Wolfe's Neck Run

This whole weekend deserves a separate post, as does Sam's 1k kid's race on Saturday, so for now, just a short post about this morning's run. I am not even sure I know when I headed out exactly, just that it was morning and I was fueled up (or weighed down) by the delicious camp stove cooked pancakes, bacon and a leftover chocolate glazed donut from Frosty's that I'd just eaten. Yum :-)

I ran out on the dirt road and crossed the inlet. The smell of the white tea roses filled the air. The Bobolinks and swallows flitted about above the butter-cupped lined fields. Beyond the waving grasses, the ocean shimmered in the sunlight. I thought about this place with which I've had an association almost 20 years long. Years ago the cross country team came to Wolfe's Neck for flow miles, up and down the dirt road, through the campground, right past where we were camped, and out into the park. I have memories of running these roads with my teammates, of posing for photos at the inlet with the ocean in the background. Back then, it was just a cool place to run, but now, years later, having wandered the mountains of New England, hiked in Tahoe and Yosemite, skiied in Telluride, I know that although this small stretch of land between Wolfe's Neck State Park, the farm and the campground may not be majestic in the traditional sense of the word, there is a special magic in this little corner of the world.

I love being able to share this place with Sam, as she points out the clovers and buttercups in the fields, as she calls out the bird songs - the chickadee, the phoebe, the red-winged blackbird - which she knows by heart, to see her delight in feeding grass to the goats and lambs, to be spectator as she clammers around the rocky shoreline, collecting treasures for her nature bags and beach buckets. To smile as she talks about the night filled with stars and the "sunset beach," reading stories with her in the tent at the end of a day outside, watching her hum at the periwinkles and navigate the rocks and roots of the trails through the woods. All of this brings new meaning, and love for, to this place.

With all my wandering thoughts, I easily get in 5 miles on the roads and trails and I finish, refreshed and happy. A wonderful way to finish up a fun long weekend!