Tammany – 1/2/15

Well, it’s been a year without a single update to this blog.

A year not without upward action and fun things accomplished, however!

A brief review of 2014:

  • a little more street running
  • some more trail running
  • a Spring trip to Mt Whitney with snow (unsummited but a great night out at Trail Camp)
  • summer hiking with Jim for acclimatization in the southern Sierra Nevada followed by climbs with a guide up Whitney (East Buttress) and nearby Russell (Fishhook bypass)
  • fine weather in CH for a week accompanied by Glynis with some very good hiking and virtuous vertical-rise accumulation
  • more training in the Fall, with a particular focus on doing Tammany quickly.

Getting back to Tammany then:  today, a record-breaking time with a bottom-to-top-to-bottom time of under 50 minutes. Standard route except for classic mid-point short-cut. Best time to date.

Future working points/improvement potential:  primarily on the ascent — minutes can be shaved with more work. About 28 minutes today.

Followed today’s Tammany single up/down with some climbing at the Gravity Vault Chatham.

A great day, for which thanks are given!

Optimal gear: see this — never better!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tammany – 1/1/14

Great hike in rapid time with Carlyle over from T & T to enjoy some harsh weather hereabouts.

Not too cold on this fine day, on which we started quite late, about 12:30, up the great Red Dot on Tammany, at a pace deemed kind of slow by my fellow hiker.  And then, after a very quick break, along the fire road, no one about and quite lovely in the winter hush, unadorned by snow but great nonetheless.

Keeping a quick pace lest we fall afoul of the setting sun or meanderings off-path, we hit the completely unmarked “Turquoise” trail in good time, and then through to Sunfish Pond. Not surprisingly, after the spell of bitter cold we’d just experience for Carlyle’s benefit no doubt, the pond was completely covered in what looked like very thick, solid ice.

And then back at a fast clip along the Appalachian Trail (AT), with perfect views over and across to the ridge we’d just hiked down — a view often obscured by dense foliage. Time for a few quick photos along the last, partially iced-up bit of the AT and then back to the trailhead in just about exactly four hours — about 10 miles or more in all.

Fantastic start to the year!

Next time he’s back, maybe Carlyle really will go for the double — two loops like this in a day (particularly given that he was obviously over-trained for this trivial outing)!

 

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Tammany – 11/29/13

Cooler today, high 30s — only one cycle but in a faster time: 54 minutes start to finish. Moving faster is a great way for me to add another dimension to workouts on this favorite hill. Pulled some plastic afterwards for a “full” day — very nice way to get the weekend going!

Tammany – 11/23/13

Triple Tammany today, for 3,600 ft. vertical (or 1 Mt Washington from Pinkham Notch Lodge) — fine weather, sometimes brisk, sometimes warm, and completely dry, so shoes provided optimal gription! Completed in just under 3 hours, so a very good day with an improved time.

Tammany – 11/10/13

Tammany with better half! Glynis enhanced this  trip up the red-dot classic route on Tammany. Injected a little training with an approx. 60-pound pack – weather gray and cool with a little rain up top, then much warmer and quite bright on the descent. Both parties in good form — excellent day!