Tuesday, August 16, 2016

FOX RIVER TRAIL

Yesterday I drove 90 minutes to meet the new owner of a yarn shop that I had done business with in the past. I was eager to meet this young woman and her husband who are 'rolling the dice' and re-starting a retail yarn business. The amount of button business that was processed yesterday was not quite as much as I expected. I must admit I immensely enjoyed talking with this woman as we had one thing in common. We have both climbed to the top of Half Dome in Yosemite Park. It is my firm belief that only those that have completed this hike really know what those last 400 feet climbing up the cables is really all about. The shop will re-open under the new ownership in October, so there is a great possibility that this will become an important account for me in the future. Once I finished at the yarn shop, it was time to 'take a hike.' The Fox River Trail runs along the Fox River in St. Charles, Illinois and that was where I started. My hike had me starting, leaving and returning to the Fox River Trail for 5+ hours. First I headed north, and I took a bunch of 'side trips' before I crossed over the river and headed south. I traveled south beyond my starting point to Geneva, before I turned around and headed back to St. Charles where I began. When I was done, I had hiked 22 miles.

My hike started on the Main Street Bridge in St. Charles, Illinois. This sculpture stands guard over the Fox River.

This is the TrailHead in Geneva. At this point in my hike I was within steps of completing my 20th mile.

An artistic decorative fox stands guard in St Charles on the Fox River Trail.

The walkway for the RED GATE BRIDGE is under the roadway for automobile traffic.

Does it still count as a 'selfie' if the photo was taken with a 10 second timer?

Here I am about to cross the 'Historic Piano Factory Bridge' in St Charles

Your Food Diary For:

BREAKFAST	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
Quaker - Grits - Instant - Original, 3 packet (28 g)	300	66	0	6	930	0
Zone Perfect® - Classic Chocolate Peanut Bar	450	50	13	25	600	30
	750	116	13	31	1,530	30
L U N C H
Fuji Apple - Apple, 2 Medium	160	44	0	1	0	34
	160	44	0	1	0	34
D I N N E R
Subway - Footlong Turkey Breast on Wheat	560	92	17	36	1,890	11
	560	92	17	36	1,890	11



Totals	1,470	252	30	68	3,420	75
Your Daily Goal	5,584	698	186	280	2,300	209
Remaining	4,114	446	156	212	-1,120	134
	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
	*You've earned 3,654 extra calories from exercise today

If every day were like today... You'd weigh 169.2 lbs in 5 weeks.

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Your Exercise Diary for:

Cardiovascular	Minutes	Calories Burned
22 MILE HIKE	333	3,736


Daily Total / Goal	333 / 30	3,736 / 590
Weekly Total / Goal	333 / 210	3,736 / 4,130

Every once in awhile, I try to take a picture of myself in mid-air. (Always ready to do my part to prove that WHTE MEN CAN'T JUMP as the 1992 movie taught us all nearly a quarter century ago.)

Thursday, July 7, 2016

CUYAHOGA VALLEY NATIONAL PARK

Every day is an adventure. I had found a local park which looked like it had some trails about a mile or so from my Twinsburg, Ohio hotel. I had intended to walk there at the conclusion of the day. I had expressed this to a customer of mine that I visited in the morning and received 'new orders.' She recommended that I visit CUYAHOGA VALLEY NATIONAL PARK and do my hiking there. I had no idea that I had selected a hotel within a quick 15 minute drive to a national park. I don't always take advice. (There were plenty of people who had advised me to lose weight long before I actually did.) Happily this was advice that I did take. I went to the park with plans to make sure that I visited Brandywine Falls.

A boardwalk near the falls offered three different levels with which to view the falls. This was the lowest level.

A visitor from Norway took this photo for me.

This was the top level to view the falls from right above where the water cascades over the rocks.

There are miles and miles of trails at this park. I have a feeling that I will be visiting this park many times over the years as I continue to visit my Oho customers. I live in a state, Illinois, without a national park, although Indiana Dunes is approximately 30 miles away in Indiana. It was such a treat to visit a park like this so close to a hotel that I had selected just to be close to my customers.

I have never seen Interstate 80 (I-80) from an angle like this. I drive on I-80 quite often. It looked quite different from this vantage point as I was finishing up my hike yesterday. My hike took me directly under the highway and it is amazing how high up in the air the roadway is. This bridge (skyway) did cross a small river, but it was built to traverse this low valley.

Interstate 80 (I-80) is a transcontinental limited-access highway in the United States that runs from downtown San Francisco, California to Teaneck, New Jersey in the New York City Metropolitan Area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one of the original routes of the Interstate Highway system. Its final segment was opened to traffic in 1986. It is the second-longest Interstate Highway in the United States, following Interstate 90. The Interstate runs through many major cities including Oakland, California, Sacramento, California, Salt Lake City, Utah,Omaha, Nebraska, Des Moines, Iowa and Toledo, Ohio, and passes within 10 miles (16 km) of Chicago, Illinois, Cleveland, Ohio and New York City, New York.

I-80 runs from coast to coast in the United States.

Your Food Diary For:

BREAKFAST	Calories	Carbs	Fat	Protein	Sodium	Sugar
Kroger - Instant Country Grits	600	126	6	12	2,040	6
	600	126	6	12	2,040	6
L U N C H
California Roll, 8 pieces	300	8	9	2	100	2
CHERRY VANILLA GRANOLA	240	40	7	5	60	15
	540	48	16	7	160	17
D I N N E R
Sheetz - Eat Shmart Turkey Deli Sandwich	290	39	7	18	850	8
Sheetz - Hamburger	475	37	25	21	406	4
	765	76	32	39	1,256	12
S N A C K S
Whole Cashews	160	9	12	5	0	2
Apple - Apple Gala, 3 apples	320	88	0	0	0	68
Dang - Toasted Coconut Chips	161	17	10	1	161	11
Nature Valley -Dark Chocolate Granola Bar	380	58	14	8	280	24
	1,021	172	36	14	441	105

Totals	2,926	422	90	73	3,897	140
Your Daily Goal	3,753	469	125	188	2,300	140
Remaining	827	47	34	115	-1,596	0
	Calories	Carbs	Fat	Protein	Sodium	Sugar
	*You've earned 1,823 extra calories from exercise today

If every day were like today... You'd weigh 210 lbs in 5 weeks.

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Your Exercise Diary for:

Cardiovascular	Minutes	Calories Burned
Walking	220	1,970
MFP iOS calorie adjustment	N/A	-147


Daily Total / Goal	221 / 30	1,823 / 590
Weekly Total / Goal	642 / 210	5,851 / 4,130

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Before I set out on my 13 mile hike, I checked the temperature, and it was hot and muggy!