Apr 18, 2011 | Written by Patricia Murphy

Preparing for Portugal

I’m starting the 22 day countdown to our departure for Portugal. Behind the scenes we have been very busy preparing last details not only for this 2 week trip, but also for the 6 weeks I will be in Vermont and Minnesota come June and July. My departure for cooler climes only a week after we return Stateside means a bit of additional pressure, especially in the dog sitting department. And the what should I wear department.

There’s another particularly good reason we’ve been busy. We are doing two races during our trip so we need to make sure we’re in running shape. On May 14 we will be running the Madeira Island Ultra Trail 25K , which is a 15.5 mile run that starts at Achada Grande (Fonte do Bispo) at about 3000 feet elevation, and drops to sea level at Porto Moniz. In addition to making sure we can hack it, we need to gather the following items that are required by the race director:

– Thermal blanket;
– 2 Light (head or hand), with batteries reserve;
– Mobile phone with Roaming and with enough battery;
– Camel Bak, bottles or other means to carry water, with a minimum capacity of 1 litre;
– Food reserve in case of emergency;
– Whistle
– Rain cover jacket
– Pants covering minimum knees

Then on May 22 we’ll be running the Duoro Valley Half Marathon, in the UNESCO world heritage site at Foz do Rio Douro. We’ll run along the valley with gorgeous views of port country. Yes, that’s port the wine.

We’re really looking forward to our active vacation. And don’t worry, there will be plenty of eating to fuel our activity.

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