Acchhoo!!

Got in a nice walk around the Bath block on Monday during swim practice. Good to get a bit of movement in. (2.0 miles)

I really had planned on running on Tuesday morning but that didn't happen and then I had meetings all day long include a 4:00 and a 5:00 meeting, so the run just did not happen. Apparently this is just the trend in my running life right now...

Worked from home on Wednesday and got out at 3:00 for a run on the cart paths and around the Heath. Felt a bit creaky. Nice, if sort of humid, afternoon. (6.0 miles)

The cala lillies are coming up in the Heath

Bunchberries emerging

Another afternoon run on Thursday, this time on the cart paths. Windy! (6.0 miles)

The rhodora is fading but still beautiful

Val texted after I had gone to bed on Friday night wondering if anyone was up for a mountainside run at Brad in the morning. I had already planned to head over there for some hills, so that worked perfectly! I wasn't sure exactly what she was thinking but Anne had said she was up for 6 miles, so I figured I'd go early to get in a few miles and finish up with them. Did a few errands around town and then finally started my run around 9:15. Ran up to the summit, down Tote and then out on Boundary. I figured I would have just enough time to run back up to the summit if I took the Summit Trail down. I think I came into the lot at 9:59:45 😂 Val had her route planned out - up Switchback, down Terrace, up Ski to Northern Loop overlook and then reverse - so Anne and I just tagged along and we chitter chattered the whole way. It was fun to catch up and fun to have someone in charge of the hills! After two full repeats, Anne peeled off, but I still had a mile to run to hit 10 miles, so I headed back up Switchback and down Terrace with Val before heading back to the lot, which turned out to be pretty much perfect for the mileage I wanted! The ladyslippers were out, and the patch of lily of the vally along the Northern Loop was smelling wonderfully sweet. Lots of wild indian cucumbers in bloom and some blue bead lily and bunchberry too. (10.1 miles)

My allergies have been rough this year, and by the time I got home after a few more errands, my eyes were itching like crazy! I took a shower and then decided I would sit inside and read my book at swim practice instead of walking. I think the wind along with the dryness this year (well, with the exception of the few torriential rains we've had) have exacerbated things in the allergen department, at least for me. Oh well. Things should be settling down here soon. 

Didn't get a great sleep and still feeling really congested, so stuck with a shorter run on Saturday morning. Ran a road loop around town. Two ospery were soaring at bridge height over the Androscoggin, which was fun to see, the Dame's Rockets are in bloom along the bike path, and the honeysuckle and lilacs were smelling lovely. (8.0 miles)

Later in the afternoon, we headed out to Harpswell to hang out with the Dosties at the Point. Always fun to get out to the coast! Beautiful afternoon but very breezy. We had a nice time catching up, playing corn hole and of course, Anne and Sam got in the water. Crazy Maine kids! 😆But not just the pool, they went into the ocean too. Brrr!

Sam spent the night, so Ryan and I made our way home after dinner, and I got up and out around 8:00 on Sunday for the first part of my run as the plan was for Emily to join me at 9:30 for 10 miles. I meandered around on the roads and trails, running the Highland trail, then down on the Town Landing trail along the Androscoggin and then up and over Mt. A and along the back road. Really nice morning, but I was already soaked by the time I got back to the house in advance of Emily's arrival. Getting warm out there!

It was great to have a chance to catch up with Emily and have some company for the rest of the run. We ran out on the powerlines, looped around on the Foreside trails and then skirted the Gone Fishing trails for a nice lollypop. Definitely downright hot by the time we finished up, but I was glad to feel at least reasonably decent and to get in some good miles to wrap up the week. Didn't take many photos as we were too busy chatting away 😂😊 (18.0 miles)

I took a quick shower, and then we headed into town to grab some sandwiches to go and sit at Moderation and eat and have a drink. A fun morning! Then it was off to Harpswell to pick up Sam and sit on the couch for the rest of the afternoon. Ryan and I broke out Wingspan, a bird strategy game that they got for me for Mother's Day. Fairly complex with some rather intense instructions, so we only made it through one round of play. I did not quite have the mental capacity for anything more 😝 But I think it will be a fun one once we get the hang of it!