We are always in search of a new trail adventure especially one that is dog friendly now that we have two amazing dogs. Our most recent adventure was right in our neck of the woods -> Wiggly Bridge & Steedman Woods.
You can see Wiggly Bridge from Route 1A when you're heading to York Beach, which is when it first caught my interest. It's actually part of the Fisherman's Walk that starts close to York Harbor Beach. We didn't know that the day we went and simply jumped on the trail at Barrel's Millpond. (There was very limited parking, many spots for residents only, but a local told us not to worry since it was off season.)
Wiggly Bridge was built in the 1930s when there were mills lining the river and is known as the world's smallest suspension bridge. The story goes that it got its name from a group of local girls who constantly called it "wiggly."
The flat path leading to the bridge is actually a dam separating York River with Barrel's Millpond and was used by the original settlers who were farming and trading. On the other side of the bridge is Steedman Woods Nature Reserve.
Although it looks like an island, Steedman Woods is actually a peninsula. The short loop hiking trail is shaded and well maintained with water views on every side. There is a connecting loop that is accessible from the Old York Town side, but we couldn't follow it because it was too muddy.
The Fisherman's Trail follows the York River into York Village. I saw people walking that way, but didn't know where it went. Gives a good reason to go back and walk the full trail.
My weekly wrap is a little late because I just got back from a surprise trip to O'ahu with mrC. I'd been dropping hints all over the place about how fun it would be to getaway and apparently he was listening ---> he's a great husband!
Since mrC is retired military, he was able to get us into the beach cottages on the Marine Corps base. Even when it was cloudy, our own little paradise was pretty amazing. (we got some great shots and video on this trip with our GoPro)
Hanging out on the SUP at Secret Beach - steps from our cottage!
The highlights:
Hiking Diamond Head This was an easy hike with a series of switch backs most of the way up to the 761 foot summit. The path was a little slippery from the passing morning showers, but with good shoes it was no problem for us. The "hard" part was near the top - 99 steps, a spiral staircase and a few more steps to reach the summit. It was pretty crowded and some clouds rolled in right as we reached the top, but it was still amazing to cross this off our Hawaii bucket list.
Snorkeling at Hanauma Bay
mrC introduced me to snorkeling when we were on Kaua'i almost 10 years ago and knows how much I love it (even though I don't really like deep water), so he took me to one of the most popular snorkel spots on O'ahu. We swam around spotting fish and avoiding coral (it was low tide) and even got to see a monk seal that was sunning on the beach that day.
View of Hanauma Bay from above
I made this little video of our snorkeling
SUP at Secret Beach
We rented a SUP board from the MWR office and used it while we were staying in the cottage. The water was shallow and full of coral, but so flat. Perfect for SUP (my new bikini top was perfect for all my water activities!).
Swimming at Pyramid Rock Beach
A great spot for swimming and sunbathing was right down the road from the cottage. Named for the pyramid shaped rock on the coast, Pyramid Rock Beach had powder white sand and was surrounded by tropical plants. It was a lot harder to swim there than the pool at the fitness center, but way more fun!
Visiting Pearl Harbor
When we arrived on Tuesday, we stopped at the Pearl Harbor Visitor Center. We lucked out and got the last two free tickets to take the 75 minute USS Arizona Memorial Tour. We watched a short documentary about the attack on Pearl Harbor took a shuttle boat to the USS Arizona Memorial. To see this place in person is quite powerful and moving. I found myself fighting back tears many times.
mrC's friend gave us a private tour around Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. He drove us past the submarines, aircraft (no photography allowed for obvious reasons) and even the beach cottages where the movie Aloha was partially filmed. We stopped at The Lanai on the Mamala Bay side of the base for some Hawaiian fish and chips...and some daiquiris. We had a great view of the main beach on base which is literally right next to the runways. I would have loved to SUP in this bay!
Sailing at Mamala Bay
mrC's friend took us out on the bay in his sailboat so that we could see Oahu from another perspective and so mrC could get some sailing in. Surprise, I got to take the helm, too! Oahu is such a beautiful place. I loved seeing Diamond Head and Waikiki Beach from the water.
Sightseeing
Taking the advice printed on my GAP tee, whenever we felt like stopping to see something, we did. It was fun to strike a pose on lava rock, enjoy the views from various lookouts (never got tired of this) and see mrC's old stomping grounds. We even stopped to watch the various planes and helicopters at work on base and around the island.
Nu'uana Pali Lookout and Marine Corps Base Hawaii in the far background
Kaupo Bay and Rabbit Island in the background
Amelia Earhart's Marker - first person to fly from Hawaii to Mainland.
Halona Blowhole Lookout (at low tide :( so no spray)
Kanehoe Bay Lookout on our way to dinner
mrC's old neighborhood - Kailua
mrC's helicopter
We had to cross this runway on base to get to the cottages
Waikiki Beach
We spent our last day at the Marine Corps hotel, Hale Koa, downtown and on Waikiki Beach. This place was amazing! The grounds were so beautiful. We were steps away from the pool, restaurants, shopping and the beach. We spent some time on the beach and then explored along DeRussy Boardwalk.
View from our balcony
Friends
We got to spend time with mrC's friend who he hasn't seen in many many years and we met a family from California staying in the cottage next to ours who were very nice, but these "cottage cats" were the cutest friends we made in Oahu!
Food
It's always good to be back in the USA and enjoy our favorite things, but it was fun to experience new places too. mrC's friend took us to Haleiwa Joe's for an awesome seafood dinner and then The Lanai for a delicious lunch. Our Cali friends recommended Goofy's Cafe where we had the BEST acai bowl. We stopped at the highly recommended Happy's Snack Bar on the beach for a little happy hour.
If you are still reading (THANK YOU) and here are my workouts for the week:
My morning workout today focused on lower body strength with some mountain climber sprinting (my modification) at the end.
I followed up with my plank challenge: 5 sets of 20 second holds in reverse table top. Oh my hamstrings could really feel this.
After a quick shower and some breakfast, I headed to Hong Kong with some girlfriends.
Peng Chau Island: after getting to Hong Kong, we took the ferry from central pier number 6. It was about a 30 minute ride to the island.
We arrived smack dab in the middle of the island, which is home to only 6000 residents and measures less than one square meter.
There are walkways along the outer edge of the island. The Heritage Trail will lead to several historical sites.
The main drag, Wing On Street, located though the center of island is lined with shops and fresh markets, teahouses and seafood restaurants serving up seafood.
We visited Tin Hau Temple in the center of the island.
We made our way to the main beach, Tung Wan, and discovered that Hong Kong's effort to clean it up is lagging (although we did see three women raking the garbage debris into piles). This spot has so much potential, but I definitely wouldn't recommend taking a swim here.
Off one end of the beach was a great little rest area. We found it to be perfect for having our lunch.
Then, to work off our meal, we made our way over to climb Finger Hill. Known for its panoramic views of the Hong Kong islands and island vistas, the highest point on the island is also in need of some TLC. Most of the view is currently blocked by overgrown trees and shrubs.
What I ate on feast day
Breakfast: scrambled eggs with ham and pb&j rice cake
Lunch: turkey slices, sweet potato chips, apple
Dinner: banana pancakes. yes, all the goodness again!
Dessert: strawberries
Macros: not a very good feast day. I did not eat all my calories or hit the carbs goal. Hopefully I won't pay for it tomorrow while fasting.
I used to love getting my full body workout at TI Fitness in Manchester, NH. Whether it was SurfSet or Bootcamp, I was working every single muscle group on my body. It was awesome.
Now that I'm far, far away from my favorite fitness studio, I've come to appreciate a good video workout. I've tried a million many, but here are a few of my go-tos:
I'm also really loving the Full Body Workout dvd that I received as part of the carb cycling program. The format of switching between cardio and strength reminds me of Bootcamp. That format kicks my butt. See?
Before heading out to hike, I got in one final stretch from my plank challenge.
The weather was pretty much perfect for mountain Monday: cool and dry. I love when I can practically see our apartment building and all the way to Hong Kong.
The best reward for making it to the top of Nanshan is some time poolside. My Hilton Fitness membership expiration is coming up and unless we can find another couple to join as a group (better price per person), I will be pool-less in Shekou.
What I ate on regular calorie day
Breakfast: scrambled eggs with ham, pb&j rice cake, coffee
Lunch: banana protein pancakes (same recipe as here plus 1 scoop vanilla protein), grapes, water
Dinner: leftover Italian chicken, green beans, salad, Coke Zero
Macros: not happy with my carbs. I need to work on getting to that 50%.
