Snowshoe Summit #RePeakProvo
Brought snowshoes, only needed spikes.
Up and Over the Cascade Saddle
I live under the shadow of Cascade Mountain and one of my goals this year was to summit it. It is a long haul though – with a 5-7 mile approach to the saddle and then 3 miles up a trail-less ridgeline to the summit. That means a minimum of 16 miles roundtrip. With little water access, I was leaving this for the fall when the temps dropped. It looks like I waited too long though – or didn’t time it right.
Another history professor joined me for our morning start at Big Springs. About a mile up the Big Spring Hollow Trail we hit snow but it wasn’t bad – 2 inches max in the shady spots. We made it up the 7 miles to the saddle and the views were great. Unfortunately, the 1-2 inches of snow on the ridgeline made it pretty slick. All of the rocks that might turn ankles were slippery. Moreover, the main ridgeline was up in the clouds. We opted to call it a day with the saddle. Instead of going back down the east side, we dropped down into Rock Canyon. Gorgeous, but such a rough crummy trail in parts. It would be fine for hiking but annoying to run on.
Summit with a Friend
I summited a certain peak above Rock Canyon again – only my second time up there. The views are spectacular, but every time I go up or down Rock Canyon I tell myself I’m not putting it in heavy rotation. So rocky – not fun running. It is gorgeous though. This trip was planned when a visiting scholar wanted me to take them out trail-running. Max (who lives in Lincoln, NE where I spent 7 years) had a great time talking history, religion, Nebraska, and life. I rarely run with others but always enjoy it when I do.
Slide Canyon – Rock Canyon Loop
A couple fellow professors joined up for a run after our department meeting today. We looped from the Rock Canyon trailhead over to Slide Canyon, hiked up to the Y, past it and up past Apache Falt, down First Right Fork, and then down Rock Canyon. Over and up to the Y it was blistering hot – in the mid-90s. By the end as we descended Rock Canyon, it was on and off torrential downpour. Ha! It was fun to get out with colleagues, talk history, careers, etc.
Sq*** Peak via Rock Canyon
With the family out of town until late tonight, I swapped some morning hours for running and shifted work hours to late evening. With sore feet (strained muscles or bruised on the bottom of my right foot and extensor tendonitis on the top of my left foot) I haven’t been putting in miles. It has been killing me. I put on my old Altra Olympuses and laced them different to minimize pressure on the top of my left foot and decided to explore up Rock Canyon in Provo. 7.5 miles and about 2,800 ft. elevation gain in the first 3.8 miles up!
I hiked here some as a college student, but that was almost 15 years ago. I forgot how dramatic the canyon walls are. Just gorgeous. I also forgot that the first 2 miles of “trail” are pavement and then loose scree gravel. Boo.
Once I took the Sq*** Peak trail turnoff the trail improved, but got steeper. Thankfully I was in the trees and shade.
After cresting the ridge. Man, I love when you get up into the Aspens.
When the trail crested and started climbing the ridge to the peak, I was exposed to the sun but the temp was lower up at elevation and there was a breeze. Hallelujah. I climbed slow and stopped to chat with a few different runners for a while. I bombed down quite a bit faster.
The feet feel pretty good.
