A nice long hike

I had a great hike Saturday in Shenandoah National Park for a hike -- went on my own because I couldn't gather up anyone else to tag along -- and it was great.

It was about 85 degrees with cool breezes at most of the vistas. It was a 7-mile hike all on the Appalachian Trail to a place called Mary's Rock. There was plenty of shady canopy that protected me from the sun and, later in the day, a pretty good thunderstorm. The views were spectacular despite a thick haze from the heat descending on the area.

I met a cool couple, with their dog, who were thru hikers. They had some very interesting stories about their journey.

The hardest part of the hike was a 1.5 mile segment that was pretty much uphill at a decent enough grade that my lungs felt it. I drank almost a gallon of water without needing a pee break so I obviously was working hard. The trail also was a bit rockier than I liked so my ankles and knees took a bit of a beating.

Oh, I also saw a black bear run across Skyline Drive. Very cool.

Overall it was great. It was a good test of my fitness level and I was happy it wasn't dismal. I will be back there for sure in two weeks and I hope to get down there again this weekend. It's just so nice to be out of the fray ... oh and there's my beer and ice cream reward, too. Can't forget about that. There's a little store in the park that sells individual bottled beers and a custard place in Front Royal. It's all good.

This week I hope to continue my exercise plan -- most likely on the bike on the trainer in my house -- and maybe some treadmill work at the gym.

My diet is overall pretty good (outside of the occasional beer and custard) so I hope to reap the benefits of a good routine on all front.