Lessons from Slow: Relearning How to Train for the Long Trail with Chronic Pain

Hello everyone,

I am very happy to return to The Trek after last year’s abortion, due to significant health difficulties. The training was going very well, but after pushing the limits too much, I ended up with a “crash and burn”, as you could read in my previous posts.

This winter, I’m trying a completely new approach. After being in the military for 25 years, I was a devout follower of the “train while you fight, fight while you train” approach. That’s a way of doing things that is very difficult to leave behind, as is the fact that I am very goal-oriented.

Training hike: Mount Foster, Eastern Townships, Quebec.

The goal was reasonable: about 3 kilometers with fresh snow and snowshoes. Now, for most this would be easy, but not for me. Triple layer clothing, snowshoes, a 10 pound backpack and you’re done. The weather was amazing, just a slight breeze and around 32°F. The challenge for me was opening the trail with about 5 inches of snow. The path was easy to find since I know the place quite well.

The pristine and unbeatable trail

The rhythm

I always had the reflex to walk hard, push and try to get in better shape. I think this is what brought out the best in me last year. This time, I took my time and stopped every 150 feet or so to take pictures. I even saw a woodpecker fly in front of me, the only living creature I would see during the day.

The Summit and the Summits in the Air

There is a nice observation tower at the top, but it was all fogged up. It didn’t matter, since the scenery from the ground was very beautiful; I was really grateful to be able to keep walking. I grabbed my ham radio, set up my antenna, and contacted about 6 stations, from Sweden to Texas, including my friend Andy from North Carolina.

There are no views, but it’s okay…

My portable radio, using Morse code…

Perspective

On the way back, I was very happy with this success and began to reflect:

You know you are alive when:

You feel the cold on your cheeks

Climbing a steep section makes your stomach turn

You almost tripped on your own snowshoes.

A branch drops snow down your neck.

You have a whole mountain to yourself

You got hurt a lot the next day.

Thanks for reading and I’ll keep you posted on how training goes until the Trail.

Greetings and 73,

Cunning the navigator

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