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Vacationing Exactly the Way We Like It

My husband and I prefer to vacation a little differently than some. We love to stay active and plan our trips around hiking, biking, and in the past, running. We’re perfectly happy having a big breakfast, eating a few bars while out on our adventure, and then either grabbing a quick dinner or even hitting up a grocery store for food we can prepare in our Airbnb. 

I always overpack with cute outfits I never wear, opting instead to change from my cycling kit or hiking clothes to capris or shorts and a tee. This vacation was no different and we loved every minute of it!

 

Overview of the Week

Before discussing each day’s workouts, here’s an overview of my workouts from this past week. Scroll beyond the infographic for daily details…

 

Sunday

Travel day: Portland to Bar Harbor, Maine

Strength training: 20 minutes of core

I’d hoped to do a little hiking, but we spent much of the day in the car driving from Portland to Bar Harbor. Once in Bar Harbor we headed straight to Acadia National Park and drove around getting to know the lay of the land. We stopped at a few overlooks and came across this stunning view, the first of many, we were sure.

 

Monday

Cycling: 31 miles
• Average speed: 11.8 MPH
• Bike: Cannondale Topstone
• Surface: gravel
• Elevation gain: 1,883 feet
• Start time: 9:54 PM
• Location: Acadia National Park carriage trails
• Weather: 46° and sunny, climbing to 55°
• What I wore: long bike pants, sleeveless base layer, s/s jersey, arm sleeves, light jacket, ear warmer headband, and mid-temp fingered gloves

Bill and I met our friend Ed who just happened to be in Bar Harbor visiting family – he used to ride with us and the Dawn Patrol prior to moving from the area. He knows the area well and was a fantastic tour guide as we rode around the park on some of the carriage trails.

 

Hiking: 2 miles
• Average pace: 27:20
• Elevation gain: 380 feet
• Start time: 4:44 PM
• Location: Cadillac North Ridge Trail in Acadia National Park
• Weather: 53° and clear
• What I wore: shorts, s/s shirt, fleece jacket, gloves, and visor

After a late lunch, Bill and I headed back out for a short hike. We drove to the Cadillac North Ridge Trail, but chose to hike only half way to the top of the very technical trail. It was late and the going was slow so we turned early to avoid chasing the setting sun as we made our way off the mountain.

 

Tuesday

Cycling: 24 miles
• Average speed: 11.4 MPH
• Bike: Cannondale Topstone
• Surface: gravel
• Elevation gain: 1,578 feet
• Start time: 10:24 AM
• Location: Acadia National Park, Maine
• Weather: 49° and sunny, climbing to 56°
• What I wore: long bike pants, s/s jersey (sleeveless base layer for 3 miles), arm sleeves, light jacket, ear warmer headband, and mid-temp fingered gloves

 

Cycling: 12 miles
• Average speed: 11.6 MPH
• Bike: Cannondale Topstone
• Surface: gravel
• Elevation gain: 659 feet
• Start time: 12:31 PM
• Location: Acadia National Park and Bar Harbor, Maine
• Weather: 57° and sunny, dropping to 56°
• What I wore: long bike pants, s/s jersey, arm sleeves, light jacket, ear warmer headband, and mid-temp fingered gloves

Our friend Chuck arrived in Bar Harbor just as we were finishing up our ride so we swung by his hotel on our bikes and picked him up for a short ride. We played tour guide with a short ride to the carriage trails and then in to the quaint little town of Bar Harbor.

 

Wednesday

Cycling: 30 miles
• Average speed: 12.9 MPH
• Bike: Cannondale Topstone
• Surface: paved
• Elevation gain: 2,274 feet
• Start time: 9:55 AM
• Location: Park Loop Road, Acadia National Park, Maine
• Weather: 55° and overcast, climbing to 59°
• What I wore: bike shorts, s/s jersey, arm sleeves, light jacket, ear warmer headband, and mid-temp fingered gloves (removed jacket and headband, and switched to fingerless gloves at mile 16)

Strength training: 15 minutes core

Prior to our ride, we arrived at the Cadillac Mountain summit just after 5;30 AM with Bill’s brother, our sister-in-law, and our friend Chuck. We opted to drive rather than hike up the dark (and I’m sure scary) technical trails as we hoped to catch the sunrise. The sun’s rays can be seen first in the contiguous United States from the summit during the fall and winter months. We may have been the first to see the sunrise, but the sun wasn’t in a show-offy mood.

As I mentioned in last week’s RunDown, two of our cycling friends just happened to be in Bar Harbor as well (one moved from our area just over a year ago) so we took advantage of having a Dawn Patrol reunion. We pumped up our gravel tires to a higher pressure and stayed on the paved Park Loop Road (plus a couple of side road excursions). We had a blast and were sad this would be our last day of riding in Maine.

 

Thursday

Running: 5K
• Average pace: 9:39
• Elevation gain: 129 feet
• Start time: 5:57 AM
• Location: Bar Harbor, Maine
• Weather: 55°
• What I wore: shorts, tank top, and gloves

Stretching: 10 minutes

Travel day: Bar Harbor, Maine to West Windsor, Vermont

With several hours of sitting in the car ahead of me on the drive from Maine to Vermont, I went out for a pre-dawn run while Bill headed back to the park for some sunrise photography. Before heading in for my shower, I walked down to the pier for a sunrise picture of my own.

 

Friday

Strength training: 15 minutes of core

Cycling: 46 miles
• Average speed: 10.0 MPH
• Bike: Cannondale Topstone
• Surface: gravel
• Elevation gain: 4,603 feet
• Start time: 11:04 AM
• Location: Windsor, Vermont
• Weather: 62° and sunny, climbing to high 60’s, then dropping to 58° and mostly cloudy
• What I wore: bike shorts, s/s jersey, arm sleeves, light jacket, fingerless gloves (removed jacket and armbands at mile 6)

Stretching: 10 minutes

This ride was one for the books! We had 4,600 feet of climbing over 46 miles, an 18% grade on sand-like cinder near the end of a 5-mile climb, a class 4 road that I mostly had to bike-hike across, and I saw the deep red color code on my Garmin’s (affiliate link) hill profile for the first time. There was a bear and a cub that we didn’t see that another guy pointed out. The entire ride was stunningly gorgeous and we were wiped out when we finished, but so pumped to have done it!

 

Saturday

Travel day: West Windsor, Vermont to home

 

Last Week’s Blog Posts

In case you skipped checking in on my blog this past week, here’s what you missed…

 

Questions:
  • • Have you been to Maine or Vermont? ~ This was my first visit to Maine, but I’d visited Killington, Vermont for a week of skiing when our sons were young.
  • • What was your favorite workout of the week? ~ Friday’s ride was extremely difficult, but so scenic and exactly what we were looking for.
  • • Did you run in a race this weekend? ~ No

 

And that’s my rundown… Have a great week!

 

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I’m linking up with Deborah at Confessions of a Mother Runner and Kim from Running on the Fly for their Weekly Run Down. Be sure to check out not only the hosts’ posts, but those of the other great bloggers joining in on the fun!

 

Disclaimer:  This post contains affiliate links which means if you click on the blue product link and then make a purchase, I will receive a small commission for referring you. You will pay no more or less for the product; however, Amazon will show their gratitude for my referral by paying me.