I made it (yea!), then I didn't (boo!)

Earlier this week I reached my BMI goal.  Yea!!!  This was a stretch goal I wanted to reach before I left for New Mexico.   But with this being a bad week - I'm up 1.5 pounds from that goal .  This has been a tough week for me with a fair amount of stress eating and less exercise, plus throw in Father's Day and an evening with my friend Scott.  I do think this is a temporary gain and normally I would be back down in a few days. But this is family vacation week which I think will push me up even more.   Boohiss!


The exercise is less due in part to the weather being 90+ and humid.  This has greatly reduced the distance of the dog walks.  Zeus gets too out of breath and pants so much that I usually try to get him back homeward as soon as he does his bathroom business.  I still have high personal hopes that one day he will be able go miles, but this is not the week!  I think I have to push out my goal of turning Zeus into a dog that loves to hike the trail - maybe try this in September or October as it gets a little cooler.

The exercise has also lost out on the priority list to the trip preparation - both packing and trying to get the house and yard stuff done before I leave.

And you can add in a couple days of drinking. It's not that I drank that much, but I really have stopped most of my drinking so now having 2 or 3 beers in a night is a big night.  And not only is that a lot of empty calories, it also leads to eating more.  Some of that is because I feel the need to eat to 'soak' up the alcohol and the other part is when I've been drinking my food judgement can be swayed too easily.    

So what does this mean....in no particular order
- I'm getting better at knowing myself and being able to select good stretch goals 
- Need to find a way to get in more exercise this week to compensate for the family food frenzy (that these family vacations include) and the increase of alcohol

• I think I will have 4 days of good exercise - Friday at White Sands, a day Bandelier National Park, a day hiking in the Santa Fe Forest, and the last Saturday at Capulin Volcano National Monument
• I'm also going to try to get in some healthy long and fast walks on 3 of the mornings when at the Santa Fe rental house
• and hopefully this will also give me some personal time away to help me recharge
• I also usually get some good walking when I'm at the airport waiting - both Friday (which also already has White Sands) and Sunday, July 1 will benefit from that  
• Eating will be hard but I need to keep focused on the light weigh method and really just work to eat less - sounds so simple, but we all really know how hard this will be

Santa Fe Visitor Bureau Link

Handy link for the Santa Fe Community Calendar, Things to Do, Dining, etc

http://santafe.org/Calendar/#top

Just keep swimming!!!

I'm stressing myself and I try to get everything ready for the trip and all the house stuff and volunteer stuff I wanted to get done before I left... so in the immortal words of Dory: Just keep swimming, Just keep swimming!!!

Fort Marcy Recreation Complex

Our New Mexico "swimming hole"

Fort Marcy Recreation Complex
490 Bishops Lodge Road
Santa Fe, NM  87504

Daily Fees $2 for youths (11 -17), $3 for adults, $1 for Simon

http://www.santafenm.gov/index.aspx?nid=102


Also has Outdoor fields and walking path and Weight Room / Cardio-Vascular Fitness

Walking directions to 490 Bishops Lodge Rd, Santa Fe, NM 87501 (0.4 mi, 7 mins)
   
125 Paseo De La Cuma
Santa Fe, NM 87501
   
1. Head southwest on Pso De La Loma toward Pso De La Cuma - 102 ft
2. Turn left onto Pso De La Cuma - 0.1 mi
3. Turn left onto Old Taos Hwy - 341 ft
4. Turn right toward Artist Rd - 0.2 mi
5. Slight right onto Artist Rd - 138 ft
6. Turn right onto Bishops Lodge Rd/State Route 590
Destination will be on the left

490 Bishops Lodge Rd
Santa Fe, NM 87501

Day Hiking

Don suggested this hike

This hike begins on the outskirts of the city of Santa Fe and affords panoramic views of the Rio Grande valley and the city of Santa Fe as well as an introduction to the vegetation characteristic of the foothills and mountains of this area.

Atalaya Mountain Hiking Trail
Length: Trail 174 is approx. 7 miles round-trip, Trail 170 is 4.6 miles round-trip
Degree of Difficulty: Easy-Difficult
Altitude: 8240 to 8800 ft
Seasonal: 4 Season (Snow in winter possible)
The Atalaya Mountain Trail, accessible from the parking lot at St. Johns College, is one of the most popular and easily accessible hiking trails in Santa Fe. Hikers have the option of taking the longer route (Trail 174), which is approximately 7 miles round-trip, or parking farther up near the Ponderosa Ridge development and doing a 4.6-mile loop (Trail 170) instead. Both trials eventually join and take you toward the top of Atalaya Mountain, a 9,121-foot peak. The first few miles of the trail are relatively easy, but it becomes increasingly steep and strenuous as you near the summit of Atalaya Mountain. Hikers who make it to the top are afforded great views of the Rio Grande valley and the city below.

Activity Type:     Hiking
Nearby City:     Santa Fe
Length:     7 total miles
Elevation Gain:     1,781 feet
Trail Type:     Out-and-back
Skill Level:     Easy
Duration:     Day hike
Season:     Best spring to fall, depending on weather
Local Contacts:     Santa Fe National Forest


Holy Ghost Trailhead
http://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/santafe/recreation/hiking/recarea/?recid=75898&actid=50

Capulin Volcano National Mounument

This is targeted for my last full day in New Mexico between the day at Taos and my flights homeward.

http://www.nps.gov/cavo/index.htm

A Stellar Example of Recent Volcanic Activity
Come view a dramatic landscape—a unique place of mountains, plains, and sky. Born of fire and forces continually reshaping the earth’s surface, Capulin Volcano provides access to nature’s most awe-inspiring work.

Directions by car

Interstate 25 is the major north/south route through the state. The monument is located 33 miles east of Interstate 25 at Raton, NM, via US Highway 64/87. The park entrance is on New Mexico Highway 325, 3 miles north of the town of Capulin which is at the junction of NM Hwy 325 and US Hwy 64/87.

From the east, the monument is 58 miles west of Clayton, NM, also via US Hwy64/87. 




Things To DoCapulin Volcano National Monument offers a variety of activities for the visitor. With nearly five miles of hiking trails, visitors can experience a varied landscape. See the Rocky Mountains from the volcano top, or explore Capulin's very own lava flow at its base. For our younger visitors, Junior Ranger and Junior Junior Ranger books are available by request. Stop by the Visitor Center to check out the park film and pick up a brochure before heading up to the rim.

The paved 2 mile Volcano Road to the top and paved trails into the crater and around its rim provide access to explore the volcano and 360 degree views of the surrounding area. While you're there, listen to a ranger-led interpretive program to get a better understanding of Capulin's geology, ecology, and history.

Bandelier National Monument

This national monument is close to our New Mexico house, so the group is planning on going one of the days we are together

http://www.nps.gov/band/index.htm

White Sands National Monument

My plan is to visit and hike the White Sands National Monument on the Friday that I fly in, before meeting up with half the group on Saturday.  The park recommends evening visits because of how hot the sands get during the day in the sunlight.  Plus the park will be closed on Saturday, so Friday is the one time I'll be able to get there.  Dave Guse recommended the park to me.  And it does sound cool!!

http://www.nps.gov/whsa/index.htm


Directions - Getting to the monumentThe visitor center is located on U.S. Highway 70, 15 miles (24 km) southwest of Alamogordo and 52 miles east of Las Cruces, New Mexico.

Travelers from Carlsbad Caverns to southern Arizona can follow U.S. 82 through the scenic Sacramento Mountains to reach White Sands National Monument. I'll be doing the reverse on Saturday morning


Park Map

http://www.nps.gov/common/commonspot/customcf/apps/maps/showmap.cfm?alphacode=whsa&parkname=White%20Sands

Carlsbad Cavern National Park

Plans are for the first weekend to spend it at Carlsbad Cavern National Park with Jo Ann's and Jim's families.

http://www.nps.gov/cave/index.htm

Directions

To access Carlsbad Caverns National Park's only entrance road, New Mexico Highway 7, turn north from US Hwy 62/180 at Whites City, New Mexico - which is 20 miles southwest of Carlsbad, NM and 145 miles northeast of El Paso, Texas. The entrance road stretches a scenic 7-mile (11.3 km) from the park gate at Whites City to the Visitor Center and cavern entrance. The address for the park's Visitor Center is 727 National Parks Highway, Carlsbad, NM, 88220 even though it's located 27 miles from the town.

Carlsbad Caverns National Park and Vicinity Map 
http://www.nps.gov/cave/planyourvisit/upload/areamap.pdf [154k PDF file]
This map requires Adobe Acrobat for viewing. 


We have tickets for the Kings Palace cave tour on Saturday afternoon

http://www.nps.gov/cave/planyourvisit/kings_palace.htm

Our New Mexico Home

Here's the link to our rental house in New Mexico

125 Paseo de la Cuma,
Santa Fe, NM 87501

http://www.vrbo.com/139308

Continuing the New Mexico links for easy access once I'm on the road!!

St Joseph's Staircase

This is the first of a series of New Mexico location details and links in preparation of the Family 'bacation trip

At last night's Light Weigh meeting, Lisa and Krissy shared about this miracle staircase in New Mexico.  Turns out it is in Sante Fe, the city we will be staying in for most of the trip.  So there is a very good chance I'll be able to make it there.

The Loretto Chapel
207 Old Santa Fe Trail
Santa Fe, NM 87501
(505) 982-0092

This is from their website - http://www.lorettochapel.com/index.html

Two mysteries surround the spiral staircase in the Loretto Chapel: the identity of its builder and the physics of its construction.

When the Loretto Chapel was completed in 1878, there was no way to access the choir loft twenty-two feet above. Carpenters were called in to address the problem, but they all concluded access to the loft would have to be via ladder as a staircase would interfere with the interior space of the small Chapel.

Legend says that to find a solution to the seating problem, the Sisters of the Chapel made a novena to St. Joseph, the patron saint of carpenters. On the ninth and final day of prayer, a man appeared at the Chapel with a donkey and a toolbox looking for work. Months later, the elegant circular staircase was completed, and the carpenter disappeared without pay or thanks. After searching for the man (an ad even ran in the local newspaper) and finding no trace of him, some concluded that he was St. Joseph himself, having come in answer to the sisters' prayers.

The stairway's carpenter, whoever he was, built a magnificent structure. The design was innovative for the time and some of the design considerations still perplex experts today.

The staircase has two 360 degree turns and no visible means of support. Also, it is said that the staircase was built without nails—only wooden pegs. Questions also surround the number of stair risers relative to the height of the choir loft and about the types of wood and other materials used in the stairway's construction.

Over the years many have flocked to the Loretto Chapel to see the Miraculous Staircase. The staircase has been the subject of many articles, TV specials, and movies including "Unsolved Mysteries" and the television movie titled "The Staircase."

Lisa asked that I pray for our Light Weigh group while I'm there - especially through the Intercession of St Joseph:

For the Intercession of Saint Joseph

O Joseph, virgin-father of Jesus, most pure spouse of the Virgin Mary, pray every day for us to the same Jesus, the Son of God, that we, being defended by the power of His grace and striving dutifully in life, may be crowned by Him at the hour of death.