November has arrived. We are also having a bit of Autumn weather, but it is supposed to warm back into the 80's this week. This time next year I will be wrapping up my teaching assignment in Salleri and will be preparing to set off on my EBC trek. I have been following the weather closely and it has been a wet Autumn with bitter cold and snow at the higher elevations. The trails and passes were shut down for a few days this past week due to the heavy snowfall on most of the mountain treks in the Nepalese Himalayas. The temperatures have not been above freezing for the past 4 weeks in Gorak Shep. Overnight lows are in the single digit Fahrenheit.
My trip to Guadalupe Mountains National Park is getting closer. A few kinks have come up due to the Government shut-down that has me looking at a few other options. McKittrick Canyon trail is closed and inaccessible and Carlsbad Caverns is completely shut-down. Those were the two places I was going to go to on the windier days when the elevated trails are a bit perilous. I am hopeful that the shut-down will be resolved before I go, but if not then I may head up to New Mexico to one of the State Parks there to camp for a few nights.
No change in my workout schedule. I feel I am at a good place and doing what I need to be to prepare for the Inca Trail. I think once the holidays are over I will start wearing my backpack several days a week when doing the treadmill and stair-master. I have been trying to do so once a week the past two weeks. I am also going to Mother Neff once a week and hiking 3.28 miles. Today is my 1 hour on the stair-master workout (ugh) It is a challenge but I have been completing it the past three Sundays. I have also added a short treadmill workout (30 minutes) afterward. My Saturday workout is limited to the treadmill but I do 90 minutes on it with 50 - 55 minutes at 15%. I have also set my pace on the treadmill a bit faster.
Mentally, I am in a very good place. Yoga and meditation are really paying off. I am also re-reading Thich Nhat Hanh's " The Heart of Buddha"s Teaching". Each time I read it, I understand so much more. I am gradually living more in the present. I am creating a more peaceful existence for myself and hopefully others around me.
I am looking forward to the weeks ahead and hope that everyone has a peace filled month.
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