Narrow Rough Road

Crater Lake

Maps can be a funny thing sometimes. They can either get you to the right place are completely get you to the wrong place. They can also led you up a narrow rough road but they will never say that it is a rough road. But the thing with narrow rough roads is that they can take you to really remote beautiful places and those are the places that you want to be on a busy weekend like the Fourth of July. This weekend we had planned on going in to the White Clouds for a few days but some people that we had invited couldn't make it so we postponed for a later date. So instead my father and I had planned a long road trip to a few lakes where we could either car camp at or at least day hike into them.

The White Clouds

Are first lake that we went to or tried to get to was Crater Lake. When we got to the top of Railroad Ridge the views there where out of this world, or should I say out of Idaho because you could see into Montana. You could also look over at the Lost Rivers, Pioneers and a big portion of the Frank Church. Going back to the map it says we could go over the top of Railroad Ridge and drop down into Crater Lake, well after trying a few routes and roads that petered off or still have snow on them we made the smart decision and turned around. On to the next lake we went.

Views From Railroad Ridge

A Few Elk

Part of Livingston Mine

By the time we got to Bayhorse, it was about six hours of driving and zero hours of fishing, something is not right here. By the time I walked around the lake of Bayhorse I hooked into three fish and most of the time was spent fighting off bait fisherman so we booked out of there in order to get to Spruce Gulch before sunset.

Bayhorse Lake

Challis Through The Burnt Trees

Another three and a half hours of driving and an hour an a half of hike we made it to Spruce Gulch for an hour of fishing with no such luck of catching a tiger muskie or even seeing one. Another two hours of fishing in the morning with only seeing three tiger muskie, two follow and none swallowed. Theirs too many hours being put into tiger muskie fishing without any hook up or take. It makes me feel like I'm doing something wrong but I'm not going to give up. I do feel like that when I do catch bigger fish its based purely on luck, luck of being in the right spot at the right time. But my luck continues to increase by the amount of time I spend on the water and the amount of time my fly is in the water. The thing that I could take away from Spruce Gulch is that I am getting really good at taking pictures of tiger muskie, I now just need to get one out of the water.

Spruce Gulch Lake

Twin Peaks Lookout

As I worked with Phil this week and got to know him a little better. It was cool to hear all his amazing stories and adventures. After talking to him I realized that I would love to read a book about this guy, but after taking a step back and realizing that Phil and I are about the same person. Part of the reason I am writing this blog is to remember all the good times that I have had and have had the opportunity to share with others.

Spruce Gulch

Why do I succeed?

I succeed because I am willing to do the things you are not. I will fight against the odds. I will sacrifice. I am not shackled by fear, insecurity or doubt. I feel those emotions but I drink them in and then swallow them away to the blackness of hell. I am motivated by accomplishment, not pride. Pride consumes the weak and kills their heart from within. If I fall... I will get up. If I am beaten... I will return. I will never stop getting better. I will never give up... EVER.

That is why I succeed.--Unkown

Lake X: Invite One Brother And He Will Be On Time, Invite Two Brothers Expect Delays

This Hast To Be A Painting

What a great weekend! After this trip I know my life has been truly blessed. I always love the opportunity to show off my favorite place and one of my favorite lakes to other people. On the drive up I asked Shayne if he has ever been to a mountain lake around the Mackay area, he said he hasn't so it was a great place to start off with. As we hiked up the trail and just started into the meadow just below the pass we ran into guy that was just coming off of the pass. He saw how loaded we were and asked if we were going up to the lake, after we had answered he said that it was a "little iced over but we could find our holes" whatever that meant. After hearing that we didn't hurry too much to get to the lake that might be frozen. Just before we reached the top I said that we where either a week early or we hit it just right, turns out I was right either way.

Golden Trout

Panning for Gold

Its always about hitting the lake just right but when you go up too early its just a huge let down. When we topped out and looked over to glance at the frozen lake, talk about a punch to the gut. I just sat down joining the other two as we talked about what we were going to do. After a good break, Justin and I left the sleeping Shayne to rest while we went and walked around the lake. Turns out the guy was right, there was a few spots open you just had to work at it. And by work at I mean throw the waders on that I brought and get out there and wrangle you some ice blocks. By the time I did that, I was so cold that I was done getting back into the water. I tried talking Shayne into going swimming but no luck there, I even told him that I was trained in hypothermia wrapping (Wilderness First Aid).

Men At Work

About halfway through the day with no luck and only seeing one or two fish here and there I got tried and sat myself on a rock to keep my fly in the water. After about 20 minutes or so later and getting turned down by a couple of goldens, I finally hooked into one that made me scream like a little schoolgirl. I set the hook and the fight was on, I reached for my net that had a few holes in it but that didn't stop me from landing the biggest golden to date. After taking a few pics and making a few references to Ace Ventura, "its going to be some kind of a record", I got the guys to come over and I started putting them to work. I got them set up with same fly and the same spot but still I was the only one that hooked into another golden.
I finished the night catching a few more from other spots and then we called it a night where we spent the rest of the night spending it around the campfire reminiscing over past trips and stories. After a cold cold night where the wind would not stop blowing, so cold that the lake refroze to the point where we had to poke holes through to be able to fish. That morning I headed back to the same spot where I caught all the other fish. When I got there it was only a few seconds until I started seeing fish, it was going to be another good day of fishing. After punching a hole in the ice I was set up, I missed a few fish but nothing as big as the next fish that I was about to catch. I could see a school of fish coming straight for my fly. the biggest one was in the middle with two bodyguards, one each side. I don't know how I lucked out and was able to trick the biggest one to eat but sometimes the fish gods just smile on you a little bit more than others. Once I saw him shallow the fly it was game on. Since I punched a hole through the ice with a rock it was a lot more challenging than bring him towards me to the net. The hardest part was to get him up and out of the hole but once I calmed myself and got his head through the whole I let him do the rest of the work and next thing you know he's on the ice, just chilling before his photo shoot.

Justin, Heaven On Earth

After Justin and I caught a few more Goldens we called it a day and headed on home. Let me tell you its not easy leaving a place like this one. I was tempted to climb to the pass and phone into our boss to tell him that we weren't going to make it into work in the morning but the funny thing is he probably would have encouraged us into staying longer.

"The Lord has blessed us all today... It's just that he has been particularly good to me".--Norman Maclean

Having Fun With The Camera

These Boys

Cutty Fever

River of No Return 50K: Run Fast, Everything Else Here Does

You know your an ultra-runner when you eat mustard like gel packets. I have been looking forward to this race for about 6 months now. I signed up for RONR a month before Wilson Creek and was excited even more so about it. It was the first year of the race, so it was hard to see what it was going to be like and what might be expected of it. I went into this race wanting to accomplish two goals; breaking my previous record on my personal best 50K time 7:04, and the other goal that would be tough to accomplish is to place in my age group.

Hot steep section

Looking back at the Challis Valley

The 50K race started at 7:30am and I thought it was going to be perfect weather but it was extremely hot at the beginning of the race. After Paul had gathered all the racers together the race took off around the high school track and then down the highway for about 2 to 3 miles. This is the part off the race where things started heating up. The next 8 miles or so was all open country with the sun blazing on your back but I took advantage at this point to slow down and refuel with water and to start eating solid food early so I wouldn't pay for it later. By the time I hit Birch Creek Aid station nestled in the trees, I was feeling pretty good, good enough that it just felt like another day out in the mountains. After refilling my water bottle, grabbing a few gel packets and a handful of pretzels I was off on the steep hike to Keystone Aid Station. I power hiked about two miles to the top where I continued to refuel knowing I could refill my bottle at Keystone that was only 3 miles away. By the time I reached the top I was ready to get back to running, so joining the other runners we bombed it down to Keystone where they let out a few wolf howls here and there.

Mt Borah

Looking on toward Keystone

The Keystone Aid Station was filled with so many goodies, that it was hard to leave. This was the out and back portion of the race where you could see where you sized up against the other 50K runners. It was only about a mile until I saw the top elite runners running up the hill as I was heading down to Bayhorse. I thought this would be a good time to keep my mind busy and start counting all the runners that I passed on the way down and see what place I was in. This section was about 4 miles downhill and then 4 miles straight up. I took the downhill easy knowing that I needed to save my legs for the last 10 miles of the race. When I got to Bayhorse (which is an old mining town) I counted roughly 45 to 50 runners ahead of me and after I quickly asked for the time I was 19 minutes behind my 7 hour goal. I quickly took a 5 minute break and and refilled my pack with gear from my dropbag. The next 4 miles was rough for me, at this point in the race my lower back started hurting and it was really heating up so I had to take many breaks and stop at  each creek crossing to wash my face. The face washing and watching all the runners behind me run down the hill kept me going. What I have noticed about ultramarathons is the overwhelming support of runners cheering each other on to accomplish the same goal. You never really see this in any other sport, and after talking to others about this throughout the race it just seems that other races its too competitive to cheer others on when everyone is wanting to beat each other.

When I got to the top of Keystone I was falling behind on my splits and needed to be to the next aid station in 30 minutes that was 5 miles away. In order to do that I got behind a guy that I had been leap frogging and running with throughout the race. We both just bombed down the mountain. I think the only reason I was able to keep up with this gentleman is that I had him pick the route through the rocky road I was able to just let my legs run free. I knew that I would have easily stopped for breaks if I wasn't running with him but I just pushed through and hung on to him all the way to the aid station where we made it in about 6 minute miles. We decided at  the Keystone Aid Station that we would finish the race out together but I was tired after that 5 mile run so I told him to go ahead while I took a break and refueled. He ran ahead of me but I kept him in my sights so I could pace myself with someone with a similar speed. I finally broke in and knew that it I needed to put it all on the line and finish strong because that's why I do these races is to prove what my body is capable of. I finally caught up to him and then eventually took off without him, since he had nothing left in the tank. You know you finished strong when you have to walk for a bit when the finishline is in sight. I met both of my goals, which was well earned and my next race is in less than 4 weeks (Wild Idaho Endurance Runs).

Official Race Results
Chip Time: 6:51:39
Age Group (20-29M): 3rd
Gender Place: 27
Overall Place: 36/104
Things I Did Good:
Hydrated between aid stations
Fueled at aid stations
Power hiked the hills
Finished Strong
Taking my time at aid stations
Didn't start too fast

Things I Could Improve:
Hydrate a bit more (empty my bottle before every aid station)
Eat soild food early
Train long downhill runs
Train power hiking
Hydrate and eat while hiking
Lower back strength
Quad strength (knee extensions)
More miles in the week (longer runs)
Salt tablets