Post by GaliWalker on May 2, 2016 5:21:07 GMT -8
Laurel Highlands Trail
Stats: 26mi, 7100ft elevation gain, 10.1hrs
The Pittsburgh Marathon was held yesterday. Even though my wife keeps telling me to run a marathon one of these days, I'm not much of a runner. Walking is more what I'm comfortable with. However, inspired by the marathon, I decided to lay out yesterday's conditioning hike on the Laurel Highlands Trail so that it was 26mi long.
I was on my way, starting from the southern terminus of the trail in Ohiopyle, by 5:15am. The first half hour was in the dark, before it brightened enough to switch off the headlamp. Conditions were humid, but delightfully cool. There was one light rain squall, but nothing to worry about. I motored along to the 6mi mark, rolling over a couple of hills, to the base of the biggest sustained climb on the hike (~1200ft over 1.5mi). Up I went to its top...and then back down to the 6mi mark. My primary goal for the hike was to get in some elevation gain; the 26mi distance was secondary. I ended up doing 3 laps on this 6-7.5mi section.
Cresting the hill for the last time, I began to relax. My legs were protesting but I was (mostly) confident that they would settle down over the next relatively level miles, as I made my way to the 10mi point, which was my turn-around mark. The way back was better than I was expecting. I was careful to not push too much and place my steps gently, so as to reduce the impact. Looking back, I think this was a wise choice; yeah, I was little slower on the hike, but my feet feel great today!
A few words about current conditions of the Laurel Highlands Trail: Spring is finally in full swing. The colors of fresh new growth were incredibly vibrant. The damp conditions also had everything looking as green as was possible. There were flowers everywhere. Even some of the trees were still in bloom. Birdsong filled the atmosphere and butterflies flitted about in perfusion (a number of the butterflies gave me flypasts, which was pretty cool). The bugs were out and about, but thankfully had not yet attained peak friskiness (except for the lone deer/horse fly that skewered me), so that too was good. It was just a beautiful day to be out in the woods.
Unfortunately, I was on an exercise hike and did not bring my camera. All I had was my iPhone with which I snapped this photo:
Stats: 26mi, 7100ft elevation gain, 10.1hrs
The Pittsburgh Marathon was held yesterday. Even though my wife keeps telling me to run a marathon one of these days, I'm not much of a runner. Walking is more what I'm comfortable with. However, inspired by the marathon, I decided to lay out yesterday's conditioning hike on the Laurel Highlands Trail so that it was 26mi long.
I was on my way, starting from the southern terminus of the trail in Ohiopyle, by 5:15am. The first half hour was in the dark, before it brightened enough to switch off the headlamp. Conditions were humid, but delightfully cool. There was one light rain squall, but nothing to worry about. I motored along to the 6mi mark, rolling over a couple of hills, to the base of the biggest sustained climb on the hike (~1200ft over 1.5mi). Up I went to its top...and then back down to the 6mi mark. My primary goal for the hike was to get in some elevation gain; the 26mi distance was secondary. I ended up doing 3 laps on this 6-7.5mi section.
Cresting the hill for the last time, I began to relax. My legs were protesting but I was (mostly) confident that they would settle down over the next relatively level miles, as I made my way to the 10mi point, which was my turn-around mark. The way back was better than I was expecting. I was careful to not push too much and place my steps gently, so as to reduce the impact. Looking back, I think this was a wise choice; yeah, I was little slower on the hike, but my feet feel great today!
A few words about current conditions of the Laurel Highlands Trail: Spring is finally in full swing. The colors of fresh new growth were incredibly vibrant. The damp conditions also had everything looking as green as was possible. There were flowers everywhere. Even some of the trees were still in bloom. Birdsong filled the atmosphere and butterflies flitted about in perfusion (a number of the butterflies gave me flypasts, which was pretty cool). The bugs were out and about, but thankfully had not yet attained peak friskiness (except for the lone deer/horse fly that skewered me), so that too was good. It was just a beautiful day to be out in the woods.
Unfortunately, I was on an exercise hike and did not bring my camera. All I had was my iPhone with which I snapped this photo: