2.6 Mile Walk in the Pine Hills Neighborhood
Tuesday, September 24, 2013
Today was better than yesterday, but I still needed to rest for quite a while after getting home from work, and had no desire to drive anywhere after that... so I took a roundabout route to and from the store. It was a gorgeous early fall evening, cool and breezy but not cold, and even peaceful when cars and trucks weren't roaring by. At one point I even heard some geese calling faintly from overhead, but there was too much light from the street to make them out against the night sky.
As much as I enjoyed walking tonight, it also reminded me of how much I miss not being able to go for a good run on a night like tonight...
I hacked up enough gunk today that my lungs are a bit less congested... maybe tomorrow I can get back to doing some YRG and some riding again.
JMH
Showing posts with label autumn. Show all posts
Showing posts with label autumn. Show all posts
Friday, September 13, 2013
4 Mile Run in the Albany Pine Bush
Friday, September 13, 2013
The good: I ran 4 miles on trails that are old friends in the Great Dune and Madison Avenue Pinelands sections of the Pine Bush. The rain stopped before I started and it was wonderfully cool fall weather - some of my favorite running weather. And my knee didn't blow up.
The bad: My pace is limited to slow, slower, and slowest... at best around 15 min miles. And because I was focused on my knee not blowing up, I had a lot less time to look around and enjoy the scenery - because a wrong step could have left me hobbling back to the trailhead. And the less said about the 4 mountain bikers who buzzed by me at full speed on a narrow trail (at least the first one warned me he had three buddies and two others let me know they were coming - but they still should have slowed down passing someone on foot.)
The ugly: 5 months ago I was running half marathons, now running 4 miles at a substantially slower pace is a struggle. Sigh.
JMH
Friday, September 13, 2013
The good: I ran 4 miles on trails that are old friends in the Great Dune and Madison Avenue Pinelands sections of the Pine Bush. The rain stopped before I started and it was wonderfully cool fall weather - some of my favorite running weather. And my knee didn't blow up.
The bad: My pace is limited to slow, slower, and slowest... at best around 15 min miles. And because I was focused on my knee not blowing up, I had a lot less time to look around and enjoy the scenery - because a wrong step could have left me hobbling back to the trailhead. And the less said about the 4 mountain bikers who buzzed by me at full speed on a narrow trail (at least the first one warned me he had three buddies and two others let me know they were coming - but they still should have slowed down passing someone on foot.)
The ugly: 5 months ago I was running half marathons, now running 4 miles at a substantially slower pace is a struggle. Sigh.
JMH
Monday, October 22, 2012
1.5 Mile Walk at Buckingham Pond
Monday, October 22, 2012
Had to be back at work this evening, plus my legs are still pretty tired from yesterday... so I settled for a short walk, two loops around Buckingham Pond. Not many people around, which was a nice change from all the folks who are often there on summer evenings. I should try to get back soon when there's some sunshine - I suspect some of the trees will look great, but I don't know how much longer they'll be holding onto those leaves...
Monday, October 22, 2012
Had to be back at work this evening, plus my legs are still pretty tired from yesterday... so I settled for a short walk, two loops around Buckingham Pond. Not many people around, which was a nice change from all the folks who are often there on summer evenings. I should try to get back soon when there's some sunshine - I suspect some of the trees will look great, but I don't know how much longer they'll be holding onto those leaves...
As I started my 2nd loop, the flocks of local crows began their flight to wherever they were roosting for the night... I know they can be pests, but seeing hundreds of crows streaming across the sky always gives me a thrill. While I was watching them I also spotted not one but two bats fluttering around, very good to see!
JMH
Monday, October 15, 2012
RAINY DAYS & MONDAYS...
Monday, October 15, 2012
... and sometimes the rainy day is Monday. I was hoping to get out for a ride today, but every time I planned to do so it was raining so... a rest day. Walked up to the store and back during one of the breaks in the rain, and was pleased to find that it was pretty pleasant outside - not nearly as chilly as I expected.
Five and a half days and it's time for the Empire State Marathon. Gah!
JMH
Monday, October 15, 2012
... and sometimes the rainy day is Monday. I was hoping to get out for a ride today, but every time I planned to do so it was raining so... a rest day. Walked up to the store and back during one of the breaks in the rain, and was pleased to find that it was pretty pleasant outside - not nearly as chilly as I expected.
Five and a half days and it's time for the Empire State Marathon. Gah!
JMH
Monday, September 24, 2012
FALL OR AUTUMN... WHATEVER YOU CALL IT, IT'S HERE!
2.7 Mile Walk at Five Rivers EEC
Monday, September 24, 2012
Of course, we all know that autumn "officially" arrived on Saturday morning, during the autumnal equinox - but the clearest sign of the changing seasons came to me tonight, when I decided to wear long pants for my walk at Five Rivers. Other than for work, I can't recall the last time I wore long pants... sometime back in May I suspect.
Another sign of course is the ever decreasing hours of daylight that I lament very year around this time.
Nothing unusual at Five Rivers, just a few bunnies, deer, and of course lots of birds. The itchy duck mob was splashing around in the Heron Pond, and I briefly saw the resident heron at the far end of the Beaver Pond until he decided to fly off. A flock of geese landed on the Beaver Pond just as it was getting dark, and two of the beavers were out and about. I also spotted a bat fluttering around - I'm guessing it's harder to find bugs to eat with the chilly weather, which is too bad - our bats need all the breaks they can get right now.
I did hear some howling and yipping when I got back to my car - sounded like it was off past the DEC center up the hill, and I really couldn't be sure if it was coyotes (my hope) or just dogs at one of the houses over that way.
JMH
2.7 Mile Walk at Five Rivers EEC
Monday, September 24, 2012
Of course, we all know that autumn "officially" arrived on Saturday morning, during the autumnal equinox - but the clearest sign of the changing seasons came to me tonight, when I decided to wear long pants for my walk at Five Rivers. Other than for work, I can't recall the last time I wore long pants... sometime back in May I suspect.
Another sign of course is the ever decreasing hours of daylight that I lament very year around this time.
Nothing unusual at Five Rivers, just a few bunnies, deer, and of course lots of birds. The itchy duck mob was splashing around in the Heron Pond, and I briefly saw the resident heron at the far end of the Beaver Pond until he decided to fly off. A flock of geese landed on the Beaver Pond just as it was getting dark, and two of the beavers were out and about. I also spotted a bat fluttering around - I'm guessing it's harder to find bugs to eat with the chilly weather, which is too bad - our bats need all the breaks they can get right now.
I did hear some howling and yipping when I got back to my car - sounded like it was off past the DEC center up the hill, and I really couldn't be sure if it was coyotes (my hope) or just dogs at one of the houses over that way.
JMH
Saturday, October 29, 2011
MOBBED BY DUCKS IN THE SNOW!
Saturday, October 29, 2011
OK, driving back from Rosendale on a late October afternoon should not look like this:
Unless, of course, you're driving in the midst of a record-breaking October snowstorm. Fortunately, it never got bad enough to make the roads unsafe, so we made it back to Albany without mishap.
Once we got in from the wind and cold and wet, I was pretty sure we wouldn't go back out, so I took us by Buckingham Lake to say hi to the ducks. Where saying hi means getting mobbed by a gang of feathered mooches who couldn't resist the chunks of bagel Ann tossed them, while I took some photos...
... and shot a short video.
In the end I was right - once we got home that was it for our outdoor adventures today. So I'm glad we stopped somewhere first.
JMH
Saturday, October 29, 2011
OK, driving back from Rosendale on a late October afternoon should not look like this:
Unless, of course, you're driving in the midst of a record-breaking October snowstorm. Fortunately, it never got bad enough to make the roads unsafe, so we made it back to Albany without mishap.
Once we got in from the wind and cold and wet, I was pretty sure we wouldn't go back out, so I took us by Buckingham Lake to say hi to the ducks. Where saying hi means getting mobbed by a gang of feathered mooches who couldn't resist the chunks of bagel Ann tossed them, while I took some photos...
... and shot a short video.
In the end I was right - once we got home that was it for our outdoor adventures today. So I'm glad we stopped somewhere first.
JMH
Friday, October 28, 2011
ICE & SNOW... & MORE ON THE WAY?
Friday, October 28, 2011
I guess I shouldn't have been surprised to find everything covered in a coat of icy snow when I went out to go to work this morning, but I was. Thank heavens I'd dragged my scraper out of the trunk over the weekend (when I needed to scrape ice off my windows Sunday morning) - but it was still a chore getting the car to a point where I could safely drive to school.
It was bright and sunny so I expected the snow to disappear quickly... but this was the view out my classroom window until pretty late in the morning.
Now they're saying we'll be getting more snow tomorrow - possibly a foot or more in some areas (Thacher? That could make running Sunday's race interesting, to say the least... maybe I'll throw my snowshoes in the car...) preceded by rain and a wintry mix. Which has me wondering if I'll be doing the Ulstercorps Service Sprint after all; I enjoyed it a lot last year, but I don't think it's worth risking an accident to run a 4.7 mile race. Guess I'll just have to wait and see what the weather looks like in the morning.
And once this taste of winter is over - can we have fall back for a while?
JMH
Friday, October 28, 2011
I guess I shouldn't have been surprised to find everything covered in a coat of icy snow when I went out to go to work this morning, but I was. Thank heavens I'd dragged my scraper out of the trunk over the weekend (when I needed to scrape ice off my windows Sunday morning) - but it was still a chore getting the car to a point where I could safely drive to school.
It was bright and sunny so I expected the snow to disappear quickly... but this was the view out my classroom window until pretty late in the morning.
Now they're saying we'll be getting more snow tomorrow - possibly a foot or more in some areas (Thacher? That could make running Sunday's race interesting, to say the least... maybe I'll throw my snowshoes in the car...) preceded by rain and a wintry mix. Which has me wondering if I'll be doing the Ulstercorps Service Sprint after all; I enjoyed it a lot last year, but I don't think it's worth risking an accident to run a 4.7 mile race. Guess I'll just have to wait and see what the weather looks like in the morning.
And once this taste of winter is over - can we have fall back for a while?
JMH
Thursday, October 27, 2011
FIRST SNOW
Thursday, October 27, 2011
When I left work today there was snow mixed in with the drizzle... surprisingly, a while later some was even starting to accumulate on the lawns across the street and the cars parked out front.
My first thought was to go for a run... except I've been pretty wiped out from too much work and not enough sleep. Then I thought I'd go for a walk... but I just couldn't summon up much enthusiasm to go out on a cold, grey evening into a mix of rain and snow. Maybe if it had been just snow, but the rain was a real deal-breaker.
So in the end I settled for a few looks out the window, where at least I can be dry and somewhat warmer...
As much as I enjoyed this first glimpse of snow, I hope we still have plenty of sunny, comfortably chilly autumn days left before winter really arrives.
JMH
Thursday, October 27, 2011
When I left work today there was snow mixed in with the drizzle... surprisingly, a while later some was even starting to accumulate on the lawns across the street and the cars parked out front.
My first thought was to go for a run... except I've been pretty wiped out from too much work and not enough sleep. Then I thought I'd go for a walk... but I just couldn't summon up much enthusiasm to go out on a cold, grey evening into a mix of rain and snow. Maybe if it had been just snow, but the rain was a real deal-breaker.
So in the end I settled for a few looks out the window, where at least I can be dry and somewhat warmer...
As much as I enjoyed this first glimpse of snow, I hope we still have plenty of sunny, comfortably chilly autumn days left before winter really arrives.
JMH
Saturday, October 22, 2011
6.5 Mile Run on the Appalachian Trail, South Egremont to Sheffield
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Ended up leaving the house a couple of hours later than I'd planned, in part because this week has left me fairly tired and in part because the "partly sunny" day we were supposed to have turned out to be grey, grey, grey. Since I hadn't run at all during the week I decided to abandon my plans to go for a walk at Quabbin Park in central MA and settle for just getting in some easy running on the AT in South Egremont.
This has been a somewhat muted autumn in terms of colors - between the uneven weather and the occasionally heavy wind and rain we haven't really had a peak, just different points where different trees have been showing color. While it would have been nicer with steady sunshine (and to be fair, there were a few times when the sun briefly put in an appearance while I was running) there was still enough color along the trail that make it clear that autumn is here... all the leaves covering the trail helped, too.
I have to say that while I enjoyed the flooded trail back in September for the challenge it posed, it was really nice to run on mostly dry trails today - certainly much easier going! There were quite a few cars parked both at the Jug End Road trailhead that I started at and in the parking lot in South Egremont, but I only saw two hikers while I was there, and both of them looked like thruhikers - backpacks, sleeping bags, etc.
Along the way I heard and saw lots of birds, including a downy woodpecker and a really close view of a pileated woodpecker (sadly, he flew away before I could take a picture.) Plenty of smaller birds too, including a few chickadees which had me wishing I'd brought along some of the sunflower seeds from my car.
I had thought to run all the way to Route 7 and back, but the grey chilly day kicked my motivation in the backside and I ended up running to the top of the field just past the Shays' Rebellion monument and then headed back to the car. I had hoped to maybe do a short walk somewhere before heading east on the MA Pike, but once again the grey chilly day and the late hour sapped my motivation and I decided to get to my motel instead.
Despite all of that - mission accomplished! In the last month I've managed to run at all the places (Beartown, Mount Washington, Jug End, and the South Egremont AT) that I used to run so often back when I lived and worked in the Hillsdale/Great Barrington area. And getting to all of those places has been even more special because I did it in the fall - the time of year when I first started trail running back in 1997 and probably my favorite time of year to be out running trails (OK, a slight favorite - I love being outdoors in all seasons, for different reasons.)
On to eastern MA and southern NH and the Ghost Train trail race tomorrow morning... and hopefully sunnier weather and some stops at parks on the way home.
JMH
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Ended up leaving the house a couple of hours later than I'd planned, in part because this week has left me fairly tired and in part because the "partly sunny" day we were supposed to have turned out to be grey, grey, grey. Since I hadn't run at all during the week I decided to abandon my plans to go for a walk at Quabbin Park in central MA and settle for just getting in some easy running on the AT in South Egremont.
This has been a somewhat muted autumn in terms of colors - between the uneven weather and the occasionally heavy wind and rain we haven't really had a peak, just different points where different trees have been showing color. While it would have been nicer with steady sunshine (and to be fair, there were a few times when the sun briefly put in an appearance while I was running) there was still enough color along the trail that make it clear that autumn is here... all the leaves covering the trail helped, too.
I have to say that while I enjoyed the flooded trail back in September for the challenge it posed, it was really nice to run on mostly dry trails today - certainly much easier going! There were quite a few cars parked both at the Jug End Road trailhead that I started at and in the parking lot in South Egremont, but I only saw two hikers while I was there, and both of them looked like thruhikers - backpacks, sleeping bags, etc.
Along the way I heard and saw lots of birds, including a downy woodpecker and a really close view of a pileated woodpecker (sadly, he flew away before I could take a picture.) Plenty of smaller birds too, including a few chickadees which had me wishing I'd brought along some of the sunflower seeds from my car.
I had thought to run all the way to Route 7 and back, but the grey chilly day kicked my motivation in the backside and I ended up running to the top of the field just past the Shays' Rebellion monument and then headed back to the car. I had hoped to maybe do a short walk somewhere before heading east on the MA Pike, but once again the grey chilly day and the late hour sapped my motivation and I decided to get to my motel instead.
Despite all of that - mission accomplished! In the last month I've managed to run at all the places (Beartown, Mount Washington, Jug End, and the South Egremont AT) that I used to run so often back when I lived and worked in the Hillsdale/Great Barrington area. And getting to all of those places has been even more special because I did it in the fall - the time of year when I first started trail running back in 1997 and probably my favorite time of year to be out running trails (OK, a slight favorite - I love being outdoors in all seasons, for different reasons.)
On to eastern MA and southern NH and the Ghost Train trail race tomorrow morning... and hopefully sunnier weather and some stops at parks on the way home.
JMH
Thursday, October 21, 2010
4 Mile Run, Albany Academy to Normanskill Farm
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Very little time today between wrapping up extra help sessions with my students and another work function, so I squeezed in a very short run from the school over to Normanskill Farm. After following city streets for a ways, I went down what used to be a yellow-brick road (before it was paved over, though in spots the asphalt has worn away revealing the bricks underneath) and over the Whipple bridge to follow a trail down the hill and then along the Normans Kill a short distance before turning around and heading back. I would have liked to have run longer but there just wasn't time...
The last time I was at Normanskill Farm was almost a year ago, after last year's Hairy Gorilla Half Marathon, when I stopped to get some photos of the many trees that were in brilliant fall colors. There were fewer showing gold and reds today, possibly because of the recent rain or possibly because some of the trees have yet to change color. Still, it was awfully nice to spend some time surrounded by a bit of nature, before having to follow the city streets back to work.
JMH
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Very little time today between wrapping up extra help sessions with my students and another work function, so I squeezed in a very short run from the school over to Normanskill Farm. After following city streets for a ways, I went down what used to be a yellow-brick road (before it was paved over, though in spots the asphalt has worn away revealing the bricks underneath) and over the Whipple bridge to follow a trail down the hill and then along the Normans Kill a short distance before turning around and heading back. I would have liked to have run longer but there just wasn't time...
The last time I was at Normanskill Farm was almost a year ago, after last year's Hairy Gorilla Half Marathon, when I stopped to get some photos of the many trees that were in brilliant fall colors. There were fewer showing gold and reds today, possibly because of the recent rain or possibly because some of the trees have yet to change color. Still, it was awfully nice to spend some time surrounded by a bit of nature, before having to follow the city streets back to work.
JMH
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
7.8 Mile Run in the Albany Pine Bush
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
No question fall is on the way... I set out for tonight's run with both short and long-sleeved shirts and in the end only opted for the short sleeves because I remember too many occasions in the past where I spent an entire run where I was chilly at the start and spent the rest of the time overheating. Actually, I enjoy the cooler temperatures, but the ever-decreasing hours of daylight are a bummer... I spent the last mile or more of tonight's run with a view that was slightly better than the photos below, simply because my eyes are more sensitive to dim light than my camera.
Haven't run in the Pine Bush much this summer, partially because there are lots of other places enjoy running, partially because soon the Pine Bush will be one of the few places I can run trails after work (in the dark, with a headlamp) and partially because I didn't run nearly as much this summer as I should have. So it was nice to be there again, even with all the changes that have occured due to "habitat restoration." Even nicer was the fact that I arrived at the Madison Avenue Pinelands trailhead and it wasn't crowded!
During the first few miles I heard a lot of "tap, tap, tap" and after a bit figured out that the noise was woodpeckers. I was a bit surprised by how many I saw, but that may have been a positive outcome of the "habitat restoration" - there are plenty of stands of dead trees, especially in spots where lots of black locusts have been girdled, dead trees are good homes for bugs, and those are a primary source of food for woodpeckers. I saw primarily downy woodpeckers but I think I also heard some pileated woodpeckers calling off in the distance.
I was a bit concerned at first - my legs were feeling pretty tired and a bit sore from last weekend's races in Kinderhook and Pittsfield, despite the fact that overall they felt much better than they had after the Catharine Valley and Oak Tree half marathons. But they seemed to loosen up a bit as I ran, and later in the run I even opted to take the power line trail, which in some spots features killer hills (which I hiked up, of course!) The sand was probably the biggest challenge... right now things are very dry and all the trail usage has really churned up the sandy sections, which was pretty tough going at times.
JMH
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
No question fall is on the way... I set out for tonight's run with both short and long-sleeved shirts and in the end only opted for the short sleeves because I remember too many occasions in the past where I spent an entire run where I was chilly at the start and spent the rest of the time overheating. Actually, I enjoy the cooler temperatures, but the ever-decreasing hours of daylight are a bummer... I spent the last mile or more of tonight's run with a view that was slightly better than the photos below, simply because my eyes are more sensitive to dim light than my camera.
Haven't run in the Pine Bush much this summer, partially because there are lots of other places enjoy running, partially because soon the Pine Bush will be one of the few places I can run trails after work (in the dark, with a headlamp) and partially because I didn't run nearly as much this summer as I should have. So it was nice to be there again, even with all the changes that have occured due to "habitat restoration." Even nicer was the fact that I arrived at the Madison Avenue Pinelands trailhead and it wasn't crowded!
During the first few miles I heard a lot of "tap, tap, tap" and after a bit figured out that the noise was woodpeckers. I was a bit surprised by how many I saw, but that may have been a positive outcome of the "habitat restoration" - there are plenty of stands of dead trees, especially in spots where lots of black locusts have been girdled, dead trees are good homes for bugs, and those are a primary source of food for woodpeckers. I saw primarily downy woodpeckers but I think I also heard some pileated woodpeckers calling off in the distance.
I was a bit concerned at first - my legs were feeling pretty tired and a bit sore from last weekend's races in Kinderhook and Pittsfield, despite the fact that overall they felt much better than they had after the Catharine Valley and Oak Tree half marathons. But they seemed to loosen up a bit as I ran, and later in the run I even opted to take the power line trail, which in some spots features killer hills (which I hiked up, of course!) The sand was probably the biggest challenge... right now things are very dry and all the trail usage has really churned up the sandy sections, which was pretty tough going at times.
JMH
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