Fall 2012 Sweataway Day 3, Part 1 (Mount Rainier)

After another glorious day of not waking up to an alarm, we made the most of our remaining hours at Almost Paradise.  Breakfast included leftovers of the killer salad from the night before (if you're new, yes, we almost always have salad for breakfast), along with eggs, bacon, and my new fave morning drink, carrot juice mixed with tangerine juice (both from Trader Joe's).

We watched a little Castle after breakfast and then packed up our gear.  One thing Jared really wanted to do on our trip was take a trail run...on Mount Rainier!

The view on the way

  

Getting closer!

Jared had looked around online for some good suggested trails to take.  I was a little iffy on the idea of a run...my last non-CrossFit run was the Portland Rock'N'Roll Half Marathon 3 months ago, which was not a positive experience for me (think blisters, knee problems, and crying on the course).  CrossFit claims to prepare you for anything, though, so I figured if it was important to Jared, I'd be a sport and give it a shot!

We pulled into one of the "Paradise" parking lots at a trailhead.  Jared was hoping to try the Skyline trail.

We wanted to avoid getting lost, so we hit up the visitor center to see about getting a trail map.

We got some good advice (apparently the trails are quite well marked) and a map.  Jared agreed to switch trails since I really didn't think I could handle 5.5 miles and 1700 feet of elevation gain.

We opted for the Dead Horse Creek Trail - only about 2.25 miles and 400 feet elevation gain. 

About 30 seconds into the run, I was wheezing like an asthmatic kid.  Jared reminded me as I gasped along that we were already very high up and so the altitude would take a toll.  He also said, and I quote, "We're getting all 400 feet of elevation right now.  I promise."

Psych.

Chipmunk!

Totally worth the effort.  Our run turned into a walk/run/stop for breath and photos.  Some other tourists pointed out commotion on the mountain that we took for an avalanche.

View looking back down

Jared ended up far ahead and had to wait for me...a lot.

SO glad we didn't take this route!

Snow!!!

Eventually, we made it to the top of our loop!  I actually had a really good time and was amazed at how well my legs held up even though my lungs were dying.  Plus this guy makes anything fun. 

Running down was actually harder on my legs since you've got some pretty steep areas and not a lot of flat in between.  I thought we'd be way faster on the descent, but we had to take it easy on our knees.

All in all, the trip took us about 55 minutes.  Usually I could do 2 miles or so in about 20 minutes...altitude's a killer!  We made sure to stretch out a little at the bottom and have some snacks before our journey home. 

Obviously an hour long trail run isn't enough workout for Team Matson on vacation, though...so stay tuned for our visit that evening to CrossFit Amped!


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