Saturday Morning Skate Ski with My Dear Husband and Deer

It was 26 degrees this morning--perfect for skate skiing--so I asked Enrico if he wanted to go with me. He said it had been "years" since he had skated, which I find hard to believe. After some hemming and hawing, he agreed to go with me. This morning's conditions were a bit icy because of the melting yesterday, which made for fast conditions, but we both felt our shins and ankles tensing up quite a bit from efforts to keep our balance on the icy trail. However, with rising temperatures, later in the day it would be too mooshy for good skate skiing, so we enjoyed the moment.

It was a cloudy morning, which is probably good because there are some spots that are very thinly covered with snow and any sun on them will probably cause melt-through to the bare ground. We had a nice ski, even stopping to take a selfie, above, (which Enrico doesn't often agree to). When I got up to the dog park, there was an Irish Setter, so I whistled at him to race me the length of the dog park, which he did for awhile before giving up.  I had fun doing a series of quick step turns at the end of the dog park to turn around, but when I did, I saw Enrico was nowhere in sight! I hustled back to see what had happened to him. He had fallen, but he was okay.

As we were standing there talking, we saw some movement across the river--a herd of deer was moving through the trees. At that moment, a skier came by and I asked if he saw the deer. He was into his skate ski and didn't hear me. We saw him again after he turned around at the dog park and pointed them out. I skied the length of the dog park. This time the Irish Setter was completely uninterested in racing me. When I turned around, Enrico was not there again, so I skied back to find him. He had stopped to talk to the skier, who told him that he often sees a red fox when he skis in the morning. This time, Enrico and I skied to the end of the dog park together.

At the end of the park, we saw a dog off leash--his owner was watching him from the car. I've met the guy before--he's older and a veteran and had knee surgery last year. I pick up his dog's poop because he doesn't seem able to do it. I was sad to see that he didn't even feel well enough to get out of his car today to exercise his dog.

On the way back, Enrico and I stopped to catch our breath. I looked across the river.
"The deer are still there," said Enrico.
"It's amazing how good they are at hiding in a place where there is actually little cover," I responded.

"Hey, do you remember our first date?" I asked, "When we met up in McCall, Idaho?" A friend of my roommate had won a weekend at a timeshare in McCall, and she couldn't use it, so she let me have it.
"Did we go downhill skiing that time?" he asked.
"Yes, we went cross-country and downhill on that trip," I replied. "I was entranced by how beautifully you downhill skied, how supple your hips were."
"Oh, if you had seen anyone from my high school team, you would not have been so impressed," said my modest husband.

We chatted a bit more, then we saw a burst of movement on the opposite bank. There were some children sledding who had startled the deer, and the herd was on the move. We watched as the deer streamed down the bank in a line and onto the river. We counted nine of them; one had a limp. They began running up the river, and I said, "Let's ski beside them!" So we skied in the same direction, watching them run, until they turned to go up the riverbank again and into the woods.

"The last one twitched his ears, then waved his tail back and forth, as if to erase our memory of having seen them," said Enrico to our son later. 

Two morning skis: Sun Salutation and Mother-Son Ski

Twenty-Six degrees ABOVE zero today! I went for a ski to greet the sun, enjoying watching the light first touch the buildings and trees on the river bank, and then slowly light up the trees below. Skate conditions were fast. I could see that there had been a lot of skate traffic on the trail since yesterday morning--perhaps the Moorhead High School Ski Team was training yesterday afternoon. I enjoyed this solo ski today because it gave me time to think about my older son, Alessandro, returning to college today. I am really going to miss him!

When I got back, I made him a cup of chai tea and asked if he would like to ski before heading to the airport. He said yes! My heart swelled--one more mother-son ski before he heads back to Wesleyan.

When we headed out about 9:30, the sun was already high in the sky. We stopped a couple of times to take photos and talk. OK, I got a bit tearful, as the picture of a day out skiing with my dad popped into my mind's eye. I'm so glad that I have this same ski bond with Alex. He really enjoyed being out in the warm temperatures on the fast trail.

After our ski, we quickly showered, ate, and headed to the airport. Before he left, he said, "Maybe we can do a mother-son outing this summer too, like a hiking trip." He knows just what to say to make it easier for me to let go. 

Pre-Dawn Skate Ski on Newly Rolled Trails

I got on the ski trail at 7:38am this morning, and it was light enough to ski during this time that is called "civil twilight," although sunrise was not until 8:06am. It was 16 degrees warmer than yesterday (6 above!), so I decided to skate ski, a good decision as the trail had been freshly rolled, leaving a corduroy surface. Unfortunately, some parts of the skate deck were marred by someone being too eager to ski on after the groomer passed by:

Trails that have just been groomed need time to "set up" before they are firm enough to ski on. I learned about this when I was a teenager, out skiing on the UAF trails late at night. The groomer passed by, paused, and waved me over. He explained how the trail needed to set up overnight, so if I could please ski on the trails he wasn't grooming, then I and other skiers would have a much nicer trail to ski on that week. I was glad to know this and changed my route.

Here's an example of my track this morning on a segment of trail that had been set up (to compare with the above):

Even when the trail is "set" it is best if walkers and bikers stay off the trail. In a couple of sections, I saw how a fat tire biker had dug into the skate deck when he or she tried biking on the trail for a few yards. Fortunately, this person thought better of his decision and moved off the trail:

When I got to the Dog Park, I noticed that Fargo Parks had put up a new sign to remind people of ski trail etiquette. I hope it helps educate people about ski trail use:

The ski trails, like the swimming pools and hockey rinks, add to quality of life in Fargo-Moorhead. I hope people will treat them well, especially given how little snow we have right now.

MLK Day Ski

Since yesterday, the temperature dropped and the wind picked up. The sun, which has been staying up longer each day since winter solstice, seemed weaker today, barely penetrating the blowing snow in the atmosphere. It was a different kind of ski today. No throngs of skiers--just me and the wind.

The wind had scoured the trail, filling in the depressions where we skied yesterday and leaving bits of sticks and grass exposed. In addition to the filled-in tracks and debris, the snow was much colder today (air temperature was ten below), so the skis were not gliding like they did yesterday. Consequently, I got a very good workout, despite not moving very quickly. I also made sure to have a neck gaiter on, which I pulled up over my nose when the wind was coming at me head on, to prevent getting my nose frostbitten. I kept my head down and forged ahead.

This gave me some time to think about Dr. Reverend Martin Luther King, Junior and the history of slavery in our country. He was so dedicated to serving humanity, and when I visited the Civil Rights Museum in Atlanta for the first time last year, I was struck by how many people he has inspired and the larger human rights movement he was a part of. It's humbling to think about his greatness on a day when I feel very small (and cold).

While it still felt good to get some fresh air, it also felt good to get back inside and have a cup of hot tea when I was done skiing. 

Throng of Thirty Out Skiing Today!

Woke up to cloudy skies and steadily falling snow. Once again, the snow was falling straight down, not being blown around--a special sight in North Dakota, which tends to be windy in winter. I decided to go out late morning while the snow was still coming down because I heard it was going to be windy later in the afternoon.

I hadn't been skiing for a few days, so I felt kind of stiff at first, but something soon cheered me up--I passed a couple of skiers with smiles on their faces, then a group of four people and a dog, then another couple, and a dad with a very little son on the side of the trail, who pointed me out to his dad as I skied by, "Look at that!" It was just so heartwarming to see so many people out enjoying skiing. By the end of my hour and ten minutes skiing, I counted 30 people out on the trails today.

Near the end of my ski, I just stopped here and listened to the sound of the snow falling on these dried grasses. It was a beautiful sound--even a gray day has its delights. 

Waking to tears; skiing in memoriam

I woke up yesterday morning with tears on my pillow. I had been dreaming that I was back in Buck and Judy Wilson's house on Musk Ox Trail, but Buck had passed away. I was mourning his loss.

When I woke up, I remembered that I had, indeed, received an email from Judy yesterday, telling me that Buck had died at the end of October. That makes three of my role models from that neighborhood who have died this fall. When I read the email, I was in the middle of one of those long workdays in which I was just trying to keep my head above water, and I simply did not allow myself to process the news in the email message. Instead, I did that in my dreams, crying then.

Buck was a special person to me. I believe I have written about how my dad died of cancer when he was only 42 (I was 19). Well, Buck was a kind of father figure to me. Like my dad, he was someone who liked to cross-country ski and hike, and I have good memories of doing those things together. We went on mountain biking trips to Denali Park and Wrangell St Elias Park with our friend Jose. We hiked around his cabin at Michael Creek. Buck was also into the arts and yoga, and his enthusiasm for life and community and family was just wonderful. Buck was a physicist who specialized in studying the waves made by the aurora borealis in the upper atmosphere. He worked at the University of Alaska geophysical institute on the west ridge of campus, conveniently located next to the cross-country ski trails, and I saw him out on those trails many times when he was taking a break from work. After he retired, he had more time for skiing and maintaining the cabins he had built and traveling, but he was soon drawn back into work as listening stations were set up around the globe to capture the waves in the atmosphere. The signature of the waves for nuclear tests was similar to that of the aurora, so Buck's skills were needed as a consultant on this project. Buck was always curious about the world and active in enjoying it.

When Enrico and I returned to Alaska after getting married, we lived in Buck and Judy's cabin. It was a great community to be a part of. Our son, Alessandro, was conceived and born while we lived on Musk Ox Trail. We then moved into our own home out in Goldstream Valley, but we missed our wonderful neighbors from Musk Ox Trail. Now we live even further away.

This morning's ski was in their honor. I thought over my dream and my memories while gliding over the snow and looking at the beautiful colors in the sky. Life is beautiful and too short. 

Sunrise Skate Ski: 8 on the 8th.

The warm, windless weather continued today, so I watched carefully for the first sign of sunrise. When I saw the underbellies of the clouds starting to turn pink, I hurried out the door with my skate skis to catch the sunrise. It was about 7:45, so I had plenty of time to watch the pre-sunrise show along the Red River corridor, with its dark outlines of its stately trees providing a contrast to the delicate and changing light in the sky.

Okay, that was terribly out of focus, but I love the way the clouds look in this picture. Here is one that shows the trees better:

I had stopped at this point to take a photo of the sunrise reflected in the church windows because the reflection looked so beautiful from the ski trail--sunrise on my left, reflection on my right. My photo doesn't do it justice. 

I was enjoying the beautiful light so much that I skied up and down the skate trail twice this morning, getting in a good hour, plus of skiing. Although my hips and lats were a bit sore from my first skate ski yesterday, I felt pretty good! 

I saw a couple of people out walking, probably making good on their New Year's resolutions, as they walked at a good clip with a purposeful carriage. 

I heard a bird singing to the sunrise--two notes, first high, then low. I wish I knew my bird calls better. 

Here is the last photo I took as the sky changed from pink to orange. See the bird's nest in the tree?

Alessandro went out for a sunset skate ski. He, too, enjoyed the fast conditions. He saw 8 deer by the beaver lodge.

Second Skate Ski of Season Satisfies

I poked my head out this morning and saw a clear sky, which usually means cold, but the air felt warm. Then, I noticed something by its absence--the wind was not blowing! It looked like a great day to try skate skiing again after my disappointing first attempt. I had some yogurt and granola for breakfast, drank a cup of coffee, read a bit of the Sunday New York Times while breakfast settled, then I got into my light tights, thin long underwear top, and zipped up a fleece jacket. After our cold weather, this get-up felt almost like beach gear--and I didn't even feel the least bit cold when I went outside.

As soon as I got on the trail, I discovered that conditions were fast. Usually I struggle with skate skiing for the first several times, as I get into shape, but I felt terrific! Having a couple of days off due to volunteering for my son's swim meet probably helped too.

It was really a blast today--no one was out skiing, so I had the trail to myself. I took time to slow down when I saw twigs on the trail, to pick them up and toss them into the woods, so I didn't trip on them when I was tired. I hope other skate skiers appreciate my trail cleaning too.

I worked up a good sweat and got that great endorphin high from getting my heart rate up near its maximum--my good mood stayed around the rest of the day.

NDSU starts up again tomorrow, but I am glad to have had this very satisfying skate ski before getting back to the full-time grind. 

Skiing with Noko

Yesterday, Noko and I went for a ski after we got some new snow. I noticed that Fargo Parks had rolled the trail for skate skiing, though we didn't go on it, of course. I thought about going out for a night ski after it set up, but I was too sleepy. In the morning, I saw that we got more snow! And fat flakes continued to fall throughout the morning!

But alas, I was too busy with work, parenting, and other things to get out an enjoy it. Maybe I can get up early tomorrow and steal out for a ski...

Skiing when the temperature goes up 30 degrees and I go down at 45 degrees

Enrico and were back at work today, but we saw the temperature going up, up, up, so we left early to take our canine child for a skijor before dark. In my rush to change and get out the door, I slipped while coming down the wooden stairs in my wool socks, and had a spectacular crash through the child safety gate at the bottom of the stairs. Wood went flying everywhere! Max and Enrico came rushing over. I seemed fine, and we went directly out to ski.

Unfortunately, warmer temperatures also brought wind, so it felt pretty cold still, but the snow was faster to ski on with the warmer temperatures. I went out first, with Noko (harnessed to Enrico) chasing me. We had a good ski--about 40 minutes or so, then came back to shower before heading off to West Fargo to watch Max's swim meet.

By the end of the meet, my body was beginning to feel sore in a few places from my pre-ski toboggan run down the stairs.