The Fall Frenzy

Week 24: August 11-August 16

Bike: It's all a blur, but probably only 32...plus the purchase of 1 bike
Run: 21 km
Swim: Do baths count??? If so 4 inches

Once again, I find myself 4 weeks behind in blogging. The excuse this time, is a combination of visits, holidays and the impending arrival of winter. In keeping with the blogging format that I have gotten so many compliments on (and by compliments I mean nobody’s complained…yet), the 4 weeks of activities will slowly, but surely be posted in the coming weeks.

This August, Tony’s Mother Norma and her friend Lee came to visit us in the Great White North. Although they were only here for one week, Tony and I tried to show them what a true Yukon summer was like by packing in as many activities as hours in the day. The culmination of the week was a trip to Dawson City, Yukon and the fabulous Bombay Peggy’s Hotel.

Bombay Peggy’s may be my favorite hotel in Canada. There are two main reasons for this: free port and an awesome bathtub. Over the course of three days I managed to take 8 baths in the Bombay Peggy bathtub, often sipping my free port while lounging in the bubbles. After a hard week at work, this combination was the perfect way to shed stress and get my muscles ready for the final 8 weeks before the Victoria marathon.

Although Dawson City was largely an exercise in relaxation, I did manage to do one long run down Bonanza Road towards Dredge No. 4. I also managed to inadvertently buy myself a nice Dawson treat for the winter:

The beautiful piece of jewellery around my neck is a Surly Pugsley frame and the beginnings of my winter bicycle. As you can see by my hands, this is my sixth bike-child, and although it’s the runt of the litter, it’s guaranteed to be a husky thing.

In and amongst the running and bike buying, I was able to partake in my favorite fall-ish activity (I use the term “fall-ish” because I’m not ready to accept the truth that summer is coming to an end). Although my berry picking skills are questionable – actually it’s more like my berry finding skills – I managed to pick 4 liters of cranberries with Beth, Lusia, Diana and Ken up in the secret Dawson berry spot. It only took us a couple of hours to get 16 liters of berries off bushes that were just waiting to become sauce.

On our way back to Whitehorse I visited the one Yukon site I’ve been missing for the past 5 years – the Tombstones. The Tombstone colors are as gorgeous as advertised – with ever kilometre taken straight out of the Yukon Landscapes coffee table book. The brightness of colors was spectacular and although we only managed a small hike through the fall foliage, it has convinced me that a more substantial Tombstones adventure is a 2009 requirement.

No, I did not photoshop that image in anyway...it was that colorful!

Sierra posted this on Sep 08, 2008 from the outside | | permanent link