Week 6 training was a LOT of hiking on different local sections of the MST. We took advantage of the gorgeous Spring-like weather to hike 51 miles this week, but still worked in a couple of treadmill and kickboxing workouts. Okay, at this point my legs hurt, but we've only got a couple of weeks left. Don't stop now!!

Week 6: Don’t Stop Now!

– – Training Week 6 started with a cold Saturday morning 9 mile hike on the MST at Falls Lake. 

Cypress tress in the water near Little Lick Creek bridge on the MST.
Cypress tress in the water near Little Lick Creek bridge on the MST.

This hike is one of my favorite sections of the MST, because it’s long enough to know you’ve had a hike, and has some interesting features along the way.

I normally don’t lead hikes on Saturday, but the weather forecast for Sunday was for snow, ice and extreme cold (again), so I switched it up.

Needlessly, as it turns out, because the forecast was completely wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong!  Oh, those wacky meteorologists…..

Hiking at the North Carolina Museum of Art park.
Hiking at the North Carolina Museum of Art park.

So, instead of cowering inside all day Sunday and doing the dreaded housework, I did some kickboxing – and, yes, housework. 

Pretending to be sculptures in the Rodin garden.
Pretending to be sculptures in the Rodin garden.

Then I convinced That Man and the puppy to join me in the afternoon for a nice 4 mile walk at the North Carolina Museum of Art.

Monday, it was forecast to be rainy all day and evening – and it was!! 

So it was a treadmill training and weight lifting day.

Tuesday – I was able to join Lenore and other hiker friends at Umstead State Park – and this time I was not thwarted by a slow lumber truck! 

We hiked the MUT about 6 miles, and I had a heavy pack, so this was my official Strength Building hike for the week.

View of the old boathouse at Umstead State Park.
View of the old boathouse at Umstead State Park.

THE SHAMELESS SELF-PROMOTION PART

A couple of weeks ago I got an email out of the blue from Mary Insprucker, host of the “Triangle 411” podcast.

She wanted to know if she could interview me about hiking and the I’d Rather Walk meetup group.  How cool is that?

So I said okay, and the interview was just published.  Here it is:

Triangle 411 I’d Rather Walk Hiking Interview

Please feel free to share with wild abandon!!! 

I just hope I don’t sound like a doofus…   

View of the Eno from the MST at Penny's Bend.
View of the Eno from the MST at Penny’s Bend.

Wednesday was another gorgeous day, so another hiker and I explored a new-to-me trail from Penny’s Bend to the River Forest trailhead. 

Trail sign at our turnaround point.
Trail sign at our turnaround point.

The whole RT route was about  8.8 miles on the MST – our turnaround spot was just a mile or so from West Point on the Eno.

Penny’s Bend Nature Preserve is a small 85-acre natural area in northeast Durham that is owned by the Army Corps of Engineers and managed by the NC Botanical Gardens. 

Map on the kiosk at Penny's Bend.
Map on the kiosk at Penny’s Bend.

The nature preserve protects a peninsula of land that is surrounded on three sides by the Eno River just upstream of where the river flows into Falls Lake.

Thursday I hosted a longer training hike at Umstead State Park with a great group of hikers, hiking about 9 miles  on the Loblolly Trail into Schenk Forest and back. 

For some reason this hike kicked my butt…

Friday was such a gorgeous day, I spent most of the day hiking a new-to-me section of the MST with a wonderful group of hikers led by Rich B from the “Life is a Hike!” meetup. 

Hikers on the MST Hike K.
Hikers on the MST Hike K.

MST Hike K is a 14 miles out-and-back between Hwy 98 and NC 50 near Falls Lake.

It was fun, but after completing that hike, my legs hurt and I realized I’d hiked 51 miles during the week! 

So, I got off my feet and let That Man pamper me with a nice dinner  🙂

This MST section runs opposite the Rollingview Marina on Falls Lake.
This MST section runs opposite the Rollingview Marina on Falls Lake.

I may have slacked off a bit this week on the kickboxing and weight lifting because the sunny warm weather made me do a lot of hiking and ignore the rest.   

That said, there’s still time to focus and get back on track before the 8-week program is over.   

Okay, then – time to go work up a sweat somehow.

THE SHAMELESS SALESY PART

In case you haven’t noticed, Valentine’s Day is just a few days away. 

If you haven’t planned anything yet, here are few suggestions from the IRW Merch Shop Valentine’s Collection:

At this point, your gifts won’t get there in time, but you could tell your sweetie it’s on the way!

Week 7 is next.  Let’s make it a good one 🙂

TAKEAWAY LESSON:  Don’t give up if you miss a cross-training workout or snarf too many jelly beans – every day is a new opportunity to do better!!

I hope you’ve found my Training Log ramblings to be helpful- or at least amusing! 🙂   To see more of them go to my Training Log.

You could also take a look at my 8 Weeks to Awesome Training Plan post, if you want to see what kind of training I’m doing.

Thanks for stopping by – see you next time!  LJ

Related posts:

Prairie Ridge EcoStation - Easy Family Hikes, Fossils and Fun!
10 Best Gifts For Hikers Under $50 - Last Minute Gift Ideas
Week 2: Make Time for Fitness AND Fun
The Awesome Year of the Trail

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LJ

LJ has spent much of her free time as a single Mom - and now as an empty-nester -  hiking in the US and around the world.  She shares lessons learned from adventures both local and in exotic locations, and tips on how to be active with asthma, plus travel, gear, and hike planning advice for parents hiking with kids and beginners of all ages.  Read more on the About page.