I try to get a walk in every day. By walk, I mean uninterrupted overland movement by foot for at least a mile. Some days this is easy if I’m out and about on the trails, but it’s harder if home for the day, or worse yet, traveling. I believe the “uninterrupted” part of walking is much more important than the number of steps taken each day.

While in Tucson I found myself doing two walks each day not on a trail. In the morning I’d wander from Youngest Son’s house to the outskirts of the development and back, a distance of about 1.3 miles. Then in the afternoon I’d head in the other direction, west, and visit a nearby recreation field. I’d walk once around that soccer pitch and then return to the house. That walk was shorter. The two of them together added up to just under 2.5 miles over very flat terrain.

Here in Vermont I have a couple of tracks I use when at home. The first is a flat walk along the state highway at the end of the driveway. I regularly take my life in my hands following this out-and-back route of about 1.5 miles. The road is posted at 50MPH, but very, very few of the drivers pay any attention to that. I’d estimate the average speed is closer to 65 or 70.

I try to select times of the day when traffic is lightest. I don’t always choose wisely, but have survived thus far.

My favorite, and better walk takes me a couple miles away from Pondside where I walk a dirt road that circles another, larger lake. Today I had the opportunity to head over there, so I did.

This other track is a bit more challenging, coming in at a shade over 3.5 miles and incorporating a 350 foot elevation gain, over a well-kept dirt road with very little traffic. This would be the first walk with any elevation gain since Wasson Peak in Saguaro National Park over two weeks ago. Also would be the longest walk returning home from Arizona.

I was active on the trails while in the Southwest, and my overall impression is they were easier than what we’ve got in the Northeast. My hope was they’d be enough to keep my wheels and lungs in shape over the winter. Usually in the winter I’m off the trails from mid-December until April. There was no off-season for this old man from 2023 into 2024. One of the things I’ve noticed as I get older is each spring it’s a little more difficult to get back into shape for the uphill trekking. I’m trying to avoid that ramp up this year.

By the time I arrived at the usual parking spot, the morning’s rains had cleared out and the sun was shining. In fact it had warmed up to the point where I’d have normally worn shorts and a lighter shirt, but there I was in heavy jeans and a flannel shirt. Off I went, dragging along a rain jacket to ensure the rains did not return. Works every time!

It was nice returning to “home turf”, especially as everything was waking up from winter. Just as I was getting out of the car I saw a partridge about 20 feet away, aimlessly walking along the woods line.

For quite a stretch along the road there were moose tracks. They were fairly recent. This is a good sign, as the moose population in Vermont was hit hard by tick-borne disease a few years ago. They seem to be rebounding- last spring we saw quite a few of them around here.

I kept my usual pace as I followed the road upwards towards its highest point, sweating more due to the clothing, and breathing hard in the usual places. By the time I crested the hill, I was damp and my hat was soaked. 

As I turned around to head back, I noticed that my breathing’s recovery time from a serious uphill push was excellent- seconds, not minutes. That’s not the norm for me in April. So the walk back was upbeat and brisk, looking forward to seeing the trip data once finished.

I was not disappointed. The tale of the walk was almost exactly the same as the last walk in 2023. Good news, as I was a bit worried. We’ll chalk up that sweating to the heavy clothes and move on to the trails. I’ve a mountain down in New Hampshire in mind for early next week- we’ll see how that goes!