Today I hiked Lower Table Rock with Patrick (check out his TOPFIT link on my home page). It was very wet, soggy even, quite muddy on the trail up, with standing water on the top. I did not care–I was so happy to get back to the Rogue Valley, and to hiking, I was willing to brave just about anything! It was also very foggy, and rather surreal. But we walked around the Oak Savannah trail at the bottom for the first time after hiking up, running across and back on the plateau, and hiking and running down. I was stiff, and hurt more than usual, but was still so relieved to be on the trail again! The Savannah is lovely this time of year–you can really see the wonderful structure of the trees, and it is quite flat and easy for a half mile loop. Reminds me of the Serengeti plain of Africa, in miniature. I think I will want to run some laps on it another day. There is also a very nice set of illustrations of some of the wildflowers you can see throughout the season on signs here.

I returned from NYC yesterday, which was a glorious celebration for my spirit and soul as an artist, but a nightmare for my body. A red-eye flight of five hours to get there, jet lag, a rigorous schedule of museums and sight seeing, left no time for exercise. And when I was in tears and a total bitch to my family because my legs hurt so bad, the only pool available to me was closed! I spent an hour in a hot bath, stretching, and was able to resume the activities of racing for public transport, and standing for hours before fabulous art work, or to get to the top of a very, very tall building. I wanted aerobic exercise so bad, I considered bribing a staffer so that I could run up to the top of the Empire State Building. I had to settle for the last six flights.

How did I get to this place of exercise craving/addiction? It is a long story. For this post, let it suffice to say, I started hiking the Table Rocks of Southern Oregon last April with my hiking partner and dear love, Patrick, and quickly progressed to many other trails in the area, and discovered that not only do I love to mosey along looking at wild flowers and snapping photos (shutterbugging as I call it), but that I also have so much less pain when I move, that I took to lots of walking (just to see the flowers, which are amazing!), then power hiking, and by last summer, trail running. Oh, my! Was I ever surprised that I could do these things with my fibromyalgia a constant challenge! I had been swimming for about three years, after developing my strength in warm water fibromyalgia aerobics classes for almost a decade, but swore I would never be a runner. Patrick does not let me forget this comment I made on an early hike, when he commented that I looked like a natural runner. I had way too much pain to ever consider that I could do terrestrial exercise that impacted my joints and muscles. I was amazed, and still am.

Tune in later for more adventures as I hike through the year….

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