Running again at sea level

Pike's Peak at sunset

Exploring the Manitou cliff dwellings

Nearing the top of Pike's Peak

The Emerging Runner visits the Colorado Running Company

Weight room at US Olympic Training Center. Fence (above) was put in to prevent athletes from sneaking in after hours to train

Western view of the mountains at night

Along the regional trail at Bear Creek. A big deer stands guard

Picked up this pebble in my shoe during the Bear Creek trail run (actual size)

Rotating sculpture at America the Beautiful Park

Hawks circling at the incredible Garden of the Gods Park

Balanced Rock at GOTG

Early morning view of the Helen Hunt Falls

Today's run (street): 4.2 miles at 9:27

For me, the worst part of any vacation is the travel to and from our destination. The flight into Denver was punctuated by long periods of moderate turbulence and I was very happy to touch down a mile higher than where we'd started. We prepared for our return but spent almost as much time at the airport as we did on our flight due to a two hour, weather related, departure delay. By the time we had settled back in at home it was close to midnight and we were all asleep within minutes of shutting off the lights. Even though I was still on Rocky Mountain time I woke up early and went out for a run. I was curious to see if the richer air would yield any performance benefits. The lower altitude did present easier breathing but the high humidity (compared to what we'd experienced throughout the week) offset that advantage. I ran 9:18 for my first mile this morning and lost about ten seconds on the second and third before picking up the pace on the 4th. The breathing part was easy but I was tired. I guess I can claim travel fatigue but I'd rather blame the humidity. It was the first run I'd done on the street since last Saturday and I did miss the surface of the trails, even the tough ones.

We covered a lot of ground during our Colorado explorations. After our trek through Bear Creek Park on Thursday morning we headed to the America the Beautiful Park that features a huge revolving sculpture that serves as the worlds coolest water sprinkler. The kids took off their shoes and enjoyed cooling off under the hot sun. After dinner we returned to Garden of the Gods park to check out some areas we didn't get to on Monday, including Balanced Rock where we took lots of pictures. We saw so many deer in the park that night that my kids began to roll their eyes every time my wife and I would announce another sighting.  Friday morning we returned to the Helen Hunt Falls and spent some time scrambling on the rocks and enjoying the views. The visitor's center had many articles about tourists falling because they didn't heed safety warnings. Despite that danger, it's a place that we'd love to visit for days if we had time.

Oft ignored sign at Helen Hunt Falls

 It's nice to be home but the memory of our trip will last for a long time. We probably took 500 pictures between our three cameras and my iPhone. I'm looking forward to seeing the photo book my wife is making. I may head to Stillwell tomorrow to return to the trails once more. The vegetation may be different and there will be no mountains in the distance but it's my trail running home and I miss it nonetheless.

Trail head at Bear Creek Park

Shot of the regional path

Surprised to see this big buck along the path

Running with deer in Bear Creek Park

It's our last full day on our Colorado Springs vacation. We head back home tomorrow after what has been a great week. This morning we went to Bear Creek Park which has trails for hiking, running, mountain biking and riding. After speaking with the nice people at the nature center my wife and kids selected a trail and went for a walk. The docents suggested the more "running friendly" regional trail to me so I took that instead. The regional trail's surface started as crushed rock and changed to dirt (both sandy and hard-packed) as I went along. The trail was up and down with some inclines that went on for a while.

Almost immediately I encountered my first deer, a large female that crossed my path near my starting point. I followed the well marked path until I reached a crossroad that went north with a steep incline. At the cross point stood a very large buck that watched me closely as I passed by. I managed to get a shot from my iPhone before heading toward the northeast path and almost tripping on a rabbit that darted in front of me. As I made my way up (and up and up) the trail, a smaller deer jumped out in front of me and gracefully ran ahead of me on the path. I turned around after about 15 minutes and doubled back taking a slight detour to see where the trail led. It lead to a sign that said "Trail Closed" so I headed back to the trail head. I got a rock in my shoe that I was able to coax away from my heel by changing my gait. It made me think about those trail shoes with built in gaiters to prevent trail effluvia from getting in. Along the way back I ran by a creek and took a shot of that before finishing my 3 mile run. I met up with my family at the Nature Center. They had lots of fun and took some great pictures on their walk. But only I saw deer!

The rest of the day was jammed packed and I'll write about that tomorrow. Heading home on Friday. Boy I'm going to miss this place.

Up close and personal with our giraffe friends

Shot of the trail I ran this morning

Boxing rings at the Olympic Training Center

Caves, Olympians, giraffes and waterfalls

Todays run (trails) 2 miles at 10:10
I went straight to the trails this morning and with a couple of exceptions I followed the same route as yesterday. Since I knew the basic direction of the paths, I had less concern about where I was or whether the path I was on would end abruptly -- or worse -- result in a straight drop across rough rocks. I've compared this terrain to Stillwell, but honestly, it's far rougher. Where Stillwell paths may drop off sharply, the trails there are mostly dirt. Here, the trails dip and rise around areas of rock, much of it looking like sand. I've had a few close calls that could have resulted in a turned ankle (or worse) but so far I've been lucky. I did two miles today and it was still very tough. Between the terrain and the altitude I was pretty darn exhausted during the run. In addition, we've gone straight out since we landed and I haven't rested as well as I should.

Yesterday morning we visited the Cave of the Winds which are natural caves that were discovered in the late 1800's. It was fun and freaky to move through these spaces. The caves themselves are situated high in the mountain and the view of the canyon (at the start) was incredible. After that we took a little time visiting Old Colorado City which has lots of interesting stores and restaurants. Then we headed east to the US Olympic Training Center and took a tour. It was fascinating to see the place where so many Olympic athletes and hopefuls train. We saw boxers, wrestlers and swimmers who were doing their training as we passed through. I'll post lots of pictures at a later time and I'll try to put a few up today if the Blogger mobile app cooperates.

After my run this morning we visited the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo that featured lots of different habitats. My kids got to feed the giraffes and we saw just about every animal you could think of. On our way back we stopped at the Helen Hunt Falls (named after Helen Hunt, an advocate of native Americans in the 19th century, not the movie actress). This is a natural waterfall with a footbridge that runs above the top. We spent time in the nature center where I learned that the dominant species of trees in the area were Blue Spruce, Douglas Fir, Bristlecone Pine, Ponderossa Pine and White Fir. We made one more stop to check out Bear Creek Park, which will be a destination tomorrow. I think I'll do tomorrow's run there unless we decide to return to Garden of the Gods instead. Maybe we'll do both!
I'll try to put up some recent pictures from our trip. Hope it works.

Like Stillwell but with cactus

I headed down to the fitness center at 5:30 AM to run on the treadmill. When I arrived both treadmills and elliptical machines were being used so I decided to take another crack at the local trails outside.

After consulting with the sleepy clerk at the front desk about the best way to get to the trails, I set out for a real Colorado trail run. The trail starts out with a steep incline that turns into a steeper 30' drop. At the bottom the trail flattens a bit and then becomes rocky and rolling. As I followed the trail's up and down path I was determined to run the entire 2 mile out and back route despite the rough terrain and thin air. I am definitely getting used to the high altitude conditions and managed a far tougher course today than yesterday's Garden of the Gods run. The trail reminded me of some of Stillwell's rougher sections but the trees and plants (cactus and yucca) were very different. I reached a section with a ridge line that faced Pike's Peak and followed that for a bit. I stopped for a minute to post a picture tweet and soon headed back. The last section, where I needed to make my way up what was a 30' drop at the start was a great challenge at the end. It wasn't a very long run but I felt I finally had an authentic Colorado dirt trail experience. I won't bother with the fitness club tomorrow morning. Instead, I'll be heading directly to the trails.

Running among the Gods

Western view of the Garden of the Gods

Today's run (Garden of the Gods): mileage unknown (approx 2 mile)

The trail behind our hotel turned out to be a bit of a bust. I followed it about a quarter mile before it dropped off sharply near a sign that said private property. I was reluctant to trespass and a little skittish about the local wildlife. The concierge mentioned that there had been a bear sighting in that area recently. I didn't feel brave enough to find out if it was true.

We headed to Garden of the Gods this morning and walked around the Ute/Bretag/Palmer trail and the Perkins Central Garden trail. We watched some brave climbers at the top of a rock face and couldn't believe their bravery or their sanity. I decided to go for a run while my family continued their walk. I followed the same basic trails that we had walked and completed a loop that took me a little less than 20 minutes. The altitude definitely affected my stamina and while it wasn't anything close to rigorous it was one of the toughest 2-milers I've run. The challenge of the run was nothing compared to what I saw -- the most majestic rock formations and views of looming mountains surrounded by forests of Ponderossa pines and juniper trees. Absolutely incredible.

The Manitou Cliff Dwellings

Later we visited the Manitou cliff dwellings where we climbed through authentic structures that have stood for a couple of thousand years. At the risk of sounding like a travel agent it was amazing to experience and lots of fun.We had lunch in Manitou Springs and walked around the town, had lunch at an Egyptian diner (not a typo) and had fun observing all the neo-hippies walking around. We capped the day with a drive up the Pike's Peak highway which goes 19 miles to the top of Pike's Peak. I'll admit that I endured more than enjoyed that drive. The sheer drop off the dirt road measured almost two miles at some points. But it was incredible. Scary as heck but incredible.

Nearing the summit at Pike's Peak

It was a really fun day and more fun will follow tomorrow. We'll return to the Garden of the gods, visit the uS Olympic Training Center and do a few other things. I'm planning to take a trip the the Colorado Running Company at some point. Why not, right?

Rocky Mountain high

We've settled into our Colorado digs and have looked around a bit. The mountains are amazing and I can't wait to do some running. We have trails that start right out the back of the hotel. One leads directly to the Garden of the Gods.Take a look at this tweet to see a picture out our window: http://twitter.com/EmergingRunner/status/18311930370

More tomorrow after I hit the road. or should I say, the dirt.