It's Still Summer, Go Out and Play

Plus, a history talk about the Hardrock Hundred's route

This is not the newsletter I intended to publish this morning. I’m instead writing an informal note to you late in the day.

The topic I started writing about, involving trail stewardship and the experience we had at one of the region’s most popular trails, just wasn’t coming out the way I wanted to frame it, and I wasn’t giving it the time it deserved, so I decided to save it for next week.

Meanwhile, I got an invitation to spend today in a very summery backcountry way. No, it wasn’t a run, and I admit that running feels overly serious and structured now due to peak training for my big goal next month. It was a fun date with my husband, our horses, and old and new friends.

I’ve been preoccupied recently with a couple of special projects and events involving nonprofits, on top of spending extra time preparing for the Grand to Grand Ultra and trying to carve out time for my main writing project. I didn’t feel I could take a day off and delay this weekly newsletter. But I did! I took advantage of a special invitation to ride and have lunch with friends at a ranch. It felt like a playdate.

After hauling the horses a half hour and taking a wrong turn—always a hazard on single-lane backroads, when making a U-turn with a trailer can mean jackknifing or going into a ditch—we made it to our old friend’s place. Dramatic cumulus clouds filled the sky, hinting at rain but filtering plenty of sun. We saddled up and set off at a brisk pace through a meadow with grass as high as the horses’ bellies.

The cool air and the scent of a nearby sheep herd put the horses on high alert, carrying themselves with arched necks and pricked-forward ears, and we let them release their pent-up energy by trotting and cantering across green hillsides and through aspen groves. The ground was damp from a downpour last night—we’re back in monsoon season, strange for August, but it sure beats hot and windy fire weather—and I worried my horse Cobalt might slip, but he pounded the ground with confidence. I gave him the reins by moving my hands up his neck, leaned forward, and felt a release of both his and my tension as he moved ahead in his most powerful extended trot.

The ride and lunch date, and all the driving and horse care, ended up taking the better part of the day. I therefore didn’t get other work or this newsletter done as planned, nor did I do a scheduled strength-training workout—so be it. I’m glad I said “yes” to the invitation to experience a summer getaway on a weekday before the season closes. These photos capture some of the beauty of the day.

That’s the Little Cone and Lone Cone in the background.

I met and learned about yaks, too! The couple who hosted us raise yaks. The one pictured on the left below is named Jelly Bean.

The point is, today reminded me of the importance of prioritizing friends and special outdoor experiences. I sacrificed productivity, and missed a soft deadline, for the sake of a memorable ride and socializing.

I hope you say “yes” to any opportunities that come along to make you feel the nature of summer.

My Hardrock history talk

But I did manage to do one thing this morning before heading to the ranch. I narrated the PowerPoint slide show with the lecture I gave a month ago at “Camp Hardrock,” part of the week of activities in Silverton leading up to the Hardrock Hundred.

I put a lot of effort into making this narrative tour of Hardrock, sharing stories from history along its route, some of which come from my family history. It jumps around from the mid-19th century to the early 2000s, organized geographically along this year’s clockwise route. If you’re interested in the San Juan Mountains and in particular Hardrock, then you may find this interesting. It’s 50 minutes long, but you can fast forward to sample stories from different points along the way.

If I cared more about my public speaking delivery, then I would re-record this, because it’s laughably imperfect. I stumble over words, wipe my runny nose with my hand a few times, and then my cell phone rings toward the end. Oh, well. I’m putting it out there imperfectly, as it was during the live talk back in July.

Have a listen to some or all of it if you’d like. And for reference, I’m including the clockwise map below that shows the route on which the talk is based.

I’ll be back next Wednesday with more running-related content. Meanwhile, seize this last month of summer!