Raptor Ridge Hike

June 21st, 2019- 6 mile hike

Oops… I was just going through my drafts of posts and stumbled upon this unfinished hike write up. It is now September 9th, and I am finally going to update this and get it posted ASAP!

This hike was almost two and a half months ago, but I still remember most of it and I have the pictures to prove it!

This hike is in the Chuckanuts in Bellingham, WA. The first mile and a half (or so) of this hike was the same as the Pine and Cedar Lakes Hike we did last summer in 2018. The incline within this first mile was crazy and got the blood pumping and leg muscles burning. Both Alex and I were panting and sweating as we climbed this first part of the trial.

Here’s the map and trail Alex and I climbed to Raptor Ridge. It also points out the connecting trails around.

I apologize for the quality, but I thought this would be interesting to include. It talks a little bit about the first part of the hike and the 1,300 feet gain within the first 1.6 miles.

It’s hard to capture in a photo just how steep the first part of the hike was, but here is a snapshot of me trying to encapsulated it. I was amazed when I looked back at what we had just climbed!

After the first part of the hike, as this photo above is illustrating, the rest was enjoyable as we made our way to the top of the look out. Below is a photo of the small rock stairs we had to climb up as we got closer to the outlook:

Here are the stairs leading towards the top of the look out

Here are a few photos of the top. Here Alex and I stopped for a quick snack. As we sat there, we saw a few bald eagles soaring about the tree- hence the name of the hike “Raptor Ridge”. I wasn’t able to get good photos of them, as they were too far away, but it was really cool to watch them soar above the trees.

This photo is unedited, showing how dark and gloomy it looked at the top. I was amazed by all the green though!

This hike was a lot fun once we got past the steep incline in the beginning. The outlook was beautiful and seeing the eagles was a treat. As I sit here and reminisce about this hike, it makes me wish we got more hiking in this summer. Alex and I both started new jobs and trying to coordinate what we are going to do on the weekends seems very challenging this summer. Hopefully next spring and summer we are able to get to do some new hikes!

Week 36

September 2nd- Rest

Today was so long! We got back from Leavenworth, then headed back out again to go sailing with Alex’s side of the family. I got back up to Bellingham around 10pm and went straight to bed. I’m excited to start up running again this week!

September 3rd- 3.79 mile run

I got back from work and had a hard decision to make: run Lake Padden, or run my Fairhaven route. I opted for the Fairhaven run. It was a little harder than I remembered. The hills killed my legs!

September 4th- 3.2 mile run

I got another run in this week! I’m excited that I’ve been able to get two runs complete two days in a row. It feels good getting out and enjoying the sunshine before fall hits and the weather starts to cool off. I have started to notice the fallen leaves on the ground… are we really that close to fall?!? I’m hoping we get a little more sun before the weather change.

September 5th- 3.33 mile run

Today was a Lake Padden running day! I ran the usual route backwards. It’s interesting how new the route seemed, even though I’ve ran it so many times. I’m going to have to try this with some of my other routes to switch it up a bit.

September 6th- Rest

September 7th- Walk

Alex came up for the weekend and we ended up walking over 3 miles around campus. Although this isn’t as tiring as a run, I still thought it was good we got out for a bit and enjoyed the fresh air.

September 8th- Abs

I used one of the various workout apps I have downloaded to do a 10 minute full body workout. This targeted my arms, abs, and legs. 10 minutes was a good starting point for these exercises, but I think 15 or 20 minutes would have been better. Something to keep in mind next time I use this workout!

Week 35

August 26th- 4 mile run

Today was the first time in awhile where a runners high kicked in and I couldn’t help but keep running. My route was a little wonky as I would get closer to home and then detour not wanting my run to end. This happened a few times until the last hill got me and I realized how tired my legs were.

August 27th- Abs

August 28th- 3.04 mile run

Did another loop around campus today. My legs are still sore and tired from Monday’s run, but it felt good to get another run in for the week!

August 29th- abs

August 30th- 3.19 mile run

I came home to Seattle and got to do an old running route around my neighborhood. This route seemed a lot easier than I remember, maybe I’m just more conditioned than I was the last time I ran it.

Later today Alex and I are heading over to Leavenworth to meet up with his siblings to celebrate birthdays! Glad I got a run in, as I’m sure there won’t be a lot of time to go running this weekend.

August 31st- Bike ride and brews

We are spending the weekend in Leavenworth and decided to do a bike around town and winery tour. We hit up a few wineries, but in between was filled with sweating and biking to get to the next location! Definitely a fun way to scoot around town and get a good leg workout in!

September 1st- Rest

We spent the day drinking and exploring Leavenworth!

July

“Some days it’s not about speed or miles, it’s just therapy… “

I cannot believe how fast June has gone. As I sit here updating my blog, I can’t believe it is time to look back at June and figure out what I want to change in July. To be honest, I am pretty unimpressed with my running and gym routines from this past month. I did not apply myself nearly as hard as I should have. I could sit here and make excuses about it being finals week, Alex graduating from WWU, or the gym not being open for the week of intercession. These are all valid concerns, but at the end of the day it has been my decision to not get out and go for an extra run or get creative in how I work out.

This is something I will change this month. I have a feeling being back on a set schedule will help with this. I will have access to the gym everyday of the week and will be on the same class schedule, which should help me figure out when the best time to go to the gym will be. I am thinking around 4 when my last class gets out will be the best option. Below is the schedule I have made for myself for the month of July. Unlike last month, I didn’t end up printing out a copy of this calendar. For July, I am hoping by printing out the weekly calendar below as it will motivate me to get out and workout each day I assign to myself.

Here is what I came up with for the month of July:

Monday- Long Run (3-4 miles if not longer)
Tuesday- Gym day (Arms, Abs, Cardio, Legs)
Wednesday- Run (2.5 or more miles)
Thursday- Rest day when Alex is here OR gym day (Arms, Abs, Legs, Cardio)
Friday- Abs and Arms
Saturday- Run (2.5 or more miles)
Sunday- Gym Day (Arms, Abs, Cardio, Legs)

I know this will change throughout the month, especially when I go on vacation and will have to alter what I do, but I do hope it gives me a good outline of what a “normal” week should look like.

Let’s hope July brings more results and motivation than June did and bring on that summer bod!!

Monthly stats

July saw my worst week so far this year with week 28 of seven rest days. Luckily this has not been a recurring habit and I don’t think it will be for the remainder of the year. The rest of July saw a good spread of gym, run, and rest days.

Week 26

June 24th- Rest

It’s my last rest day for awhile. I have come to that conclusion in the past few days. I have taken over a week off and tomorrow it is time to get back into a solid routine.

This routine will consist of going to classes Tuesday- Thursday and hitting the gym Monday- Sunday. I am going to deter from my original June calendar and make up a new routine for this week. I want to incorporate longer times at the gym and doing more than one activity.

My goal for Tuesday is as follows: Run at least 2.5 miles, dumbbell arm workout, and end with a quick core workout.

June 25th- Gym Day

Here’s how my Tuesday gym day went: I started off with a 2.5 mile run, did my full arm workout with dumbbells and ended with a 5 minute ab workout. I wanted to do a little bit of everything today at the gym to see how I liked it.

After completing the entire gym routine, I actually wasn’t a huge fan of it. The run was fine, but everything after that seemed a lot harder than normal. I think from now on I will only do these run days if I do a shorter distance run around 1 mile or so. If I do this, I have a feeling I won’t be as tired and skip out on arms and abs.

June 26th- Gym day

Alright, I tried the same thing I did yesterday but ended up focusing more on arms. I actually ended up using most of the arm machines, including doing my dumbbell workout. By the end of doing all the arm machines my arms were shaking and I could tell I wasn’t going to be able to lift anything else.

To help spread out the arm workouts and give them a rest, I ran a couple of laps around the track. I liked putting this in here because it gave me a break from lifting, allowed me to move around, AND I got to get some cardio in!

Towards the end of my gym routine, I also used the stair climber for a bit to help tone my legs. I was on there for about 10 minutes and could feel the burn after about 5. I ended with another 5 minute ab workout. With swimsuit season here, I thought abs should become another main focus of mine while I am at the gym!

June 27th- Rest

Today Alex came back up to Bellingham for the weekend, so I decided to try and spend as much time as I could with him before he goes back home Monday.

June 28th- Gym day

Instead of going to the actual gym, I downloaded a few different workout apps and tried them out. The one I decided to use today included abs, arms, and butt. I was actually really surprised at how hard these workouts are. I did a 5 minute timed session for each and was sweating a lot by the time I was finished.

These apps are something I need to keep in mind when at the gym! They have a lot of good routines and they actually go by pretty fast since you are switching what you are doing every 30 seconds.

June 29th- Rest

Today was another rest day. My abs are actually really sore from my workout yesterday, which is a good thing but it definitely put me in a not-so-motivated mindset.

June 30th- Abs

I used the app again to get a good ab workout in. I did another 5 minute session and could feel the burn. The ab workout is something I want to try and do almost everyday during July.

I am still in need of making a July calendar, but am hoping to get to this tomorrow (as tomorrow is already July 1st!) Where has the time gone?? It feels like June flew by!