Joseph & The Technicolor Dream Coat

Saturday, September 3, 2011

Thanks to MaZ, Scott, Seth & I have been enjoying a couple of plays at the Hale Center Theater. MaZ gave us a gift certificate for the theater as a Christmas gift.  The theater is a small one, in the round and every seat in the house is great. So far we've seen A Tale of Two Cities, The Hasty Heart and Joseph & the Technicolor Dream Coat. Awesome! I suppose one of the thrills for me is to take my 17 year old football playing son to the theater and to watch him enjoy the show. He's not really thrilled about going many places with just Mom & Dad, but he always clears his calendar for the Hale performances!

Even if he isn't looking at the camera, you can still see Seth's smile while we're waiting for the play to begin.

And in case you're wondering why he doesn't bike or hike with us on Saturday mornings, it's because he's loading mulch at MillCreek Gardens, the local nursery. 

Seth at work...and bummed that he's not biking with Mom & Dad. 

Wasatch Boulevard

   Two miles up the road from us is the shoreline of the ancient Lake Bonneville...and nowadays there's a road that follows the shoreline:  Wasatch Boulevard.  It's a favorite of bikers in Salt Lake because it follows the ridge, has wide shoulder and great views of the valley.
  On Saturday of Labor Day weekend, Scott & I decided it was our turn to ride the Wasatch.  We hopped on our bikes and headed uphill...Two miles of uphill just to get to the boulevard.  I was wiped.  We rode about 4 miles of it and then I called it quits.  I just wasn't feeling so great.

Stormy skies all above the Valley.

  On Labor Day, we decided to tackle it again.  This time, we drove our car up the hill, to Einstein Bagels.  I got my usual.  (Mom, do you know what kind of bagel I had?)  Then we hopped on our bikes and rode south, down to Little Cottonwood Canyon and back.  12 miles, 1 hour.  The sky was overcast and thunderheads threatening, which made the weather perfect for riding...no hot sun beating down our backs!

Jordan River Parkway

It's been a couple of weeks since I've updated our activities!

On Saturday, August 20th, Scott & I cruised the Jordan River Parkway...a two lane biking/walking paved trail that follows the Jordan River.  18 miles, mostly flat.  At one point, where the trail goes under a road, it was flooded and we had to go up and over the surface street.  But no biggie--earlier in the season the whole trail was under water!

Between the snow melt and the heavy spring/summer rains, the Jordan River is still full to the brim!

The trail is smooth, wide, rolling and scenic.

Black eyed Susans nod their approval as I cruise by:  You go, Girl!

Water floods the trail.

Hiking, with Bike as Companion

   I thought that Scott & I were going to go for a bike ride up in Park City on Saturday.  Sure enough, our bikes were loaded onto the back of the car and sure enough, we drove up I-80 and parked near down town PC.

   I have proof of this plan:

Happy Beginning. Notice the ski runs on the mountains behind me--that's Park City in the summer time!

     Merrily I rode along, admiring the scenery. There's lots of water in streams and ponds--thanks to the record snow and rain fall Utah has experienced this year. 

Beaver Dam --plenty of water this year.

    We followed the lovely, smooth-as-butter PAVED bike path for a couple of miles.  Then we came to an information board, complete with a trail map.  I thought we were going to continue on Silver Quinn's trail.
   But Scott said, "Let's go this other way instead.  It makes a loop. Silver Quinn is too far."  Well, after 27 years, I should know better.  I really have no one to blame but myself.  This was just another of Scott's ploys to take a scenic.  He is forever wanting to take the scenic route.  Many times over the years, I have become a victim of his scenic drives.  However, I have also many times vetoed LOUDLY his scenic suggestions.  But reading a trail map is not my strength.  I let him show me the loop.  And then I let him talk me into it.
   It started off scenic, ie: pleasant.  We rode along a packed earth and gravel trail.  Not my favorite, but do-able.  Wide.  We rode past the National Ability Center and the horse stables.

Scenic veiw...that soons turns dangerous.

  Shortly after this lovely scenic, it got ugly.  Fast.  The trail became narrow and rocky and windy.  We couldn't stay on our bikes, but had to get off and walk them over the worst spots, only to hop back on and ride for 20 yards, bumping slowly and painfully along.  Walk, ride, walk.  Going uphill was strenuous, but going downhill was scary.  I kept imagining going over the handlebars and knocking out my front teeth!  This is the point when I felt like we were hiking, with our bikes as companions!

Yea, right, like I can ride down that trail!

    It's both physically and emotionally challenging to deal with this type of terrain.  I never aspired to be a mountain biker and this mis-adventure certainly sealed the deal.  I kept thinking that when we got to a paved path again, I was going to get on my knees and kiss it!  But I was too tired, and anxious to get the bike-hike over with!
   Almost 2 hours after we left, just 13 miles, we got back to the car.  About half of those miles were done on mountain trails---with half of those too rocky to ride much!
   It's time for me to study trail maps!!!

    Tomatoes!  Home grown, plucked from the vine, warm and heavy in the hand.  I have fond memories of my dad's tomatoes.  Although I didn't like picking the green beans he grew in our Somerville garden, I did love the tomatoes.  I remember one year, he grew tomatoes that were as big as softballs...one slice is all you needed for a BLT. 

  Now, many years and many attempts later, I have a decent crop of tomatoes.  Not a bumper crop.  I'm not overwhelmed by tomatoes (unfortunately).  Grown in one pot and one tv-glorified Topsy-Turvy, my crop is satisfying and sufficient.

   Any you know what I ate first?  A BLT...to me, its the epitome of summer.  One bite and I'm back in the kitchen of my New Jersey childhood.

Willow Creek, Park City

Saturday, July 2 & Monday, July 4, 2011

  With temperatures threatening to reach over 100 in SLC on Saturday, Scott and I headed for the mountains and cooler air.  Our friends, John & Pam Burggraf, picked us and our bikes up mid-morning to take us for a ride.  And did they ever!

Pam & I: Ready, Set, GO!

  We parked at Park City's Newpark Towne Center and immediately hopped onto a paved trail.  Pam took the lead...and kept the pace brisk all the way along the Willow Creek Trail.
  The trail is mostly packed gravel and winds first along a meadow to the south, with a few houses on the north.  It crosses a stream several times, a couple of wooden bridges and then heads into Park City proper.
  What you don't realize when you're riding a bike: the slow continuous upgrade.  I hate to admit it, but both Scott & I had to work very, very hard to keep up with John & Pam.  They definitely had to stop and wait for us, here and there.
  It took us 45 minutes to go 8 miles. Back to the car, it took 20 minutes---the descent was such that I pedaled 3 times on the return, not out of necessity, but just because.

The background is the stuff of picture postcards.

   And what you can't do when pedaling on a bike, as opposed to hoofing along in hiking boots:  you really can't stop to admire wildflowers. 
   We refueled at Red Rock Junction, at the Redstone Center.  Ah, ice water and chicken ceasar salad.
    The ride was so good that on Monday, Scott & I went back and did it again...with some variation, of course.  We tooled around Snyderville and circled around the Swaner Nature Preserve.  Another 12 miles, but with a bit more up and down all along the way.  We'll have to go back--there's plenty more bike trails to explore!

Monday: overcast and cool.  Looking west at Swaner Nature Preserve.

  

Grandeur Peak, Saturday, June 18, 2011

    The trail started off lovely...a scenic stroll through the woods, the wide path skirting the babbling stream.  Porter skipped along, nose all a-twitter.  He stopped to lap up some cool, clean mountain water. We hiked upwards, shaded by maples, aspen, oaks, and firs. Wildflowers in bloom.
Happy, happy.

Wildflower:  Mule Ears

   The trail climbed up out of the forest and into a whole other clime.  Still it was lovely; the view down the valley lush.

  But with every footstep, the incline continued...it was relentless.  The trail became narrow and rocky and unstable.  The sun beat down on us.  Porter began seeking out shade, and upon finding some, he laid down.  Still, I tugged on his leash and he lumbered up on his paws and toiled on.
  Finally, we reached the summit. 
  3 hours and 3 miles from the trail head.
  Grandeur Peak is aptly named.  The view is 360*, with Salt Lake spread out to the west like a blanket of civilization and snowy mountain peaks in every other direction. 

  Lunch just below the peak: turkey sandwiches and homemade chocolate chip cookies!
  The way down was much faster--1 hr 45 minutes! The adventure down included: hearing, then spotting, a rattlesnake;  concentrating on the narrow trail--mindful of snakes and mindful of my  tired leg muscles on the rocky, narrow trail so I wouldn't fall--either down the mountain or on my tush.