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November, My Favorite Month in Tennessee

November did turn out to be the best month in Tennessee as I predicted in my earlier post. 

I really like hiking when you can see the landscape around you, and see what is coming around the turns in the trail. I hiked/ran the Cove Mountain trail a few times and got farther each time. Next week when I have a 18 mile run I should be able to get to the top. It’s steepest at the beginning at the waterfall and is gentle the next five miles. I like being able to see Ober Gatlinburg and all the peaks in the park.

Laurel Falls with Melani

I had time to reflect and write, and my next book is coming along. 

I walked dogs at the Sevier County Humane Society. It’s good to walk shelter dogs but I have to admit I tried to figure out ways to adopt the ones I fell in love with. But the reality of it, two dogs is all I can handle right now. I prayed a lot for the dogs and cats to find forever, kind homes. I was so happy to see Facebook posts of the adopted ones. There are so many sad stories, but there are happy ones, too. I try to keep thinking of the happy ones.

Please adopt Maddie – she is a good, loving girl.

Please, please please adopt a shelter dog. This beautiful girl has been at the shelter for 2 months and she is a joy, and a lover. She just wants to be loved. 

Full on training for my 2023 events is happening. I’ve been sticking to my training plan and doing the miles. I follow so many runners and motivational accounts on social media and the one thing that I’m learning, and finding out to be true, ultra running is about grit and consistency. 

What is Grit? A combination of passion and perseverance for a singularly important goal. It is the hallmark of high achievers. It is passion and sustained persistence applied toward long-term achievement, with no particular concern for rewards or recognition along the way. It combines resilience, ambition, and self-control in the pursuit of goals that take months, years, or even decades.

I’m going to keep this concept of grit in my mind and do everything to finish Leadville 100. 

Now on to December. I think it’s going to be a good month. Work. Train. Dogs. Walking shelter dogs. Celebrate the season with gratitude and love.

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Motivation Monday, Running to Podcasts

Today I ran 8 miles listening to several Growth Equation podcasts. This is the first time that I’ve ever run to a podcast. I really felt like I needed music. Listening to Brad Stulberg and Steve Magness made me think about so many things that got my mind off running, yet I was listening about other people’s “Why”. Why do they push their bodies when they could just work out for an hour? Why do people continue to compete when they aren’t winning anything? Listening to their podcasts make me feel like I’m on the right path. 

https://thegrowtheq.com/podcast142/

But also, the best news is my ankle is 90% better and I ran without pain. 

I think November is going to be my favorite month in Tennessee. I love that the forest is wide open now. When I hiked on Saturday with Melani on the Laurel Falls Trail I saw the landscape that just a month ago was a green mountainside of trees. The actual falls lacked a bit of water due very little rain lately but it was a great trail.

Laurel Falls photo by Melani

I read last week that the Laurel Fall Trail is closed during the week, however I just checked the park website and it’s not listed as closed. 

Happy Monday. It’s going to be a good week. Thanks for reading.

The biggest leaf I’ve ever seen.
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Leadville Training, There are No Ideal Conditions

I’m officially registered for the Leadville 50 and Leadville 100 for 2023. This is my final attempt to finish Leadville 100 and get the buckle.

In 2019 I spent all my free time training for Leadville. I did everything right, or so I thought. However, I just couldn’t make it past mile 38 on race day. In the fall of 2021 I hired a coach and started training for the race in 2022 and by March I lost all motivation. I couldn’t recover and deferred the race to 2023.

Now it’s Go Time. It’s time to do the work. I live in the perfect place to train – in the mountains. Granted, the true perfect place to train is Colorado, but I’m here in Gatlinburg and will make the best of the Tennessee mountains. 

I have no excuses. I have a few things to do: 

  • Do The Work – follow the plan
  • Lose 20 lbs. 
  • Find training partners
  • Weight training

I’m a wee-bit still injured from twisting my ankle on the Gatlinburg Trail three weeks ago. My left ankle is still not 100%. I’ve been swimming at the Gatlinburg Community Pool for the last few weeks but it’s closing on Nov 9 for the entire month.

Such a bummer!

I’m also a wee-bit scared running alone in the park with so many trails closed right now due to aggressive bears. Officials are warning people to not hike alone on the trails. 

Twin Creeks Trail has been closed for over a month.

This is life as an endurance athlete: there are no ideal conditions. I’ve learned that every day you have to figure it out – how to get the work done, eat right, recover and sleep well. Fifteen years ago all of this seemed a bit easier. At 51, everything is harder: the body doesn’t recover as quickly, I’m slower than ever and the mental game seems to be regressing. 

Here are the books I’m reading to help me with the mental game:

I’ll be writing book reviews as I finish them so stay tuned to my blog. 

At the end of the day, Everything is Good. Hard. Fun. Difficult. Complicated.

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Gatlinburg to Townsend in Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Yesterday I took the dogs on a drive through Great Smoky Mountains National Park. My mission: to just drive and enjoy the landscape. This is the first time since moving here that I went into the park with the sole focus of just taking in the beauty instead of searching for a trailhead and hiking to a summit. 

It was a perfect day because it was cloudy and raining – and a Monday! Traffic was light and the sun came out a few times. Once in the park I decided to follow the signs to Townsend. 

With the rain, the multicolored leaves were on prime display. 

Driving back to Gatlinburg

Dogs are not allowed on trails in the park but they can be in the car and get out along the roadside. We got out of the  car a few times to sniff and take some pictures. 

Winnie
Goldie

We arrived in Townsend and discovered that it has more open land and less stores/attraction than Gatlinburg. It is definitely the quiet side of the park. We drove through town, turned around and came home. The only wildlife we saw was a few turkeys on the side of the road.

While I didn’t check off any trails on the GSMNP900 list, I became more familiar with the roads and place names like Metcalf Bottoms. I really did feel like I was in the middle of a wilderness. The trailheads along the way had very little cars. What a peaceful beautiful place to recreate.

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Places I’ve Lived, Ranked

As I was driving over Loop Road to avoid traffic on the Parkway, an idea came to my mind to rank all the place I’ve lived.

When I got home I made my list and ranked the best places I’ve lived. As you can see there is a bit of a pattern of living in places where training opportunities are good. I’ve also searched for photos to accompany these best places. 

Click on image to enlarge.

I’ve decided not to rank Gatlinburg since I’ve only been here three months. 

Concord NH: The city trail systems was one mile from my house. The perfect place to get some vert hiking, trail running and mountain biking. Average Rank: 9.
Hot Sulphur Springs, CO. While I only lived in the town for 6 months, the trails and mountains were very close.
In Tucson, the Friend Factor was high. Making a life-long friend in this hot place was special. Training, specifically winter training, 10.
Granby, Training Factor is high here with Rocky Mountain National Park close to home.
Friend Factor is High for HSS and Granby. My BFF George.
Steamboat Springs, CO. Training Mecca 10. This is where I became a triathlete, trail runner and mountain biker. This is me and my first dog, Abbey at Fish Creek Fall – our go-to everyday hike or snowshoe.