Self-Propelled: My 365 Mile Journey: A Challenge, and Now What?

I was a little surprised to see how long it's been since I've done a blog post. It's been almost two months. I was trying to think why I haven't posted, and I can't say why. I haven't been just sitting around, because I've added nearly 200 miles to my total mileage since then, and part of those miles came from a local challenge we participated in, the Summer OAT Challenge.

This challenge involved walking or riding on the Adventure Route portion of the Olympic Discovery Trail. I never thought I would be on this part, mostly because it's single-track, and I don't ride on dirt (if I can avoid it). The entire route was about 22 miles, and W figured the best way for us to do it was in 5 sections, staging vehicles at either end of each section. It took us five weeks, one section a week, and I'm glad we did it. There were some rewards, of course; a shirt, a bandana with with route on it, and an adult beverage, beer for him, cider for me. Part of our entry fee was donated to the https://olympicdiscoverytrail.org, the organization involved in the construction and maintenance of the trail system.

Our first section was not my favorite, only because it involved trudging up a long road to actual trail. No switchbacks to break up the grade, just up a gravel road. Once we hit the trees, things definitely improved. The majority of the distance was in the trees, and the trail itself was really nice. We found chanterelle mushrooms in three of the five sections, always a bonus! We hardly saw any people, one guy on the second section, and a family on bikes with four boys out front, followed by parents and a cute little girl with a killer helmet - on single track! Section four we ran into two women walking at least three dogs, but the last section, which is the easiest to access from the main road had the most people - trail runners as well as cyclists. We even saw a friend who rides a lot. I'd heard about a place on the last section called The Living Room, and I finally got to see it. And, because my husband has both ridden and worked in the area, I saw the first place he worked on his first day of work with the DNR, which included a bee sting. My workplace seemed quite dull after this!

When the challenge was completed, it was kind of a letdown. We had a hiking date every week, and I looked forward to getting out. We had beautiful weather, except for a little bit of drizzle the first day, but we had blue skies and sunshine. I saw places I honestly did not think I'd ever see. I even got to sit on one of the living room benches. I want to do the second section again; it was my favorite.

Now what? This challenge gave us an opportunity to explore some new local territory. I've surpassed my goal for the 365 Mile Challenge 2020, and with some extra effort (probably in the form of cycling) it is very possible for me to get to a triple, which would be awesome and somewhat unexpected. There are still some local hikes I'd like to do, and if we ever leave the Olympic Peninsula, there are some hikes in central Washington I'd like to do as well. The reality is, I've met my goal, but I definitely have some options.

835.08/365