BATTLE CREEK LINEAR PARK TRAIL

After an appointment in Ann Arbor, Michigan it was time to head home to Chicago. Along the way I was looking for a place to park my car, and take a hike before darkness arrived. With some sleuthing on the internet, I found the Battle Creek Linear Park Trail.  I parked my car and set out to do some urban hiking. By the time I completed my hike, it was completely dark, and I had accomplished what I set out to do - that is walk (at least) ten miles. My hike turned out to be eleven miles. Even better. 

Battle Creek Monument Park

Bailey Park, Battle Creek

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The illumination for this nighttime photo was supplied by my 500 lumen flashlight resting on a rail

Your Food Diary For:

Thursday, November 17, 2016

BREAKFAST	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
Mccain - Steel Cut Irish Oatmeal	701	126	12	19	0	5
Starbucks - Classic Coffee Cake	400	58	16	5	410	32
	1,101	184	28	24	410	37
L U N C H
Kellogg's - Raisin Bran Crunch	400	95	2	8	421	40
	400	95	2	8	421	40
D I N N E R
Generic - Baked Whitefish Filet	200	0	9	27	72	0
Generic - Grilled Brussel Sprouts	100	20	4	9	35	0
Whole Foods - Traditional Stuffing	300	32	16	5	850	5
	600	52	29	41	957	5
S N A C K S
DARK CHOCOLATE COCONUT CHEWS	500	50	35	5	63	33
Whole Foods - Banana Chips	200	23	13	1	0	13
Whole Foods Dried Mango Slices	300	76	0	5	3	55
Trader Joe's - Toffee Chips, 3 pieces	200	22	13	1	80	21
	1,200	171	61	12	146	122
Totals	3,301	502	120	85	1,934	204
Your Daily Goal	3,782	473	126	190	2,300	141
Remaining	481	-29	6	105	366	-63
	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
	*You've earned 1,852 extra calories from exercise today

If every day were like today...   You'd weigh 207.3 lbs in 5 weeks     

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       Your Exercise Diary for:

Thursday, November 17, 2016

Cardiovascular	Minutes	Calories Burned
Eleven Mile Urban Hike Battle Creek	149	2,094
Daily Total / Goal	149 / 30	2,094 / 590
Weekly Total / Goal	418 / 210	5,036 / 4,130

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from trailsmichigan.com

Battle Creek Linear Park

Health and wellness have been major contributors to Battle Creek's history, including the invention of breakfast cereal! Citizens and visitors alike enjoy the Battle Creek Linear Park. With more than 28 miles of paved trails it is a great way to spend a day, or a weekend, exploring the history and scenery of America's Cereal City.

Developed in several phases over the past 20 years, this path was one of Michigan's first non-motorized, multi-use trails. In 2014 it underwent a $1.3 million facelift and expansion, including asphalt resurfacing and replacement of several boardwalks. Whether you run, ride a bike, or just want to go for a leisurely stroll, the Battle Creek Linear Park offers a pleasant excursion for everyone.

PORTAGE CREEK BICENTENNIAL PARK

I woke up in my Grand Rapids Hotel and drove to Portage for my appointment to sell buttons at a particularly good customer. Before I left the Kalamazoo area and headed back to Chicago, I found a park with paved trails and took a ten mile hike. Today, Friday, after a dentist appointment I will head to the airport for a trip to New York to visit my Mom and youngest brother and his family in New York.  So, today, may be a true day off from hiking. If the weather cooperates, I am planning on a hike with my brother and his wife in Connecticut on Saturday.

The trail goes right under I-94.  One thing I learned yesterday was that this spot under the highway was just about at the midpoint between Chicago and Detroit as you will see in the next photo.

I always get a kick out of spotting some genuine wildlife.  On the trail yesterday I spotted four wild turkeys.

Most of the trail was between Portage Creek and these railroad tracks.

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Your Food Diary For:

Thursday, September 29, 2016

BREAKFAST	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
Super 8 Cinnamon Roll - Cinnamon Roll	500	77	24	6	887	40
Cereal - Raisin Bran Crunch	500	118	3	11	526	50
	1,000	195	27	17	1,413	90
L U N C H
Gatorade Recover - Whey Protein Bar	360	42	13	20	160	29
Subway - Footlong Turkey Breast on Wheat	560	92	17	36	1,890	11
	920	134	30	56	2,050	40
D I N N E R
Homemade Stuffed Shells	615	86	17	30	818	18
	615	86	17	30	818	18
S N A C K S
Garden Veggie Sticks Zesty Ranch	130	15	7	1	280	1
Reese's - Peanut Butter Cups	330	36	18	6	225	33
	460	51	25	7	505	34
Totals	2,995	466	99	110	4,786	182
Your Daily Goal	3,683	460	122	185	2,300	138
Remaining	688	-6	23	75	-2,486	-44
	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
	*You've earned 1,753 extra calories from exercise today

If every day were like today...   You'd weigh 202.4 lbs in 5 weeks.

Your Exercise Diary for:

Thursday, September 29, 2016

Cardiovascular	Minutes	Calories Burned
10 Mile Hike	137	1,875
Daily Total / Goal	137 / 30	1,875 / 590
Weekly Total / Goal	725 / 210	11,193 / 4,130

just me having some fun with various photo effects.

from www.portagemi.gov...

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The “backbone” of the Portage park system, Portage Creek Bicentennial Park (PCBP) was the official city project to honor the nation’s 200th birthday. Spanning over 200 acres, PCBP is a linear facility that runs between the City Centre Area and the northern city limits at Kilgore Road, connected by a 3.5 mile multi-use trail. In total, PCBP has over 8 miles of hiking and biking trails with several opportunities to view scenic Portage Creek. 

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Part of my hike yesterday had me cross through CELERY FLATS (which is also described on the www.portagemi.gov website)

Celery Flats

Celery Flats is really a “park within a park." A key element of the Portage Creek Bicentennial Park, Celery Flats has two distinct settings. On the north side of Garden Lane, the Celery Flats Interpretive Center highlights the importance of the celery industry to Kalamazoo County. The Celery Flats Historical Area, with several relocated and restored buildings, is located south of Garden Lane. The Historical Area is the site of many community events and several of the buildings can be reserved for private group use.

IF YOU GIVE A MOUSE A COOKIE

If You Give a Mouse a Cookie is an extremely popular and clever children's book written by Laura Numeroff and illustrated by Felicia Bond.  The book tells a story about what will happen if a  mouse is given a cookie. The story leads to a chain of events that eventually leads him back to requesting a cookie.  For example, If you give a mouse a cookie, he will probably ask for a glass of milk.  If you give a mouse a glass of milk he will probably ask for a straw and so it goes....

I experienced a chain of events today which made me think about this book.

If a salesman calls on a customer, he will probably get a local recommendation about where to eat lunch.
If a salesman acts on the suggestion on where to eat lunch, he might discover a nearby bike shop to browse in.
If a salesman accidentally discovers a bike shop, he might discover a booklet highlighting all the trails (bicycle/hiking) in the state.
If a salesman learns about a nearby trail, he might walk 5 miles to get to that trail from his hotel.
If a salesman walks 5 miles to the trail, he might just stretch out that walk to twenty miles throughout the Kalamazoo area.
If a salesman walks twenty miles at a brisk pace, he just might burn more than 3000 calories.
If a salesman burns 3000+ calories on a Wednesday afternoon, he just might find a very promising weigh-in awaits him on Saturday.

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It seems like each day brings a new discovery about the type of information recorded by MayMyWalk Application.  Just before I published this blog entry, I discovered that the application records the relative elevation during the entire workout.  If I understand this chart correctly, the minimum elevation that I travelled yesterday was 755 feet above sea level and the maximum was 971 feet.  I am guessing that the 663 feet gain is meant to be the aggregate amount that I walked 'uphill' over the course of 20 miles.

beautiful paved trail discovered in Kalamazoo, Michigan

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 Wednesday MENU

breakfast   Quaker Instant Oatmeal Apple & Cinnamon                     800 calories
lunch         Trail Head Restaurant BLT half sandwich, chicken soup  660 calories
dinner        SUBWAY 9-Grain Wheat Bread Roast Beef Foot Long   640 calories
SNACK     QUAKER OATS chocolate chip granola bars (five)         500 calories

TOTAL CALORIES CONSUMED 2600 CALORIES
                        

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CALORIES BURNED

20 MILE WALK, KALAMAZOO, 284 minutes
VERY BRISK PACE                                         3607 CALORIES


Wednesday NET CALORIES 1007 DEFECIT

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fitbit day 35

 40247 STEPS

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A final word

Today, Thursday, October 8,  marks just seven days since I completed the epic day hike to the top of Half Dome.  That I successfully completed this hike has affected me in ways that I cannot quite express completely.  One thing is has done, is given me confidence in my physical abilities. Yesterday when I wanted to check out a local trail in Kalamazoo - I discovered the the trail head was five miles from my hotel.  So, naturally, I walked there.  This would not have been my idea just a few weeks ago. One climb up and down Half Dome can add a lot of confidence to a person - it sure did for me.