Two Harbors

Saturday would be another slushy one as temperatures up beyond 32F. The fluff compacts quickly on its own when the mercury never drops too far below freezing overnight(may not have at all??) Jen would join me on a snowshoe in which we parked the car where 7 Bridges is blockaded. We did a mix of singletrack and snomo trails and she even ran on the pieces that didn't need to be mowed down. After a little more than an hour we split descending the road to our vehicle and I went out for more. I spent a lot of time on the west side of the road in all the whoopty dos. A progressive bonk was in order.....or so I thought.....but it wasn't the case! This came as both a gratifying and disappointing moment when I realized I'd hang in there until the end. Suffering like a dog is something I enjoy to do on occasion as it builds character and keeps us humble. My effort was high and I was getting sore but my energy sources weren't depleted. The last half an hour I got to use the headlamp which is always fun when in the woods as I can't help but wonder whether I'm prey for some predator lurking in the dark.

Duration: 2 hours 12 minutes

Checking in w/the XC ski trail hotline on Sunday told me that the city of Duluth's groomer broke and henceforth conditions would be uncertain as colder weather returned. We both got new waxless skis and have been itching to try 'em for awhile now. I wanted to bring her to a relatively flat system and Lakeview National GC could be nice from when I remember racing snowshoe on it eight years ago. Volunteers just groomed the icy glaze and looked excellent. We began doing the 3k "lighted loop" and rounded that out rather swiftly and chose to do the full 9k next. Both of us had some trouble getting familiar with the stiff tips in comparison to the narrower waxable skis we've been on during previous winters. Regardless of that and the noisy kick zone(which possibly is slip free) we'll become accustomed eventually. Pretty course layout which rarely passed by tee off or green spots.

Duration: 1 hour 19 minutes