Summer Sojourn

I'm leaving tomorrow for a road trip with my best friend to the Grand Canyon.  We are driving to the Mojave desert, camping at both the South Rim and North Rim, and may even hit up Zion in Utah.  I also just found out that we'll be there during a meteor shower!  I can hardly wait to hit the road, hike the trails of the canyon, watch the sunrise and sunset each day.  

I often talk with other creatives and artists about how they deal with getting out of a creative rut, how get inspired, stay fresh, and develop new work.  I like to call "Taking care of the Eye".  The thing that makes any artist valuable is their unique perspective in the world and their ability to call that perspective into being and give it form.  So when I have creative friends who are weary with from exhaustion, stress, or anxiety, I really encourage them to take care of their Eye.  Nurture it and do the kind things that help it see better.  

For me, taking care of my Eye requires traveling and being outside.  I write a lot about this in my column The Trail, but definitely getting out of town and pulling away 100% from the business of being an artist is so vital to feeling inspired enough to create new work.  I see the world so differently when I take these breaks.  My mind first softens and relaxes, then begins to race with fresh, new ideas.  I rest.  I recuperate. I see myself and my place in the world clearly.  I sharpen my vision.  I sturdy myself for the next round of intense making.  

I will post a series of stories about my trip when I return, but in the meantime you can follow the play-by-play via Instagram.  Otherwise I'll catch you in a week, I'll be back in the shop on August 21st and back in the studio soon after.

L O V E + M E T A L,

Kate Ellen

S P R E A D T H E L O V E

THE TRAIL // Pirates Cove

Sundays have become my day to go out and hit the trail.  I love waking up early, driving in the empty streets and arriving to a trail head for a run.  I typically go solo and use it as a time to reflect, rejuvenate, problem solve, and get connected.  Plunk me down in the outdoors and I'm a happy girl.

This past Sunday I ran one of my all time favorite trails, Pirate's Cove at Tennessee Valley.  To access this trail, you have to get off 101 at Mill Valley/Highway 1 exit and take Tennessee Valley Road to the main parking lot.  The main trail is paved part of the way, but then you lift up into the hills and the trail runs parallel to the ocean until you have an incredible view of Muir Beach.  You also get panoramic views of San Francisco and Marin.

Here was my Route, a 6.84 mile loop with a 1624ft climb [map]

Start Tennessee Valley Trail Parking Lot
Take Tennessee Valley Trail to Coastal Trail
Continue on Coastal Trail/ Pirate's Cove
Enjoy the view or walk down to Muir Beach
Return on Coastal Fire Road to Coyote Ridge Trail
Take Miwok Trail down back to parking lot

Dogs are not allowed on the main Tennessee Valley Trail, so if you want to bring your pup I would do this trail backwards, start by going up Miwok trail and after looping back on Pirate's Cove, take Coastal Fire Road trail to Coyote Ridge back again.

Start here (unless you have your mutt with you)

See that trail going up the hill?  That's where you're heading

Coastal Trail

Coastal Trail/ Pirate's Cove

View of Muir Beach

When you get to the Coastal Trail/ Coastal Fire Road junction above Muir Beach, you can take a sidestep to this little outlook spot.  Not for the faint of heart, it feels nimble and steep.

Coyote Ridge Trail

L O V E + M E T A L

S P R E A D T H E L O V E

THE TRAIL // Mt. Diablo

Sunday morning I ran a 25k race to the top of Mt. Diablo and back with Pacific Coast Trail Runs.  It was my first time on Mt. Diablo and definitely the longest/steepest race I've ever attempted.  I grew up on Mt. Tam, hiking, running, and mountain biking as a kid, but Tam is a mere 2,572 ft compared to Diablo's 3,850. In the blazing sun, no less.

I completed the race in just under four hours, the hardest part being the downhill.  Typically I love to steadily run the uphill sections, but this race was literally over 7 miles straight up, so I adjusted my expectations.  Another runner and I joked that it had become a "hike-race".  

If you're interested in how to hike or run this trail, simply start at Mitchell Canyon Trailhead at Mount Diablo State Park in Clayton, and you can use this trail guide to help you to the top.  I cannot recommend enough PCTR, they are a group of especially kind, professional, and enthusiastic runners and volunteers.  

I know there are a lot of people out there who do not understand why someone would want to run like this, but I get so much nutrition from it.  I learn things by doing them, and when I run I think about all my problems that need solving and somehow the running helps me build the connection between where I am and where I want to be.  A good run is abundant in epiphanies and good ideas, healing and love.

Here are some of the things I learned on this run:

1// It's perfectly okay and awesome to have limitations.  I was running a 25k loop, but there were other runners who ran twice the distance, essentially to the top, down, to the top again, and back down again.  Their power and ability does not in the slightest diminish mine and I draw no reward, ever, from comparing myself to other people.  Best to concern myself with staying in my flow, my rhythm, my body.

2// Speaking of body, I read a chapter from Women Who Run with the Wolves in which the author discusses the body not being a 'sculpture' that we are in charge of shaping, but rather a vessel for information gathering.  I love this idea, and I really felt it on my run.  The core truth of who I am as a person on this planet resides in my spirit, not my body or even my feelings.  I realized that emotions actually belong to the realm of the body, not the spirit.  I think it can be easy to confuse the way you're feeling with who you are.  I am practicing listening to what my body and emotions are communicating to my spirit, what useful information they each are delivering that I can use to develop, grow, heal, and create.

3// This run happened to coincide with the 4th anniversary of when I quit smoking.  If there are any smokers out there reading this, may I please share with you this: When you are ready to give it up, the world will open to you in ways that you right now do not even have the ability to fathom.  You will have a fundamental shift in how you feel about yourself and the world around you.  You will experience real freedom, love, and joy.  It is absolutely, hands down, the BEST thing I have ever done for myself.  Best.  I cannot wait for you to feel the same way. 

4// When you just dig in and do the work, it is amazing how far you can go and high you can climb, without even realizing it.  I look back at the last few years of my personal and professional life, and this rings so true. Don't forget to take stock, take a moment to look at the view, let it sink in a bit.  Maybe there is still more mountain to climb, but don't forget to stop and look at the view from where you are now.

Okay, enough new-agey runner wisdom for one post, here are some shots from my day:

L O V E + M E T A L 

S P R E A D T H E L O V E

The Trail // The Dipsea

A few weeks ago I set out to run from Stinson to Muir Woods and back on the famous Dipsea Trail in preparation for the race I ran at Armstrong Redwoods.  The total distance was just under 13 miles, with a total ascent of 2800 feet.  I love the trails on Mt. Tam, you get to see so many different micro climates in such a short distance.  The trail winds through open grassy fields, redwoods, bay and oak forests, and panoramic views of the Bay.

I had never done this trail before, despite being a native, so I looked it up on ProTrails.com.  I would suggest if anyone wants to try this trail, however, to start at Stinson rather than Muir Woods because on weekends it is virtually impossible to park in Muir Woods and usually you have to take a shuttle in.  I opted rather to park at Stinson beach, run the distance and back, and then had a relaxing couple hours refueling, re-hydrating, and sun-soaking on the beach.  Oh, and napping.  Always nap when you visit the beach.

If you aren't game for a mega-hike, you can also break this trip down into smaller legs.  I sometimes really enjoy starting at Pan Toll at the top of the mountain and hiking Steep Ravine trail down to Stinson.  It's all downhill, and at the end you can either hike back up, take the bus back up, or hitchhike.  Don't forget to get a soft serve at The Parkside.

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