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October 31, 2004
Rocky Seven Sisters Range!
Today I finally ran along the mountain range that I have been eyeing since I moved to Northampton, the 7 sister's range. It was a perfect day for trail running because the sky was clear, the temperature was warm, and there was a slight breeze. The trail is about 7 miles in length and travels along 7 different peaks of about 700 to 1000 feet in height. The toughest climb is the initial climb to get to the ridge, from that point on it is small steep rocky climbs that you have to make to get to the different peaks and look out points.
The lighting through the trees was amazing and a bit distracting. The trails were covered in dry leaves which made the footing very slippery. I found the initial climb to be harder than I wanted it to be for my legs. I then considered the fact that the 800-foot climb was my warm up. I did not run anything level when I started off my run. The uphill running was easier than the downhill running because I could plan very easily where to place my feet. The downhill running on the trails that were rocky was more similar to fast downhill walking than running.
I was able to keep an ok pace when the trail was somewhat level or just slightly rolling but I felt like most of the runs I was looking for the white dots on the trees, watching my feet to make sure I could see the bulging rocks that were pointing through the leaves, or making sure I did not slip on the leaves. I did fall more than two times and luckily did not get hurt; I just got a few bruises.
I stopped along three different peaks to see the views of the Pioneer Valley. The views were really spectacular. The canopy of trees with their golden leaves were sparkling in the sunshine and the surroundings looked so peaceful. I felt like I was a guardian of the valley having such a clear view of the area. I saw the CT River meandering through the valley and squinted my eyes to see if I could locate any rowers on the river (nope).
After about 40 minutes of the run I realized this was not going to be a quality long run because I was moving so slowly to avoid falling and to become familiar with the twists and turns of the trail. My goal was to run from Hadley to Amherst and I managed to do that very slowly and then I turned around and came back on the same trail. There were lots of people hiking on the trail and they were all surprised to see me running the trail. They asked me if I was going to run the 7 sisters trail race in the spring. In the first 1.5 hours of the run I thought to myself there is no way I am going to break my ankle running that trail run in the spring. However, on the way back when I actually remembered some parts of the trail I thought to myself if I could memorize this trail and really get to know it, it might be really run to be racing along this crazy rocky windy trail. We'll see, it will take some work to figure out this trail and learn how to run on it. It could be a good adventure but I know I will loose some of my speed training if I concentrate on the ridge. I may make it a point to run it every other week while the weather is good and see if I can get any better at it.
On my return trip on the trail I stepped on a snake that was easily hidden in the orange and red leaves on the trail. All of a sudden I heard the hissing and the head go up. My friends in my exercise science classes tell me I have no vertical height jumping ability because I am an endurance athlete. I think I proved them wrong on the trail today. I jumped so high and got my legs off the ground so quickly that I surprised myself. It was not that the snake was huge and I highly doubt it was poisonous. It was thin and had some nice orange stripes along its back. I was frightened because it was so unexpected. When I ran in CA on the trails I was usually prepared to be on the look out for a rattlesnake or for some lizards along the trail. However, I did not expect to see any snakes on the trail in the fall in MA. It did make me feel that I was a part of a greater ecosystem when I saw the snake and afterwards I had my eyes open for other snakes. Of course, I did not see any other snakes.
I did have about 3 dogs chase me through the woods but that was actually more annoying than entertaining because they were darting all around me and I felt very close to falling when they were near.
All in all it was a good adventure. I am slightly disappointed that the trail is not more runnable or that I don't have the skills to run it very well. However, I think it is a beautiful area and in the back of my mind I do think it would be a fun challenge to learn to run the trail and scamper quickly and lightly over the rocks, and along the winding trail. I have a lot of things I want to do so we'll see how much of a priority this one becomes. I will definitely go back and hike the trail with some of my fellow graduate students because many of them have no made it to the top of the ridge. It is a view that should not be missed especially this time of year.
Posted by mary at October 31, 2004 10:51 PM
Comments
You, not run the trail race in the spring? Ha! Some of us know you better than that, `O Miss Dipsea Black Shirt... I bet it will be fun...
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