the Way of the Turtle

FIRST TRAIL RUN OF THE SEASON
8.5 Mile Run at Black Creek Park
Friday, March 18, 2011

Spent the afternoon running the trails at Black Creek Park... unlike the trails at Thacher on Monday, I expected Black Creek to be mostly clear of ice and snow - and I was right. Unfortunately, that left many of the trails a muddy, soupy mess... within five minutes of starting the run my shoes were wet and covered with mud, and from then on it was just a matter of how wet they were and how deep the water and mud was... which made for fun but slow going...

Everyone seemed to be enjoying the warm weather today... lots of birds and deer out and about and even a couple of butterflies. But other than one person out walking her dog I essentially had the trails to myself... one of the pluses of having a day off when most other folks have to be at work!

I generally leave Black Creek feeling as though my butt has been thoroughly kicked... the only reason that wasn't the case today was all the times I had to stop and walk rather than risk slipping and going down in the mud. So I think it's fair to say Black Creek kicked my butt slowly today... I left with juice left in my legs, but much later than I expected to...

But... man it sure felt great to be out running in the woods on a warm, sunny day!

JMH