Urban trails

Well it has been a little wetter than usual around here. The other day I cut through Ute Valley Park and found some decent patches of mud. With this in mind, I decided today to check out a couple of Urban Trails. I thought that the Cottonwood Trail and the Homestead Trail looked like a good bet since I could access them from the same parking spot. Since this was a hiking / dog day and a bit warm, I checked out a few miles of each.

The Cottonwood trail will in the future stretch from the Greenway Trail east for many miles. Right now the section from the Greenway Trail is nonexistant. I parked at Cottonwood park and went east about a mile and a half. It is a nice, paved trail that would be great for running with stroller, roller bladeing and general family fun. At the start, the park offers many amenities for family fun.
I turned around at Woodmen Rd but the trail continues on from there but will require crossing Woodman and Austin Bluffs.

About 1/4 mile into the Cottonwood Trail section, the Homestead Trail branches off to the right. It is also paved but a little further along, the pavement turns to asphalt in good condition but some cracking is evident. Followed this about a mile where it crosses Austin Bluffs and turned around. The Trail is supposed to go all the way to Academy and Constitution but currently it has a couple of breaks. I plan to explore this one on the bike in the near future.

Both trails work are in urban setting, some open green space helps to make it feel like a trail. Nice for times when the dirt trails are muddy. I will need to check out their conditions in winter to see how they would fair for bad days.

Change of pace

Recent changes to my life will hopefully give me more time to spend on my blog and website. After deciding that 40 hours per week in a part time job was a bit much, I found a real part time job that leaves my with weekends free.

Based on this new found time, the past 2 weekends have taken me to the "Monument Preserver" and "Fox Run Regional Park".

I am not sure of the status of the Monument Preserve. My web research leads me to believe it is an evolving area in the town of Monument. There are no real maps or signage but there is a well developed series of trails that would appeal to moderate hikers and families. I observed the trail head when I did the Mt Herman Loop last year so decided to take some time and explore this area. The trailhead was on the way to the trailhead for Mt Herman. I will be documenting this more on the website as time permits.

The other area I recently explored was Fox Run Regional Park. I have been there before but not to explore the trails. I was expecting gentle rolling hills but not sure of how long a trail. To my surprise, it was a little more rolling that I had envisioned but all in all a reasonable trail for hiking, running, biking. Included is a pavilion and picnic area where family can play. My initial impression was that the loop was all uphill but even if this IS Colorado, that is not the case. I went the counter clockwise direction from the small trailhead at Baptist Rd and Roller Coaster. There is good signage to help in finding the way around. Only a couple of steeper hills on the course so it should be a good run and ride course. Again I will be documenting this as time permits.

The thing I like about these two courses is that they have trees so for summer, this is a plus to avoid the direct sun.

Winter to Summer in 2 days

Well, looks like we skipped spring and went directly to summer. Weather has warmed up considerably and most of the trails are quite dry. It will probably take a little while to wear down the ruts created during the wet times but it is time to head out.

I noted in the farrunner forum that the trails around "hole in the wall" have been blocked and posted with no trespassing signs. No indication why or who. I am researching but if anyone has any additional info, please post in the form or comment here at the blog.

Picked up a new GPS the other day at REI because of the sale but was a little disappointed. My Garmin Forerunner 205 and 305 have served well and are easy to use. I bought the GPSMAP 60CSx which is highly rated but for the uses I have here, did not really work well.

The major complaints I have are

1. When you turn it on, it starts collecting data unliked the 205/305 where it starts when you push the start/stop button. Did not see in the manual any way to turn it on/off other that the power switch.

2. It does not come with any high quality maps and the default map is not very detailed. A $125 optional map seems a bit much for a high end device. There are some open source options that can be loaded. I knew it did not come with the map software but was disappointed with the default maps.

3. The computer interface was spotty. It would not sync with TC (garmin's training center software) and interfacing to sports track required downloading Garmins Communicator API plugin.

4. The downloaded tracks were "strange". There were a bunch of small (3-10 sec) tracks along with the main track. Not sure why there were there. I do not think I turned the unit on/off a couple of times at the end of my test hike.

5. The provided software is MapSource does not play well with Windows 7. After loading tracks from the device and then tying to save them in the default directory, it has permission issues which implies to me that it did not setup the directory permissions for Vista/Win7 which is probably because it came out before Windows was released.

The unit was accurate and collected data during the hike while attached at my side via the provided clip. For many, it may serve fine. For my use where I want to be able to define the start and end point of the journey for adding to the website, it was not that user friendly. I may be that my objections because of lack of understanding but I did not see anything in the manual that would clear up my views of how it works.

The 60CSx is on sale because it is being replaced by the 62 series units. These still lack good maps in the unit.

Spring is Here?

It seems like we have had a lot of false starts for spring this year. Just when you might think that the weather has turned, another snowstorm hits us at the knees. But have faith. The bears seem to think it is spring. I had one pass within 50ft of me a couple days ago and he looked like a well fed 400 lbs. Fortunately he was more interested in some trash (potential food) than me and chose to ignore me as he passed.

Been busy carrying the flowers in and out of the house every day in an effort to keep them alive and blooming.....Think Spring!

I should be ready to start searching out new trails as it looks like most of the trails have shed their moisture and are not a muddy mess.

Happy New Year

A few days late but let me wish you a Happy New Year for 2010.

I hope that among your resolutions, you have one "to spend more time hiking, running and biking.

It is always difficult at this time of the year to get enthused about going out into the cold and/or dark for that workout. One glimmer of hope is that the days are getting longer again so you may gain a little more light on those workouts. I have been blessed to be able to chose my workout times so that I can get the most daylight. Temperature and snow...that is a different story.

Running trails under these conditions require a little more planning than when it is nice and sunny. The trails seem to have a bit more snow and ice on them than in past years. Depending on the trails that you choose, you might want to consider some sort of traction device such as yaktracks or similar product to help you to feel more stable and comfortable while on the trails.

I have tried several types of traction control and in the next couple of posts, will share my opinion about the pros and cons of the various devices available.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays

This is the season to be thankful for all the blessing that we have here in Colorado Springs. It is so nice to be able to go 5-10 miles and be into wilderness / backcountry trails. We have such an abundance of trails to chose from and I enjoy every day and trail that I find myself on.

I hope that my efforts to map and describe the trails that I have enjoyed has created the desire on your part to check out new trails and experience different parts of our natural abundance.

It seems like I go in spurts. I pick a trail then spend the next month or so exploring all the options that the trail presents. I look for different trails in an area and you may be surprised to find some new and interesting views. I know I have found some unexpected gems in my explorations.

On the website (http://farrunner.com), I am always looking for better ways to present the information about trails to make it easier to find and follow the trails. I am thinking about adding the track information to the website so that it can be downloaded into most GPS units. I have found this useful in repeating a trail where is may not be very well defined and for backtracking when I get away from familiar landmarks. I have heard that there is going to be an advanced GPS seminar at REI possibly next month. You might want to check their website and put it on your calendar.

I wanted to give a special high five to Ben who we met on the incline Tuesday. He is 7 and here he is reaching the top of the Incline in fine form. Good work Ben and I hope you enjoy many more climbs in the years to com.

In revising some of my incline pictures on the website, I have tried to include more photos of some of the people I have had encountered on the trails.

I think I will sign off for now. I hope in the coming year I can be more consistent on this blog. Remember the forum where you can post information about the trails you have been on and keep us all informed about condidtions you have encountered to help us plan a more enjoyable hike/bike/run.

The Incline

I have been avoiding any posts about the incline because officially it does not exist as a trail. Since this "trail" crosses multiple properties, it has been the subject of great debate in the community. I am never sure why such debate takes forever to complete. It is not like there are many alternative uses for the trail. Although I am not party to the debate, I would imagine that there are about 5-10 issues that are at stake here, but it has taken years to debate them and I am not sure why.

Recent news is that all this is close to resolution. All the parties seem to be in general agreement and maybe it will be official shortly. Now this is what worries me. As soon as it becomes official, I can see the "officials" declaring that we need to put together a plan for the trail...in the meantime, we must shut it down to protect the trail and the people. In the nanny state mentality that exists in most govenment agencies, I do not think that this is out of the realm of possibility. I look back to Cheyenne Mtn State Park and how it was closed to the public while it was updated and planned.

I have posted before how amazed I am at the number of people who come out to climb the incline. I expect the hard core runners and hikes but in addition are people of all types challenging themselves against the climb. More power to them. I would be a shame if the "nannies" try to restrict or curtail this. I know this can be dangerous but it is ones choice and that is how it should be.

All that being said, Tuesday was a beautiful day to be on the incline. Weather was near perfect and views were as usual, stunning. There was some icy footing especially at the top 1/3 of the trail where it is shaded. Ice was prevalent on most of the ties and not any places where the ice could be avoided. Today with the snow falling, I am tempted to head over and do it again, the views when there is a fresh snowfall are just awesome. I have posted some pictures on the website taken at various times of the year.

I have started documenting the Incline for my website. Took pictures, captured the GPS data, and starting to writeup the description for the webpage. Hopefully I will soon have this up on the site.

If you chose to challenge the inclie be aware that it can be dangerous. Loose railroad ties, steep terrain, icy conditions and rapid weather changes can exist. But if it was easy, would we be there?