Smugglers' Notch

Got back Saturday from a week at a cottage on Vermont's Champlain Islands. With grandparents eagerly taking care of Teddy, Nikki & I got to spend a lot of time kayaking & cycling. I did a climb in the Green Mountains on Wednesday--the Smugglers' Notch loop around Mount Mansfield & through the ski town Stowe. At almost 70 miles & with over 5000 total feet of climbing, this was both the longest & steepest ride I had ever attempted. I was very pleased because I managed to complete the first 40 miles, including the climb & part of the decent, in 2.5 hours. During the last leg of the ride, long after the climbs, I hit a nasty bunch of headwinds on a road the ran parallel to a highway for about 5 miles. This wind was almost as tough as the climb! But I felt very strong all the way to the finish & felt like I could have kept going.

Mt. Mansfield

Near the summit.

The summit of Smugglers' Notch.

Nikki, Teddy & my Mom met me at a deli about 5 miles after the summit. I had a corn beef hash, cheddar & BBQ sauce sandwich & it was delicious!

We really needed this vacation as life has gotten infinitely more complicated in the last month. We found out our lease would not be renewed, so had to scramble to find an apartment. We're in the middle of a hunt for a nanny--and just found out today that the family we thought we'd do a nanny-share with may be backing out! Maddening. I thought summer was supposed to be relaxing.