Nieuwjaarsduik

In the Netherlands, they call it the Nieuwjaarsduik but  we lovingly refer to it as the Polar Bear Plunge- that refreshing, frigid, and exhilarating experience of jumping in the lake on the first day of the year.
 In Coeur d'Alene, there has been a loosely organized plunge at Sander's Beach since the late 70's. There are usually about 500 plungers with about the same spectators/supporters. Have you ever done it? I did in 1991. It was great. A friend of mine came up the idea and the costumes to dress up in old fashioned 1920's  swimsuits. We got our picture taken by the paper (new year resolution scored!) and I got a nice case of strep throat.
Going in the water is fun but the hard part is coming out, soaking wet in the cold, cold (did I mention cold?) air. Since Sanders Beach doesn't have much parking, the trek to your car is long and ....

@Steve Troxel at Honeysuckle Beach 1/1/13

Here is Steve at  Honeysuckle Beach in Hayden. He is the lonely Troxel because I have a cold and the boys stayed up too late last night to get moving by noon. Steve decided that Hayden needs its own traditional plunge and he wasn't the only one. When we got there at noon, there were 4 other polar bears. The oldest known Polar Bear Plunge started in 1920 with 10 swimmers. Hayden had 5 this year so I say that is a fine beginning to a new tradition.

But it is not this day!

It is Saturday!
 December 1st - 9 am to 9 pm Lord of the Rings Extended Trilogy  at the Kroc Center theatre.  $5 donation gets you into an all day nerd fest of Middle Earth awesomeness. Come dressed as a LOTR character and you will be entered into a drawing for the upcoming Hobbit movie tickets.

I am going as a hobbit. I bought some clothes at the Celtic fair last summer but realized I looked more like a hobbit than a Scott. The only problem I have is the feet- I am not going barefoot on December 1st.

I tried to talk the Kroc Center into bringing some exercise equipment into the theatre but I guess it will be too dark. How cool would it be to work out while watching the show!?

 Aragorn: Hold your ground, hold your ground! Sons of Gondor, of Rohan, my brothers! I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me. A day may come when the courage of men fails, when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship, but it is not this day. An hour of woes and shattered shields, when the age of men comes crashing down! But it is not this day! This day we fight! By all that you hold dear on this good Earth, I bid you *stand, Men of the West!*

Tubbs Hill at Night

I have loved running in the dark since I was a kid. There was something about the stillness; almost a silkiness in the blackness. It was a risky activity because potholes unseen twist ankles and sometimes cause sudden ground/body contact.. The other risks were creepy people who liked to follow me when they saw that I was running alone, so other memories involve hiding in a convenient yard with lots of lovely bushes while the car with the bad muffler can be heard circling the block. In spite of these elements of danger, running in the dark was always a joyful experience until I became a mom and suddenly the possibility of my disappearing in the night didn't affect only me. Running after dark ended.

I have had an opportunity to gain back some of my youthful joy by running around Tubbs Hill  in the dark. Unlike my teenage years, I had a body guard (my hubby), two dogs,pepper spray in my pocket and a headlamp. The light was a necessity- I tried hiking around Tubbs in the dark once and found it doesn't work too well- too easy to step off the path into oblivion. We weren't the only intrepid night trekkers- we ran into two other groups of hikers out there in the dark 

Because of  darkness of the night (only a sliver of a moon), we could not see much of anything beyond the light of the headlamps. It gave me an weird feeling of never knowing exactly where I was on the path. In the two mile trail that circumvents the hill, there is a swinging bridge which would have given me a clue, but the dogs must have led us around the bridge (not the biggest fans) and I never saw it. Funny thing was that the  hills on this undulating trail didn't seem as steep as usual and I was surprised when we crossed the access road and realized the toughest part of the trail was behind us. I understand now why I always loved running in the dark- it feels effortless because I have no idea how fast I am going and as a result I am able to fully enjoy living in the moment. This is important because the next moment may be when I trip.

Best. Fall. Ever.

I am loving this weather! The bike rides and the hikes have been glorious and I am so glad to live in the Coeur d'Alene area. On Columbus Day, Steve and I rode our bikes from Hayden down to the east end of the North Idaho Centennial Trail. Check out this view!

Higgins Point at the End of the Centennial Trail

 The Centennial Trail goes from Higgins Point (our destination) along the shoreline and then through Coeur d'Alene (we stopped for lunch at Bakery by the Lake) to the Washington border and to Spokane (not quite infinity) and beyond for a grand total of  60 miles. On the Idaho side, there are some tricky places (mostly in Post Falls)  but the governing foundation is working on them.When I moved up here in 1987, I really missed Boise's Greenbelt Trail System. Someone must have heard my heart's desires because that is the year that the gears started moving on this project. Thank you - North Idaho Centennial Trail Foundation! www.northidahocentennialtrail.org

Steve on his recumbent bike on the the Higgins Point hill

Snowshoeing on Canfield

I went snowshoeing on Canfield Mountain. At the end of Shadduck Lane, there is a great trailhead in the middle of a really nice neighborhood- Canfield Park. What a place to live- in town conveniences and an incredible trail right outside your door. Snowshoeing is so much fun, great exercise  and (my favorite) no skill required.

View from Canfield above Coeur d'Alene. Awesome vista!

Here is my motley crew- Travis, Sue and Anna. A very in shape group- I had to chase them up the mountain. My excuse is that my boots didn't fit but these are some serious runners that I probably couldn't have kept up with anyways.

Tubbs Hill

Tubbs Hill

Happiest Place on Earth (Sorry Disneyland!)

Tubbs Hill is 135 acres of trails and woods right in the middle of CDA. Park at the 3rd Street dock parking lot (East side of the Resort) and start hiking.Leave the town behind and enjoy the bliss of the trails and the wonderful views of the lake. As soon as you leave sight of the resort, you can forget that you are still in town. The main trail loops the hill and is about two miles long. You can avoid the heavier traveled outer trail and head straight up the hill for a more woodsy experience. There are popular swimming beaches on the South side. The hill is also a very popular place to watch the 4th of July fireworks. If you like to run, the main trail is a great hill repeat workout. Remember - "go easy on the downhills and save the knees" (Tribute to Mike Bundy- NIC's famous X country coach). All these pictures are from January in our extraordinarily dry winter of 2012.

The Main Trail- Watch those Rocks!

Here is a view from the west side- you can only see a glimpse of the resort boardwalk as all the man-made CDA starts to disappears from view.

The Upper trail at sunset