15-295

Mile 860.  As things turned out, this was almost the identical walk as yesterday, but before you attempt to convince the Boredom Committee to invent a green card so it can give one to the smiling Tortoise, consider how often one sees different things in the same places on a second look.  That doesn't convince you?  Well then, welcome to post 1040, something that would only mean something to a tax geek.  Tortoise has been asked for an encore of his 1,000th post, published on September 12. which Lou decided would be fun to attempt for post 1040.   Which of these walks intrigue you enough to want to do it yourself?

Cheerio!


The reader request was for additional information from the first 1,000 posts, such as:

What's the toughest tortoise rated paths Lou has walked?

3rd runner-up for toughest tortoise rating:  August 13, 2013.  See how far up
Mt. Baden-Powell Lou can get before fading light forces his retreat.
2.4 miles up, 4.8 round trip. 1578 foot elevation gain. Tortoise rating: -1.3
One other tidbit:  this is a tiny portion of the 2,650 mile long Pacific Crest Trail.

2nd runner-up for toughest tortoise rating:  October 26, 2012.  East Rim trail
to Zion Park's Observation Point where you look down on Angel's Landing.
3.46 miles up, 6.92 round trip.  2336 foot elevation gain. Tortoise rating: -1.0
This one wins over Baden-Powell because the climb is a mile longer,
 and only slightly less steep.

Bonus picture working up the switchbacks to Observation Point.

1st runner-up: August 16, 2013.  5.3 miles up to Timpanogos saddle.
2800 foot elevation gain, Tortoise rating: -1.0.   Another item worth noting:
 there were TWO double-beyond tortoise walks that week!

Bonus picture from Timp saddle

August 17, 2013.  Getting close and personal with the moose
 while walking the 5.3 miles back down from Timp saddle.

Well, maybe not as close as the camera made it look the first time.

And the winner for toughest walk, the one and only triple beyond tortoise walk thus far, is ...

Brown's Point Trail in Utah's Pine Valley Mountains.

Not only was there a 2,208 foot climb in just 2.8 miles, but there was an
endless array of boulders and downed trees to navigate on the 15 to 25%
slopes.  Go to May 24, 2013 to check out this gem. Tortoise rating: -2.3

By comparison, the hike from Guitar Lake to the summit of Mt. Whitney climbs 3000 feet in 4.5 miles, at an average elevation of 13,000, for a tortoise rating of -3.0 -- the elusive uber beyond tortoise category.

What are the longest walks Tortoise did in those 1,000 posts?

3rd runner-up, the LaVerkin Scenic Loop, a combination of other existing trails
that Tortoise would like to see receive official status, signage, and in a few places
improved trail maintenance.  Exact distance varies by the exact route one chooses,
on February 1, 2014, Tortoise did it in 7.42 miles.  Picture shown above was taken
as Tortoise completed his 100th mile walked in 2014 on his way to 1,021 by year-end.

Since this trail does not yet formally exist, here is a map that shows the
route Tortoise took that day.

2nd runner-up, a 7.47 mile walk on the Long Beach Shoreline path
on September 29, 2012

bonus picture taken from a fishing pier Tortoise also walked on that day,
accessed from the Shoreline trail.  Another quality magical mystery walk!

1st runner up, 8.7 miles on the south end of the Minuteman Trail near Boston,
the first portion of which was with Rachel when she had a few free moments.
Tortoise walked this on May 1, 2013.

Bonus picture:  Did you know Uncle Sam was a real person?
You pass a monument to him on the Minuteman Trail in Arlington.

And for the longest Tortoise walk, the very next day, May 2, 2013, Lou liked the Minuteman Trail so much, he went back and completed the rest of it (in both directions).  14.2 miles this day, 22.9 miles total round trip in 2 days.  Not sure Lou could have completed it without the conveniently located Traders Joe near where Lexington meets Arlington on the trail.

Tortoise ended this walk by surprising Becca at her school right about the time
classes ended for the day.  After introducing me to her friends and colleagues
she took Tortoise to this fine park.  Becca looks terrific, Lou looks like he's been
on a long walk that he greatly enjoyed!

This is the fine view that we saw from that park.  Beautiful day!

Honorable mentions:

October 15, 2011.  6.2 miles in a maze pattern all over La Verkin.

November 23, 2012.  6.4 miles on the Virgin River and Middleton Wash trails in St. George.

May 4, 2013.  6.4 more miles in Arlington and Cambridge exploring more trails after finishing the Minuteman.

December 14, 2013.  6.4 miles in another maze pattern in La Verkin.

February 2, 2015.  6.33 miles along the Pacific Electric Trail in Fontana, California.

February 7, 2015.  6.44 miles from Lou's office to the Virgin River Trail in Confluence Park and back.

May 29, 2015.  6.44 miles along the Marvin Braude trail along the beach from the beginning of the Strand in Manhattan Beach to the trail end in a tiny sliver of Torrance that touches the beach.

June 3, 2015.  6.61 miles in the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve, including all of the Sand Hill trail.

September 18, 2015.  6.65 miles in the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve, including all of the Cottonwood Hills trail.

And now on to today's walk ...

The one piece of this walk that was different than yesterday is that

Lou walked through the parking lot of

the Hurricane City Offices where he got these nice pictures

Another Halloween house for your viewing pleasure

Today's walk was 4.15 miles, with a 4.9 tortoise rating earned by climbing 258 feet in the 2.08 mile uphill portion.  Average elevation was 3290.  This walk burned 622 calories in 1:09:58 hours.

Here are the overall stats so far for 2015:

860.60 miles walked which is 85.89% of Lou's 2015 goal.  On this day in 2014, Tortoise had walked 845.29 miles.

263:39:00 hours walked which is 84.23% of the 2015 goal (which is to walk 1 hour a day on the 313 days other than Sunday in the year).

45,276 total feet climbed, compared with 41,251 feet on this day in 2014.

129,025 calories burned.

80.83% of the year has passed.

Lou has walked 141 consecutive non-Sundays since his 8 missed days May 2-11.  Overall he has walked on 244 of the 253 non-Sundays in 2015, a 96.44% consistency rating.  This compares with 240 days walked in the same period in 2014 (a 94.86% consistency rating).

The purpose of the percentages is to have a higher percentage of both distance and of time walked than of the year.  This tells Tortoise that he is on track.  Yes, this is more numbers than you are likely interested in, all Tortoise can say is he's really good at setting high goals and having them slip away because he doesn't do them every, every day.  (If you doubt this, compare Tortoise's walking record up until 2013 with 2014 or 2015 ... for him, it is what it takes to be consistent.  He hopes you find what works for you).

And now for today's walking thought ...

In the Book of Mormon, the Savior appeared to the Nephites. He gathered their little children around Him. He blessed them, prayed for them, and wept over them.³ Then He said to the parents, “Behold your little ones.”⁴

The word behold means to look and see. What did Jesus want the parents to see in their little ones? Did He want them to catch a glimpse of their children’s divine potential?

-- https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2015/10/its-never-too-early-and-its-never-too-late?lang=eng

The tortoise is smiling!