Five Mile Trail - 13 Apr 2014

Today is Monday.  The winds have been blowing hard all day, and tomorrow the rain will likely come, pushing up our already swollen rivers and streams.  Mud Season is upon us in earnest.

Last Tuesday, I ran through the park, through sublimation fog, and fell twice on slick ice.  My hand still bears the marks.  I ate my lunch, a hummus sandwich, when I hit solid ground, attempting to figure out what my stomach can and cannot handle on runs.  I didn't last very long, but it was the ice that shut me down, not the food.  It was everywhere.

On Wednesday, I did a quick make-up session along the Spring Run, which was dry except for a couple of spots.  There was also a patch of late season ice; more like rock or glacier than the slippery stuff that had foiled me the day before.  I did some interval training, but my knee was hurting me, and my pace suffered.  On the way back to my car, I picked up a couple of hot dogs from Awesome Dogs and ate them as I walked.  I don't think I could handle that on a run.

On Thursday, I went back to the park, without food, but with a Heart Full of Soul and a shining sun.  Unfortunately Soul didn't get me very far, though the sun felt nice.  I again ran some intervals, attempting to salvage something of the week.  The ice that remained slowed me down, though, and on the last leg I came across ice that I was unable to cross.  It was angled up, I had no traction aids (it's April!), and it was too slick for me to climb up.  I was several feet onto the ice when I finally turned around, and I fully expected to fall.  I convinced myself that if I got up it, I could get down it, and carefully I made my way back down without falling.

On Saturday, we went to a park down in New Paltz to meet up with some friends.  The kids had fun playing together, and they kept us on our toes.  It was hot; more like June than April.

On Sunday, the kids and I went to my mom's house for breakfast.  Afterwards, they played outside for a while, and then we all pitched in a hand to help with some yardwork.  By noon it was close to 70; another hot day.

Later that day, after a week of horrid runs, and one and a half days of being outside in the sun, I went for a long run.  It was still hot out when I set off around 3:45.  I settled in to a 12:00 pace and did my best to mentally prepare myself for 10 miles of this.  The bike path I was running on was level, and clear of water and debris; as easy as a run on pavement is going to get.  When I hit an unpaved section, I was surprised to find it firm underfoot.

As the path made its way along route 50, I received a reminder of why I prefer to avoid roads: cars.  In this case, it was a car with a half-witted human inside, who decided to compliment me on my choice of hat (a thin explorer's style cap, to keep the sunburn off of my nose and ears).  It was gone before I had a chance to thank them for their kind remarks.  I thought that perhaps on my next run I should run with a ridiculously long multi-colored scarf, so that another kind soul would have something else to compliment me on as they drove in to 'Toga to get drunk.

After that point I decided to make my way over to the mall area and then run the Five Mile Trail, away from roads.  First, however, I needed to start my fueling experiment.

I'm training for a race in May, and I've been trying to figure out what I'm going to do about fuel.  I decided to try out one strategy I had read, I think in Runner's World, which was to start fueling after 30 minutes and then fuel every 15 minutes after that.  I ate half a package of salty jelly beans, which were really difficult to choke down.

The winds whipping across the mall were strong, and I was happy to be in the woods once I got to the other side.  The ice that had been present in the woods three days earlier was now gone, and even the mud was noticeably drier.  I made my way down to the picnic area, past a decomposing possum and a gaggle of people enjoying the day.

The section along Geyser Creek had a little bit of ice left, past the tufa pile.  The air was noticeably cooler down there, too.  I made my way up the stairs as fast as I could, but my muscles were quite upset about being asked to climb stairs after having already run a few miles.  At the top I noticed that it was time to fuel again.

I ate the second half of the salty jelly bean packet, which tasted a lot better this time around.  I swung over to the Orenda Spring to top off my water bottle with some mineral water.  I started feeling strong at this point, and probably should have just stopped fueling for a little while.  Instead, I continued on with the experiment.  As I made my way over to the western entrance, I drank the shot of salty sugar water I had put in my flask.  This tasted delicious: a magical cherry beverage, but I crashed pretty quickly after that, and my pace started to suffer as I made my way through the wetlands.  By the time it was time to fuel again, I opted for a gel.

I'm not really sure...

I think...

I think I'd rather carry a tub of rice pudding than eat another of these gels.

The flavor was described as vanilla, and the taste was somewhere between vanilla pudding (evil vanilla pudding) and these packages of pre-made vanilla shakes that I used to drink twelve (or so) years ago.  It wasn't bad, but it wasn't good.  My hands were sticky afterwards, and I wasted water rinsing them off so that I wouldn't spend the next few miles trying to obsessively wipe them off.

I finished up the trails and made my way back over to the mall.  I ate the last fuel of my run, a stroopwafel.  (I'm at least 1% Dutch, so it's legit.)  It took me by surprise, though: they are definitely sweet, but the taste ended up bitter.  I'm not sure if it was the lingering bite of the gel, or the effect of the run, but it was strange.

I made my way back over to the bike trails, to finish up my 10 miles, and I found myself running on empty.  I pushed on, but mile 8 was spent in a trance, and not the good kind.  By mile 9 I was feeling better, and I picked up the pace a bit.  I was still zoning out, but it was an "almost done" zone.  At 9.5 miles, I gave up.  My feet were hurting, both knees were hurting, and I had no desire to run any farther.

That last bit is significant: my feet hadn't hurt yet on these long runs.  I'm not quite sure where that was coming from, though I'm guessing the mud and water in my socks may have had some impact on it.

I felt drained afterwards, and all the next day.  I have two more long runs to get this right, before the race.  It's clear that the strategy I used this week is not going to work well.  I'm switching to lower GI food, and increasing the interval between intake.  I'm contemplating three options for fueling: a trail mix that worked very well on Sawteeth last year, o-nigiri, and/or some No Meat Athlete energy bars.  O-nigiri is a portable rice dish, which Matthew Inman (aka The Oatmeal) mentioned in a link off of his running comics (he got the recipe from Scott Jurek's book, Eat & Run).

Five Mile Trail - Oct 2013

I mentioned in my previous post that I thought I had lost the Five Mile Trail between the Orenda and Hathorn pavilions, but after reviewing the map, I don't think this was the case.  The markers are definitely scarce right around there, though.

The map for this year's route is available on Saratoga Spa State Park's Facebook account:

Five Mile Trail

So, I think this draws the mystery to a close.  The Five Mile Trail was created for this race, and after reviewing other posts on the park's Facebook page, it looks like the route has changed over the years, which explains why the are legacy markers scattered here and there.

There's a certain temptation for me to enter the race this Sunday: I really enjoy this trail, and it would be fun to run it in a race setting.  Hopefully I'll be fully operational next year.

Pause. Resume. Let's roll.

It has been several months since my last post, and I've got quite a bit to catch up on, so let's get to it.

The lump on my tendon is nearly gone: at times I can't find it, and at other times it's about the size of a mosquito bite.  I made the decision a couple of weeks ago to temporarily switch back to shoes with a higher heel drop, and it has made a significant difference.  Today, I wore my zero-drop Trail Gloves around the office, and I could feel soreness in my tendon just from the small amount of walking I had done.  So, I'll take that as a sign that I need to keep wearing the higher lift shoes for a while, and work on slowly re-transitioning back down to zero-drop.

To that end, I have also picked up a few new pairs of running shoes; the lovely folks down at Fleet Feet were able to get me set up with a pair for the road and a pair for the trail.  I'll have more on those shoes once I've had enough time to really get to know them.

I also have been exploring various reserves and trails around the area, and I have a few posts that I want to write regarding these opportunities.  Along those lines, it looks like the Five Mile Trail is used for the Fall Back Five race, happening this weekend at Saratoga Spa State Park.  The start and end of the trail is on the green near the Hall of Springs and the Little Theater, respectively, and the rest of the trail is generally how I had laid it out.  It does flow counter clockwise, which is not the way I had it going.  I followed the trail a bit on my weekend run last Saturday, and shortly after turning left past the land bridge between the Orenda and Hathorn pavilions, the markers disappeared.  Specifically, they disappeared between the gravel road that links the picnic area and the Hathorn pavilion.  I knew where the trail would be, so I was able to pick it up again, but I got the impression that I wasn't supposed to take the left onto the marked segment: the trail was intended to continue on to the Hathorn pavilion.  There were parties at both pavilions so I didn't linger to investigate the matter further, but I will in the future.

Five Mile Trail, Saratoga Spa State Park

I also have several mountain hikes to describe, including a trip up Mt. Equinox in August.  What a strange experience that was.  It was nothing at all like what I had expected.  The Taconics are truly an interesting range.  Let's just say that the woods are lovely, dark, deep, and most definitely possessed.

One final note: make sure you're wearing orange out there!  Regular deer hunting season is in full swing in the Northern Zone (in the Saratoga area that means north of Route 29).  The Southern Zone opens on November 16th this year, and both zones run until December 8th.  Details are here, http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/65231.html, and please be respectful to everyone you meet out there.

Five Mile Trail - 04 May 2013

This isn't exactly a trip report; more of a trail description.  After three full passes, and several shorter forays, I'm comfortable writing up a trail description for the Five Mile Trail at Saratoga Springs State Park.  I'm sure that I've made mistakes, and potentially omitted sections, so please consider this a work in progress.  The tag "Five Mile Trail" should take you to the latest trail description, if I decide to update it in the future.  I also plan on making a GPX file of the route available, once I've got a clean one.



This route may have been originally designated as a racing trail and may still be used today.  I haven't been able to dig up anything definitive with my (very) limited searches to date, but there are references to five mile races being held at Saratoga Springs State Park (which could have been held along any number of roads or trails).

At any rate, without any further chitter chatter, here's version 1.1.

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Five Mile Trail
Saratoga Springs State Park
Doug Harple, 8 May 2013, v1.1

These directions describe the route from the Orenda Pavilion.  Due to reservations at this pavilion, it may be easier to park near the Hathorn Spring #3, or near the Roosevelt Baths.  Both parking areas lie along the trail itself.  It is also possible to pick up the trail at numerous points from the picnic area near the Geyser pavilion.

The marking along this trail is occasionally sporadic, so it is important for the user to keep their eyes open.  The trail starts and ends at the grassy area near the Orenda pavilion.  Look for a pair of yellow "Five Mile Trail" signs near the head of the pavilion, and follow those into the woods.  The trail quickly descends down almost to the paved walkway before climbing back up to the level of the pavilion.  Poison ivy grows freely in these woods, and thickets of it have been observed in this area during the summer and fall.

The trail follows the pavilion green momentarily, and then heads back down again.  Keep your eyes open for signs in this area.  After a short distance, the trail makes its way down to the paved walkway.  Continue left, toward SPAC, past the Orenda spring, and under the SPAC walkway.  Head down the stairs, and then continue along the Vale of Springs trail back toward the Island Spouter.  The portion of this trail that crosses the runoff from the Orenda spring is always wet, and will leave a mineral residue on your footwear and/or feet.  Once past the Island Spouter, head left along the road and then take another left as the trail once again heads off into the woods.  Climb up to the SPAC fence, head right along the fence, and then head right once again across the Roosevelt Bath's parking lot.  Watch for markers, as there are a number of trails in this area.

From here there appear to be two possible routes.

I am describing the main route as the main route only because there is a mileage marker along this route.  It could very well be that someone stole the arrow marking the route, and that the alternate route is the correct route.  They could have also moved the 1 mile marker sign.

Main route: Follow the trail toward and past the Ferndell pavilion.  After a small open area, continue along in the same direction, toward a yellow sign that looks slightly different.  This is the 1 mile marker.  Follow the obvious path as it swings around and then heads over to the Ferndell parking lot.  As it approaches the parking lot, look for a trail heading slightly to the right, and run along side the road before heading to the right again.

Alternate route: As you approach the Ferndell pavilion, a marked FMT path to the left leads off just past another trail coming in from the right.  The turn is not marked.  Follow this to the road that leads to the Baths, and head right, through the grassy area, running parallel to the road.  Find the marked FMT trail markers on the other side of the grassy area, and follow them through a criss-crossing network of trails.  Head left once you get to the Ferndell parking area, and then take an immediate right.

Which ever route you took, you should now be running along side the North-South Road.  Avoid the trail going down and to the right, and take the second right, heading off into the woods, but more on the level.  Follow the well marked path through the woods, staying at roughly the same elevation now.  The trail loops around the cliffs above the picnic area as it makes its way over to the Columbia pavilion's parking area.  After a hard right, the trail immediately ducks away to the left, at a 45 degree angle.  Look up to find the signs.  Follow this well-marked section as it makes its way around the Columbia pavilion.  Watch out for a hard left that can be easy to miss.  A 1.75 mile marker is found in this area.  After a short while, the trail comes to an open field.  Head straight across, then down a short hill, and around a bend.  Cross over a small culvert, and make your way toward the road to cross the creek.  Watch out for traffic, as you have to actually walk on the active road for part of this crossing.

On the other side of the bridge, head right along a wide, grassy lane.  The 2 mile marker is found on the right along the creek.  This is the last mile marker on the course.  The trail heads gently to the left as it prepares to cross the road at a crosswalk, then follows the creek briefly.  Take the first obvious left, toward the Karista pavilion, and then head left again when possible, to pick up the trails heading up the cliff.  Follow the signs to get to the top.

Once you have reached the top, head generally to the left, following the row of trees, and make your way around the massive field.  This is a picnic area around the Peerless Pool.  The trail is mostly unmarked at this point, but follows the edge of the woods.  Avoid the trails leading back down the cliff, and instead follow the edge of the woods until you come to a squared off clearing.  Diagonally across the clearing is a trail that leads through a small strip of woods.  Once through the woods, head directly across the grassy area and make for a small stand of birches at the far end of the grassy area, directly ahead.  You will be walking parallel to the East-West Road at this point.  After crossing over the two access roads for the Peerless Pool, start looking for the trail.  The trail heads through the woods now, making a left as it goes to cross the East-West Road.

The trail now merges with the blue-marked Wetlands Overlook trail.  Follow the blue markers around a swampy area until you find yourself at a junction with a very wide grassy lane.  Head left along this lane, then take the next right to pick up the blue blazes once more.  Follow this trail, passing by the park fence and the wetlands overlook, before crossing over a small bridge that meets up with the same grassy lane.  Continue moving in the same direction, heading toward the road that's visible in the distance.  Cross this road, making for the paved walkway on the other side, and pick up the trail as it heads diagonally off into the woods once again.

As of 2013, this section has had recent improvements, and much of this next stretch is gravel.  The trail crosses the picnic road and then heads left at a T-junction.  A short distance later it heads left again, running through an occasionally wet area before crossing a walkway and ducking back into the woods around the Peerless Pool.  Take a left at the next T-junction, and then a short distance later head right.  At the junction with the gravel road, go right, and start looking for a marked trail heading off to the left, about 20' down the road.  Follow this for a short distance, before coming to another junction.  Go right at this junction, following the wide dirt lane as it crosses high above a stream and then crosses the picnic road once again.  Head right, following the signs, and find yourself once again standing at the Orenda pavilion's green.

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So, that was my first attempt at a trail description.  This trail weaves in and out of the park, using many other paths for its route, and can be quite confusing at times.  My first attempt at following this trail was a dismal failure, but my second attempt was much better.  That left several questions unanswered though, so I headed out for this third trip to try and solve them.  Aside from figuring out what is going on near the Ferndell pavilion, I think I have it worked out.  I used the mile markers to figure out that the most likely starting and stopping point is at the Orenda pavilion, which aligns with my theory about this being a racing trail, since you would need an open area to stage the start and end of the race.

At any rate, as always, I welcome any comments, suggestions, or even the occasional "hey, idiot, the official trail description is over here".