Vermont Wrap Up Part 1: Appalachian Trail & Montpelier

This past Thursday, Paul and I headed to Vermont for vacation! We stayed until Sunday. Three nights for us is the perfect amount of time to be away from our cats. Any longer and we start talking to insects as if they are our kitties. (When we're gone for three nights, we only get to the point where we end up talking to squirrels, chipmunks, and birds!)

Our reason for going to Vermont was threefold. First, it is a beautiful state and we wanted to visit it properly. (We were there briefly in 2007 for me to run the Keybank Vermont City Marathon in Burlington.) Second, I wanted to run a trail race in Stowe (recap here). Third, our best friends just moved to Montpelier and we wanted to visit them!

After being in Vermont for four days, we noticed some things about the state. We are not experts at all, but here are some things we have gathered...

1. Solar panels are everywhere. Roofs, fields, construction sites... Vermont loves their solar energy!

2. People are very friendly.

3. Vermont drivers are good drivers. They don't speed. They use their turn signals. They don't ride your ass.

4. It truly is the GREEN MOUNTAIN STATE! As soon as you cross the border into Vermont, everything opens up and it is green and mountainous as far as the eyes can see.

5. Vermont loves their doggies! Doggies everywhere. They're even allowed in some stores and breweries. It reminds us of Colorado!

6. Vermont is environmentally conscious. I didn't see many plastic bags, plastic straws, etc. There were recycling cans everywhere.

7. Billboards are BANNED in Vermont! Have you ever driven down a highway without billboards? It's so much prettier!

8. Vermont loves to get their food locally. There are lots of farms and mom and pop stores in which to shop. I didn't see a single Wal Mart or Target. I did see one grocery store and the occasional Dollar General.

Okay, no our trip!

We left our home at 5:09am on Thursday morning. We wanted to have plenty of time to stop and hike on the way to Montpelier. However, the trip took longer than expected. I was having some bathroom issues, so we had to stop several times before we were even out of PA! Also, my right front tire looked pretty low, so we had to fill that up. This was the spark that caused me to be worried about my tires the entire trip! Then, we hit a decent amount of traffic as we left PA and headed into NJ. It was frustrating, but I didn't flip my shit. (That was later.)

I really wished Paul could drive so we could split up the trip, but that's just not in the cards right now. I miss looking out the window at the scenery but I am glad he gets to. He deserves it. Once we got on Route 7 in upstate New York, the landscape started to get more rural and fun to look at. Then of course everything just opened up into gorgeous green mountains when we crossed into Vermont!

We had hoped to eat our packed lunch at a picnic table somewhere, but we were approaching shut down mode so we just pulled off the road by some trees. We shoved sandwiches and pasta salad in our mouths, peed in the woods, and drove the last little bit to Green Mountain National Forest to the White Rocks Cliffs Trail.

I often get asked how I find the hikes we do on vacation. I just go to Google and search things like "Best hikes in Vermont" or something like that. Or, if I am looking to find a hike that is along a specific route we are taking, I use Google Maps to look for parks or recreation areas along the route, and then use Google to see what trails are there. Luckily Vermont has lots of organized information about their trails, as you can see from my link above!

We started on the Keewaydin Trail, which took us up to the Appalachian Trail. I actually had no idea we were going to get to hike on the AT, so I guess I didn't read the hike description very well! We were tickled to get to experience some of the AT in Vermont!

While on the AT, we passed two older gentleman. They told us if we were heading up to the cliffs, we were going to see some naked hikers.

"Naked hikers!?" I exclaimed.

"Yeah, it's National Hike Naked Day," one of the men told us.

"And they're up on the cliffs?" I asked them. I was giddy. We were going to get to see naked hikers!

"Yup!" he replied.

"Let's go, Paul!"

Spoiler Alert: We saw ZERO naked hikers that day! I was so bummed!

The hike was 1.8 miles up. It was relentless. I'm one of those hikers that doesn't like to take a lot of breaks, so we pushed and pushed. It was very pretty though, and the forests looked different from the forests in PA. Different vegetation, thicker trees, and probably a whole host of other things I don't know how to describe. Sometimes I worry that when I hike, I don't take my time enough. I'm focused on the destination. But that's my nature.

Soon, we got to the short spur that would take us to the vista. It was marked by a sign and lots of rock cairns. I built a couple cairns myself while we were there!

It was a short downhill trek to the vista. And boy, was it worth it!

 Those are the Adirondacks in the distance!

The hike down wasn't too bad, but even downhills get tough after awhile! Paul and I sang (yes, sang!) and chatted the whole way down. He really is a good hiking partner! I'm so glad we got to try a section of the AT in Vermont. I love the AT!

After our hike, things got... dark. I had been driving for so long (due to the fact that we hit traffic in PA/NJ) and I was just reaching shut down mode. I was tired, hungry, and had a hard time focusing. But there were about two hours to go. It wasn't pretty. It felt like I hit "the wall" in a marathon. 

Finally, finally, FINALLY we made it to the Econo Lodge, Montpelier. The check in was friendly and quick but the room was old and dirty. I mean, I think it was the dirtiest room we were ever in, NOT COUNTING THE STINSON BEACH INCIDENT OF 2017. 

Here are some pictures of the room. Note: This was AFTER I reported to the front desk that it was dirty and they cleaned up coffee splatter off the bathroom door and the layer of dust and debris on the electrical box.

 Dust on the molding.

 More molding dust and dirt.

 A/C knob STICKY. STICKY. DISGUSTING! 

What is dripping down the side of the bottom of the door!?

 More dust.

 Dirty floor.

OMG THE TUB.

 Corner of the bathroom.

 Toothpaste spatter on the wall by the sink?

 Light switch in the bathroom.

Oh look, the security lock is broke. Perfect.

Yes, I have already left a review and pictures on Hotels.com and TripAdvisor. What I have discovered is that Hotels.com generally displays good reviews but TripAdvisor had the "real" reviews. Time to research our hotel in the Finger Lakes for next week....

After a shower (in which I still felt dirty, thanks to the room), Paul and I headed to Bob and Rachel's house! Remember our friends who moved to Vermont!? We got to hang out with them! It was a joyous reunion. We went out for dinner and drinks. Paul was loving the fact that he could get many beers that he couldn't get in Pennsylvania. That night, he had two from the Alchemist (Heady Topper and Focal Banger), First Drop from Upper Pass Brewery, and one from Hill Farmstead Brewery. I had a margarita. You know, because Vermont = Margaritas!?

Rachel and I called it an early night but Paul and Bob went out later. I was EXHAUSTED and couldn't wait to go sleep in that dirty, crappy hotel!

Have you ever been to Vermont?
What's the longest you can drive before things get dark?
How do you find good hikes while you're on vacation?
Would you hike naked?

Catamount 25k Race Recap!

On Saturday, I ran the Catamount 25k Trail Race in Stowe, Vermont. Look for recaps of the rest of our vacation in the next couple days!

Here is a recap of my race!

My goal was to go slow, take my time, hike when needed, have fun, and take lots of pictures.

The elevation profile made me nervous, but in reality, this was not a tough race at all. Yes, there were hills, and I walked up most of them, but the route was not technical and there were plenty of downhills in which I could make up time. I finished in 2:46 and averaged 10:58 per mile. Not bad for walking up all the hills!

One reason I walked up the hills was because I didn't train for the race. The second reason was because we climbed a mountain (Camel's Hump) the day before and I was tired before I even started! Luckily, I got more energy as the race went on. Isn't it funny how that sometimes works?

The race started at 8:30 so I didn't have to get up at the butt crack of dawn. However, I had a massive case of diarrhea that morning. There were many URGENT trips to the bathroom. I have no idea what caused the phenomenon because it was much different from my normal pre race jitters. This was not mental. This was physical. Thank goodness I was able to get to bathrooms before the race and not have to wait in lines.

The Catamount started at the Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe, Vermont. Pre-race was bustling but I just focused on getting myself ready to go. I'm not very festive before a race starts. I just want to make sure I have everything I need and that I can go to the bathroom ten times.

There are so many trails at the lodge.

 It was a cool, dreary morning. I was expecting scorching sunshine. It rained for about half the race. 

Pre race selfie. I'm awake, I swear. 

Most of the course was through fields or dirt/fire roads. There was very little single track. The forests were beautiful and green, but I was expecting more mountain views. Here I am around mile five. I asked a girl when the big climb was coming. She said it was almost over. Oh wow, I was expecting more of a climb!

As you can see from my pictures, the course was very beautiful, but I have run in plenty of spots in PA that are just as beautiful. I wouldn't recommend driving to Vermont just to run this race, but if you want to spend some time in Vermont anyway, this would be a good race to do while you're there.

Aid Station #1. Lots of goodies but all I did was chug a Gatorade. (Before the race I had a pbj bagel. That was more than enough to sustain me.)

This is a good depiction of what a lot of the race course was like. Not the type of "trail" I was expecting. I thought it would be single track and more technical.

 There were lots of ferns!

 Aid Station #2. The volunteers and spectators were very friendly, as they usually are at trail races!

Some of the course went through beautiful meadows and pastures. Normally, I hate running through stuff like this because I'm scared of snakes . But I'm not afraid of snakes in trail races because I figure they are long gone by the time I run through the meadow!

My right hip was a little sore before the race even started from hiking up a mountain the day before. Luckily, it only got a little worse during the race. However, by mile 12 my hips and back and legs were feeling sooooo creaky. I couldn't wait to have the change to stretch and foam roll!

Note: Around mile five I turned on my podcast: Morning Joe from the day before. When it was over, I switched to Fresh Air with Terry Gross. I turned off my podcasts when there was about a mile left.

When I knew the finish line was close, I kicked it into gear. Not a sprint or anything, I just wanted to take advantage of the energy I got from knowing the finish line was less than a mile away! Paul and our friends Bob and Rachel were supposed to come see me finish, but since I got done like a half hour before I thought I would, they missed me!

 Post race selfie. I have tissues shoved in my sports bra, that's why my shirt looks weird! No medals, but we got a nice short sleeve v-neck!

 The post race food was delicious! It was tortillas with chicken, fresh beans and veggies along with other toppings. I made a heaping plate and took it back to my hotel to eat.

I'm not sure if the beer from the Trapp Family Brewery was free for the runners or not. I don't like beer, too bad!

All in all, this was a pretty race that wasn't very challenging. I wouldn't recommend driving to Vermont just to do it, but if you are up there anyway, this would be a pretty race to do. There is also a 50k distance, if you wanted to do the loop twice!

Have you ever run a race that you thought was going to be hard but then wasn't that bad?