Enjoyed a quick run along the snowshoe loop today. The planned run was for 4 hours. The weather forecast concerned me so I changed it to 2 hours. The nearby thunder concerned me so I cut it back to 1 hour. Arrived at the parking lot 5 minutes before the first drops of rain. Drove home in the storm with lightening, thunder and flooded streets. Hope everyone else made it home safe, too.

Found these wonderful white flowers blooming along the trail. They are called Indian Pipe. For more information about them, follow this link:
https://www.minnesotawildflowers.info/flower/indian-pipe

Went running/hiking today. The temps started around 20. By the time we finished, it was down to 18. The wind was brisk and we stayed in the trees for the most part.

We did about 4 miles or so, saw 4 other runners - all going much faster than I. There were a few slippery places and we both wore Yax Trax so we didn't have any falls. The other 4 people appeared to have regular running trail shoes.

There were 4 deer at the top of the hill by the new campsites. Saw a Bald Eagle flying over the river. It was just another sunny, cold day of running.

It's been a while

Temps in the upper 60's with lots of clouds. Perfect for running.

I've been running, just not as much. The birds were pretty quiet. Saw a doe and 2 fawns and a couple of squirrels.

Did hill repeats today, the first time since early summer. I run the gravel road just out of the parking lot. Ran it and finished the first hill without walking. Did 2 more hills, walking the last little bit. The fourth and final hill was the one up to the parking lot. Managed to run the whole thing.

New Snowshoes on order

I haven't been writing much because I haven't been running much. I have a bunch of excuses but the results are the same - not much running. I have been working out, boot camp, yoga and regular exercise class. Winter is a time to relax and do other things, right?

As for running, what little I've done has been running on snowshoes. My snowshoes are early 1990's vintage Redfeathers and I still like them. The bindings are no longer made with the toe covers. The decking seams are starting to come apart.

I want a small snowshoe to replace my 25" Redfeathers. Not that I race in them but as long as the trail is somewhat groomed, the smaller ones do OK and I don't kick my anklebones as much. I searched the internet looking for reviews of snowshoes - there aren't all that many. The ones on the Minnesota DRS list are as helpful as the ones I found.

I went to REI on Wednesday to buy the Atlas 1027 Elektra. They were out of stock.

I went back to the web, looked at the Redfeathers again. The review said the binding were sometimes a problem.

So I looked at Northern Lites http://www.northernlites.com/. Tom & Nancy have them and they like them. DRS people like them. They have a 30 day money back guarantee. I ordered a pair of the Elite. Good news, in a week I should have a new pair of snowshoes. Hope these last as long as my Redfeathers.

Unusual Ice Formations

On the run today we went down to the beach. Not sure how these were formed, but they looked like unusual sculptures along the shore.

Pederson Benefit Run

A generous man and his family lost their home in the recent flood in Minnesota. A fundraiser to help them get back on the feet Pederson Benefit Run was Saturday. Another perfect day filled with friends.

Even with all those people running the trails, we still managed to see 2 Pileated Woodpeckers, 10 Tundra Swans, 12 Bald Eagles and a couple hundred Canada Geese. At one point, there was a pair of eagles sitting in a tree overhead. They flew off as we followed the trail underneath the them. Here is a photo of one eagle flying off (see the tiny spot with the white head and white tail in the lower right third of the photo).

Thanksgiving Day

Thanks for the beautiful day.













We weren't alone, the tracks in the snow indicated a lot of activity even though we didn't see what made the tracks.

And we saw other runners, Bill and his family arrived just as we were leaving. Jeffrey, Lynnette, and their friends were enjoying a warm fire and conversation after their run.

I'm just thankful that we are able to enjoy such a beautiful day.