Friday 20

Ryan is planning on an UXBA run tomorrow so I knew that I would need to get in my long run another day, and luckily with three full days of work plus the holiday I had all the hours I needed for this week. Which meant I could take today off. Hurray! I also knew it was supposed to get hot today, so I got up early (again) and was out the door by 6:20. As I ran up to the top of the powerline hill beyond the high school, the sky was awash in a rosy pink glow, and beyond, the morning mist was rising above the brush. The blush pink berries on the bushes are beginning to turn a deep purply blue, and set against the sky, they really were just gorgeous. I do love running at this time of day.

I ran the cart paths first so I could get off them before the golfers arrived, and then ran up and over Mt. A., stopping in the middle of the hill to pick a few deliciously ripe blackberries off the brambles at the edge of the road. Yum. Temps were fairly cool but it was humid. I had to turn my hat around after only a few miles as sweat was already dripping off the rim. I was glad I had started early.

I took the trail around the Heath and down to the river, wandering the water's edge and then up to the overgrown raspberry bramble/goldenrod-filled field. From there I headed out to Head of Tides, enjoying the quiet woods and the mellow path that winds through the birches. Saw a lot of tall white mushrooms today out there.

Out at Head of Tides, I stopped briefly to text Ryan and let him know my progress and to spend a minute looking out at the water. A belted kingfisher flew low across the water just before I turned around to head back. Instead of heading up the dirt hill to the back dirt road, I took the small new trail off to the right that I had noticed on Monday's run. Nothing fancy and dropped me back out on one of the trails I knew, but it's always fun to have a new trail to run on :)

I took a brief stop at the stairs by the ecology center to have a snack before setting off for the last leg of the run, which took me out on the powerlines, running the Lover's Lane snowmobile trail loop. My legs were beginning to tire and I was starting to feel the heat creep in, but my mind was clear. I ended up with 20.5 miles in around 3:40 including stops.

I was completely soaked by the time I was done, so after a few minutes I hopped into the shower and got into dry clothes. By then I was hungry, so I had something to eat and did a few chores around the house before stopping to get a sundae (What? Ice cream is a good recovery food, right? It has fat and calcium and protein... Right?),  and then coffees for Amy and I. I hadn't seen Amy in a few weeks, so it was nice to spent a few hours with her, catching up, before heading home to pick Sam up at school.

After dismissal, we walked down the hall to look at everyone's portraits and Sam showed me around her classroom. It was nice to have another chance to look around the room, so I could envision her spending her days there. She is completely exhausted, but does seem to really be liking school, so we will call it a successful first week of Kindergarten!

Sam's portrait