Yup I’m back to the grind. This week marks my 4th week back in a M – F, 9-5 office job.
I recently left my ski school job where my office looked like this:
… to a job where my office looks like, well, most other offices. I’ve enjoyed decorating my office with photos of family and friends, and my training calendar (there is talk about signing up for a half-marathon October 10th…the day after my birthday).
For the most part I bring lunches to work. Yesterday I made a salad with shredded cabbage, spinach, chickpeas, hot sauce, carrots, and Mary’s crackers (my FAVOURITE gluten free crackers). I like that salads are filling enough, but don’t leave me feeling weighed down at my desk all afternoon! (and there is always room for snacks!)
This morning before work I did the Grind for the first time. It was a great way to start the day even though it meant I had to get up at 5:35am. I went with 4 coworkers who had all done it before and set a good pace for me to follow. Given that I had never done it before, a few were a little concerned that I wouldn’t make it in an hour and in time for the 7:30am gondola download. Not surprisingly to myself I managed to keep up and made it in plenty of time for the first gondola! For my Banff readers, comparisons to Tunnel and Sulphur mountain are at the end 
.
I was happy to see this sign (marking the 1/2 way point!):
And eventually being at the top with a gorgeous view of Vancouver. Followed by a download on the gondola. They prefer it if hikers take the gondola down rather than hiking down, its steep, really steep. It was a blast and I felt SO energized at work after doing something active in the morning!
I really love hiking! Time to create a list of hikes I want to accomplish!
Here are the stats:
Grouse Grind: 2.9 km one way, elevation gain 853 m, time today: 58 min one way (the record is around 24 min!!! crazy runners!!!)
Tunnel Mountain: 2.3 km one way, elevation gain 240 m, time this year: 26 – 30 min one way.
Sulphur Mountain: 5.5 km one way, elevation gain 742 m, time last summer: 1 hr 20 min one way.
…And I’ll compare it to Cascade Mountain and Black Tusk (two other hikes I have completed) – out of curiosity
Cascade Mountain: 18 km one way, elevation gain 1325 m, time last summer: 4 hours up, 6.5 hours down (the reverse of what most do!)
Black Tusk: 35 km round trip, elevation gain 1740 m, time 3 summers ago: 11 hours round trip!
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