Monster Dash Half Marathon

Last Saturday (October 25th) I completed a milestone goal of mine; to run a half marathon before my 40th birthday! St. Paul held it's annual Monster Dash race, where some 18,000 participants ran either a 5K, 10 mile, or Half Marathon.  This was my last race goal of the year, after running for the first time ever a 7K, 10K, 15K, and now half marathon.

Packet pick up for the race was last Friday.  The lines were long!  All my goodies, which included a Monster Dash race jacket, bib, timer chip, and some goo packets for energy.

 

Race day morning!  The St. Paul Cathedral in downtown St. Paul; where the race started.

Running a half is no easy task!  Around mile 11, my foot was cramping so bad that I couldn't run.  Everything hurt. But mile 13 was sure a beautiful sight to see!! With .1 mile to the finish, Matt, who had been waiting on the sidelines for me, ran with me and cheered me on as we crossed the finish line together.  

 

I find this photo funny; he looks more tired than I do!!  Ha ha ha :P

YES!!! FINISHED!!!

Proudly holding my race medal afterwards. Total run time: 2 hours, 36 minutes.  Satisfying time for a first time (there will probably be more)!!  

 

 

A farewell to the Notch; a small taste of New Hampshire

After our Mt. Mansfield climb, we hiked around the Stowe area a little more to get some final sightseeing in on our last full day in Vermont.  There was just so much to see!  Everywhere we turned, there was a beautiful sight to see.

 

Bingham Falls, near Smuggler's Notch State Park.

Bingham Falls- upper falls.

Bingham Falls- Lower Falls.

We took a little drive north to look for another covered bridge that we missed prior to Thursday.  We had nice sunny skies that day that lit up the landscape's pallet of fall colors.

Grist Mill near Cambridge.

Grist Mill covered bridge.

The colors reflecting off the water were too gorgeous to not capture!

Near dusk on Thursday, we took another quick drive through Smuggler's Notch, hoping to catch some good light.

Matthew and I were feeling daring Thursday night, so we went back to Emily's bridge (the haunted one) after dark to see if we would witness any paranormal activity.  We had no luck.  I believe that is a good thing...

Friday morning, our last day in Vermont.  :(  Before we headed south to our destination in NH, we captured these photos of Smuggler's Notch before the fog had lifted.

 

I threw in the automobiles in this photo just so one can get a grasp at how large these mountains were around the Notch.

The winding road through the Notch.

One final photo in front of the state park before leaving.

I forget where this was taken; a small church in Vermont.

Vermont's capital, Montpelier.

Martin bridge in Marshfield, Vermont.

We decided since we had some extra time on our hands, we took the Kancamagus byway in New Hampshire. The Kancamagus has been known to be one of the most scenic drives in the U.S.

Nearing New Hampshire.

We got a kick out of New Hampshire's motto:  Live Free or Die!!

Covered bridge 2004 in New Hampshire (don't recall which town we found this one).

This covered bridge was for pedestrian use only.

More mountainous regions along the Kancamagus byway.

 

Along the Kancamagus loop, lies Mount Washington, the tallest mountain in NH. The Mount Washington Hotel overlooks Mt. Washington.

Mount Washington.

Quite the hotel and view!!! 

A small lake nearby.

Spectacular views along Kancamagus!

Albany covered bridge in Albany, NH.

Vermont and New Hampshire are known for Bed & Breakfast hotels. We stayed in a classic B&B in Greenfield, NH; the Greenfield Inn. As you can see, very "classic" B&B look.

This Inn was often occupied by Bob Hope back in the day!