and back path starting from Seward Park. Covers part of Rock'n'Roll course.

18 mile!

Finished a 18 mile run today + 1 mile walk. Went all the way to mile 10 at Sammamish River Trail which is suppose to be the end of it.
http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/wa/redmond/513124046910459067
Pace was slow, but hopefully it will improve as there are still 8 more weeks. Till 8 mile it was alright, easy coasting. After that it was getting a little difficult. By the time I reached the park which is at 9.5 mile mark, it was tiring. Then I took a break at the park, refill water, eat a GU. Then restarted to reach the 10 mile mark. The small rest definitely helped, and plus the scenic flat route made it easier to cover the distance. Also I noticed that I am running quite slow, close to 13.2 pace as oppose to my regular 12. The actual course has so many hills that I really need to work on speed if I want to finish this in under 6hrs.

The summer of 2009

Summer is still kind of far. But I am here sitting at this All-Hands meeting and planning for summer is best way to kill time. This summer is probably one of the last couple in Seattle, and in US, so a lot needs to be compressed in the short 3 months. And I totally live by moto - Dream big, plan for the best, hope for the best, be prepared for the worst (like breaking hand on a stupid hike).
So what's in store for summer of 2009.

* Enchantments backpack - plans to apply for permit already in place
* St Helens - its time to climb it!
* Mailbox peak
* Granite Mtn
* Half-dome
* Bryce and Zion canyons

And I hope I can finish the season with a trip to Patagonia or Killi!!

Whidbey marathon course map

URL for this route is: http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=2533538
Could not run this one, but its suppose to be one of the most beautiful marathons. Maybe do the half next year!

Uphill running

So all this running and training and weight lifting seems to be paying off. I can not only call 8 mile an easy 8 miles, yesterday I managed to run the 1/2 miles uphill from my place to 148th in one go, and did not even break a sweat. Ok, so the latter part could be because it was so cold. Last summer when I was doing my hill training here, I could not even cover half that distance before stopping to catch my breath. Running all the way to 148th used to be an achievement in itself. This Wednesday it was an easy run up there, and I no more dread getting up to Grasslawns park.

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tuls

15 miles!

I ran like 15 miles today! unbelievable! This is the first time I ran over half-marathon distance. The first 12 miles were not easy, but quite doable. The last 3 miles were really hard. I finished it in a good 3hr 15min. The fact that I already had 12 miles behind me just kept me going. I did not want to give up and I made it alive. It was near perfect day to run, temp 10C, perfectly sunny, though a little bit of clouds would have helped.

12 miles

After missing long runs because of snow and vacation, today was time to do 13 miles. The day was cold and very cloudy, suppose to rain. Still it seemed like a good day to run. I started late, 10ish. Immediately outside I could feel a light misty drizzle, a typical of Seattle day. I had to wear a light waterproof jacket, not breathable. I first ran a small 2 miler, and then another 10 miles. First time reached the 5&1/2 mile mark. It was fun, difficult, but not killing.

East lake sammamish trail mile marker

http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=2442016

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tuls

Don't drive your passion, let your passion drive you --- Tulika Agrawal.

One more reason to love Seattle

So here is why I love Seattle. I get up in the morning, there is sunrisish outside my window. Can't see well bcoz of too many trees (don't love that part). Anyway I get up, get ready, head out to take the bus to office. The road seems slick and slippery, happy that I don't have to drive. And then I came upon this breathtaking view of Olympic ranges in front. I have never seen Olympics this clearly, different ranges were visible. And in front of that a glimpse of lake washington. The only glitch in this scenery was the hill of Seattle homes between lake and mountains. Else this was a perfect painting if nature. Made my day.

8 mile

ah, what a perfect day to run. Decided to run 8 miles today to get back on the course of preparing for marathon. It was a great run.

--
tuls

Don't drive your passion, let your passion drive you --- Tulika Agrawal.

Seattle sunsets

Did I ever mention that Seattle gets the most beautiful sunsets (everytime sun is out). I have never seen a usual sunset here, every sunset is full of vivid colours over beautiful mountain range. All this is made possible by the constant cloud cover, and presence of Olympic Mountains. The combination makes every sunset unique. I am sure this is true for sunrises, but they are harder to come as cloud cover is usually thicker in the morning. And then I can see sunset from my office window, but cannot see sunrise. I think I am going to make it a point to capture all sunsets from now on, use my digicam :)

BDay

Another BDay is here. How much ever I try or want no celebration, let the day pass as a normal day and forget that one more year is over, celebrations just seem to happen in Seattle. Yesterday night Rahul made some cake (Devil's food, yummy) and then some folks came over for mid-night cake cutting.
For tonight I had happened to find a nice Italian restaurant for a quiet dinner for 2. This seemed like one of very few restaurants where i actually would like to go and eat. But when your husband refuses a romantic dinner, you know something is fishy and you hope that its a surprise party with friends!. So ya, a surprise party tonight.
Its fine, its been a good year, mummy finally visited, had a goodish trip with her, pulled off a nice Orlando vacation. Finally moved back to Seattle and getting settled here. Ran Seafair half-marathon. Did quite a few good hikes, including really challenging hoh river backpacking. Broke my hand. In all a ok year I suppose.

Dinner and A movie

without the dinner of course. So yesterday I decided not to go for dinner and movie with the guys. No surprises there, neither in the fact that I was confused till the last moment. Then a car shows up at my doorsteps without giving me a final chance to say no. So I was like, what the hell, dinner (not eating) only takes about 1/2 an hr and then I will be back in no time and do some house work (haa haa haa haa haa). So I change, put on lenses and comb hair in record time and out of the door. Dinner was pleasant, I was still elated at having finally met all deadlines, checked in code, borken build and fixed it and have my manager tell me relax, you are doing good. Ok, not all deadlines some review stuff still left, but you don't expect me to care about that! After dinner, movie time. uhm, I don't like movies, they make my head hurt, especially the english ones. But someone without deciding, I saw myself deciding to go for it. Come on, what are you going to do at home anyway, house work! haa haa. Our intended 9:40 show was sold out, a sign Tulika, go back home. But at that point I was pretty much stuck in Bellevue. So went along for the 10:25 show. Burn after Reading. For one I did not understand the title for long time, till someone actually said it during the movie! And it turned out to be a total timepass movie, hans hans ke pet mein dard ho gaya. Koi story nahin, sirf comedy. Isko Bheja Fry ke saath compare kar sakte hein!
Lesson learnt: Sometimes imprompto non-decidsions for dinner and movie turn out good.

Hoh River Trail

The ultimate backpacking experience....
No they did not pay me ask me to write a ad for them.
This weekend we went on a 34 mile backpacking trail to Glacier Meadows along Hoh River in Olympic national park. We planned it as a 3 day backpack, with first and last day flat walk with backpacks and second day loong 14 mile hike without backpack. I was apprehensive about the 14 mile, it involved a 4000ft+ height gain and loss. Oh well, its going to be a challenge, big deal.

Day1: As usual we started more than an hr later than planned. Packing took quite sometime as lot of things need to be divided. Everyone's pack was around 30lbs, I would guess same as Grand Canyon pack. The trail started out as very flat and in a very dense forest. Dense as in temperate rain forest dense, huge moss covered trees. I would say almost spooky.