As you know, I am doing this biggest loser challenge with a
bunch of friends. I'm not in it for the
money so much as a way to help keep me accountable and motivate me to work on
being more healthy.
One of the best ways to be healthy is to get plenty of
exercise. What better way to do it than
to get out and enjoy the God given beauty we have here in Alaska? So I've set a goal for myself since summer
will be here in a few short months and there is this beautiful, nine mile hike
I'd like to do again this year.
http://aktrailhead.com/reedlakes/reedlakes.shtml (The
pictures on this site do NOT do it justice.)
I hit the treadmill a lot, but that is far from the same as
even walking the four-wheeler trails around my house, let alone hiking a
mountain. So, to prepare for the hiking
season to come, I decided getting out and hitting said trails was a good
plan. My dogs need to work up to it too. (They've gotten lazy and a little chunky themselves.)
In hindsight, maybe the day after a Snow-Thaw/Melt-Re-Freeze
during the night and then Snow some more cycle wasn't my most brilliant stroke
of genius. The four-wheeler paths have
plenty of hills and the fresh dusting of snow on top of sheer ice = America's
Home Video style slip and fall on my butt moment at least once while taking the
downside of a hill on this trek and several arm flailing near repeats.
But the overall plan was a good one. Walking in the snow is good exercise, it's a
bit like walking in sand, only with the added bonus of treacherous ice linger
just beneath.
Another thing you don't have to worry about with the
treadmill is the possibility of being run down by a snow machine or
encountering a 1500 pound moose.
While I was walking, I was musing about the fact that this
week we had some vendors and higher ups visiting from out-of-state at work, and
a couple kept saying, "I hope I see a moose!" As an Alaskan, we
usually are thinking the very opposite thing.
You don't want to come face to face with one, and you definitely don't
want to come vehicle to face with one.
It ends badly for at least one, if not both of you.
Last year my poor little dog got stomped by a moose. I was very lucky that 1. We'd gotten record
snow that year. (provided the life saving cushion he needed) and 2. My dad was there to distract the moose
giving my dog time to escape. The moose
was so angry, after going after my dog, then my dad, he tried to also get the
cat, and when that didn't work he kicked the house and for good measure came
back for a second round on the house the next day. (We think the neighbor dog was harassing it
and he took his anger out on my dog.)
Back to hiking. I love to hike. I used to organize and lead the hikes in the
Matsu Valley for an Alaskan hiking meet-up group I was part of. I probably went on 2-3 hikes a week
minimum. Looking at pictures from back
then my body looked very different than it does today. I'd like to get back to that place. Maybe not spending all of my free time
hiking, but a nice long hike once a week is a good goal to shoot for, I think.
