Round Valley Regional Preserve is a nice park in the East Bay, in the Bay Area, California. It is located in the east of Walnut Creek, and east of Mount Diablo.
Walnut Creek is an expensive town in the East Bay. The entire Bay Area is expensive, but Walnut is particularly expensive. AND it has this nice park.
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| Iconic Easy Bay's hills |
This is an iconic East Bay park: rolling hills, spread trees, grass, and wide trails. When you hike after the rainy season, these hills become amazing green as I wrote several times at this blog.
Winter, however, these hills are all brown. This season is not as popular as green season, but I still love the East Bay's rolling hills. It is amazing to see the dramatic changes in these hills. It is fun coming back to this area in a different season.
Somehow, since I was little, I always like the open vista. East Bay's climate is really hot in summer, and then dry except for short rainy season, so deep forest can't be formed. Such weather pattern makes the hills are mainly on for grass with sparse trees. I like to oversee the coming rolling hills ahead from below or look over undulating hills.
Another feature of East Bay's parks are cows. A lot of parks has livestock owned by farmers. They are sometimes on the trail. It is fun seeing them.
East Bay's trail in winter and summer is not popular, because summer is very hot and winter hills are not green. However, I like this winter brown hills, too, as much as green ones. Besides there are not many people, so it is good.
A lot of parks in the Bay Area used to be place for American Indian tribes. This Round Valley Regional Preserve was home of tribes, too. According to the brochure, East Bay and San Joaquin Valley groups of native Americans met this area for trading.
Until I came to the U.S., I know little about native Americans. I am not a really big fan of history at school, however, it is interesting to learn Native American histories. A lot of mountains, national parks, forests, local trails are related to Native American histories and it can't be separated.
Most Bay Area hiking trails are related to California Indian history. One of National Parks in Colorado, Mesa Verde National Park is all about dwelling of Native Americans. I would like to write about those trips on another occasion on this blog.
After I moved to New England, I think back winter in the Bay Area is NOTHING. It is just chilly. Of course Sierra has severe winter and snow, but Bay Area hiking is pleasant for all round year.
カリフォルニア・イーストベイの公園、ランドバレー・リージョナルプリザーブ。イーストベイのウォルナッツクリークという街、マウントディアブロの東ににある公園だ。ウォルナッツクリークはイーストベイの高級住宅街。大きな家に素敵なトレイルがすぐそばにある。。。羨ましいものだ。
私はここのトレイルが大好き。イーストベイ特有のローリングヒルズ、散らばった木々、広いトレイル。冬は茶色、春は緑に全体が染まる。その変わり方はすごい。イーストベイの夏は蒸し暑い。イーストベイがベイエリアの中で一番変化に富んだ場所かもしれない。
もう一つイーストベイの特徴は家畜の牛が公園で放牧されていること。時々、牛がトレイルに立ってたりして面白い。まあハイカーが近づいて行くと普通は逃げるがたまに逃げないヤツもいる。
さらにもう一つ、ここはかつてはネイティブアメリカンがいたところ。ほとんどのベイエリアのハイキングの場所はネイティブアメリカンが住んでいたところだ。ここは イーストベイのトライブとサンジョキアンバレーのトライブが時々あって物々交換などをしていたと考えられている。
アメリカの国立公園や森、山などはほとんどが元々はネイティブアメリカンが住んでいたところが多い。ベイエリアもそうだし、例えばコロラドにあるメサバーデ国立公園はネイティブアメリカンの住居跡をフィーチャーした公園だ。いつかメサバーデに行った旅もブログで書きたいと思う。
ベイエリアにも一応冬はあるが、ニューイングランドに来てから思うと、厳寒とは言い難い。。もちろんシエラは厳寒だが。
BODYPUMP is a workout program by Les Mills and great for keeping a good hiking body.
BODYPUMP has new releases every 3 months and currently newest version is 111.
My gym has 4 BODYPUMP instructors. 3 of them keep up with the newest version always. However, 1 instructor knows only version 80 to 99. I don't know exactly which versions she knows, but always version 80's or 90's and she has never done after version 100 nor older than version 80.
So I have actually opportunity to learn relatively old versions, despite the fact I started Bodypumping a little after 107 was released.
So today I will review version 99.
So now, each track's review.
Track1: Warmup
Music: Mad World (Radio Edit) by Hardwell feat. Jake Reese
Nice light rhythm for warmup track. Some clean and presses with power presses.
Track2: Squats
Music: Power Glove by Knife Party
Not too hard like version86, but some repeats of "4 singles + 4 bottom half" are tough. Still doable. I increased my weight recently when ver.111 was released and I was able to do this version with that. My current weight for squats is 27 kg.
Track3: Chest
Music: In The Dark by 3 Doors Down
This is SOOOOOO hard. It is the hardest chest track I have ever done. Using a bar during the entire track, so lighter weight than usual is better.
A lot of 8 bottom half and ALSO 16 bottom half. I had to decrease the weight since I didn't know this is such a tough one.
Track4: Back
Music: Winterburn byAndrew Rayel & Digital X feat. Sylvia Tosun
Not a hard one. It is funny doing after recent ones (109-111), it is simple. No high-pull no pull like that. 4 clean and presses usually and only 1 of 8 clean and presses.
Music is a little too quiet, but OK.
Track5: Triceps
Music: Something In The Way You Move by Ellie Goulding
Although there are many bottom half with a bar, it is not a very hard one either. However for me I got tired at chest track, so that damage came a little.
I feel Les Mills likes lady songs for Triceps. This is a good song for triceps. Well fit.
Track6: Biceps
Music: Emperor’s New Clothes by Panic! At The Disco
This is a very good one. Not too hard, but hard enough. Feels like 3-1 lasts forever. AND a lot of pulse pulse pulse pulse....
Song is great.
Track7: Lunges
Music: Won’t Stop Rocking by R3hab & Headhunterz
With a bar for the entire track.
First 1/3 is squat.
Then a lot of 3 pulse + 2 single lunges. The hardest part is twice there is 16 bottom half squats!
Track8: Shoulders
Music: Old Skool byArmin van Buuren
The hardest part is the last shoulder press. 2X (8 overhead press then 8 overhead press with legs) meaning 32 consecutive presses.
This definitely makes my shoulder ON FIRE.
The song is great. Generally Les Mills brings good beat song for shoulder tracks.
Track9: Abs
Music: Work by Rihanna feat. Drake
This was my first time doing speed-crunch. Wow. It is a punch. Hope it will help someday I have six packs.
Track10: Stretch
Music: Torches by Daughtry
Basic. Good song for strech.
Overall ver.99 is not the hardest, but chest is the real killer. 99 has a lot of 16 pulse, which is probably the feature. It made me realize I still need to grow more chest muscles.
LOVE BODYPUMP!
Late November we went small 5 mile hiking in the Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge in Concord, Massachusetts. The trail here are along Concord river and impoundment. We had before kayaked on the Concord river of this portion and saw hikers walking along. We thought that it might be interesting to hike in this area, so now we came.
Hike started with dike trail east. It was peaceful area. As you may notice, this area has a lot of birds, and therefore it is National Wildlife Refuge. Continuously you can hear the songs of birds. It must be very good to live for birds. There are trees, ponds, river, and marsh grounds. Tree sections and marsh land area is clearly separated. One side of trail is forest and river, and the other side is marsh meadows without trees with vast view. This is not a type of hike to climb and check the hard mountains, but ambling and listening to the birds.
One thins I had to be very careful was poison ivy. There is a big sign to make hikers realize that the area is poison ivy. Poison ivy contains oil called urushiol and it can cause very irritating and itchy rashes on your skin. I am extremely sensitive to the oil.
My history related to urushiol started a number of years ago in California. In California, there is a huge habitat of poison oak. Poison oak and poison ivy has the same oil, urushiol. This oil is actually the reason why the plants are called poison. When your skin gets contact with the oil, the rash will come in 1 or 2 days later. It is all immune response.
As an immunologist, I will tell you what happens. First of all, the oil itself is not toxic at all. However, the oil is absorbed in the skin and conjugates with protein in the skin, it will cause immune responses. That conjugation takes at least several hours, so the rash comes later. Oil-protein conjugation is now recognized by immune cells in the skin, then those cells migrate into lymph nodes, then immune memory will be established. This steps takes up to 24-48 hours. After that, finally many immune cells infiltrate into the area oil was contacted, then rash will happen.
The rash is not only ugly in appearance, but it is super itchy. I am okay if it is just rash on the skin. Being itchy is unbearable. It is 100 times itchier than mosquito bites. It is too itchy to work and sleep. When I had bad rash everywhere, I had to put ice packs on the rashes to work. Otherwise, it was too itchy to do anything. I put ice packs when I go to bed and I woke up by feeling itchy in the middle of night because ice packs fell from the rash area. The rash last 1 week to a month depending on how severe it is.
Although it is super itchy you should not scratch. If you scratch, you will be likely to be infected by bacteria in the nail. If this happens, antibiotics are necessary.
Treatment for rashes is steroid cream. Depending on severity, steroid intensity will be determined.
I have experienced from mild to very severe ones many times. My immune memory was completely established, so I am so sensitive to poison ivy and poison oak. Even if I pass near the poison oak I get rash.
So everytime I come back from hiking when I saw poison ivy/oak, I wash my body with Tecnu. This detergent can extract oil from skin. Be careful. If oil-protein conjugation process is already done, this wash doesn't work. Washing should be as soon as possible after finishing hike.
Luckily poison ivy is not abundant compared to poison oak in California. Massachusetts is too cold for poison ivy but California is great for poison oak. 
Now on this post, more poison ivy/oak than actual hike, but this is very important!
