Early Morning Jaunt

We needed to hit the trail early this morning since Kathleen had to work, so we decided to go to our "home field", Ute Valley Park. It is pretty awesome to have a park of this quality 1 mile from the house and we get pretty spoiled by our vast trail selection in this area. The sun tried to poke out for a few minutes, but then a gray blanket of clouds pulled back over us and remained off and on again throughout the day.
Kathleen runs along the valley floor with a glint of sunshine highlighting Blodgett Peak in the background. Except for the scrub oaks, most everything in Ute Valley has become verdant over the past few weeks. This is a pleasant sight after our long, gray spring.
We saw quite a few trail users out early today as most were expecting the weather forecast of hot and sunny to pan out - duped again!!! 8.5 miles and home before 8:45 am - we are fortunate to have great trail running in close proximity for days like today.

Thought for the day:
I do not run to add days to my life; I run to add life to my days!

A "Quickie" in Ute Valley Park

We were a little pressed for time this morning, so we laced up the shoes and headed out the door to Ute Valley Park for a "quickie" run. We are so blessed to live in a neighborhood that is criss-crossed with groomed, gravel multi use trails which access little trail jewels like our Ute Valley. Ute is a small, urban "undeveloped" park with a nice mixture of smooth and rocky trails about a mile or so from our house. Moab has arches, so does Ute, as you can see in the picture above! The terrain is hilly - constant ups and downs - not much flat terrain to speak of.

Here is Steve coming up from the "valley floor". The park has a rather remote feel and look to it even though it is in the middle of a mostly residential area. Over the years, we have seen deer, coyotes, and bear in the park. We have heard there have been mountain lions, too, but thankfully we have not come in contact with one! We also have to be extra attentive with our footing during the summer as there are lots of rattlesnakes who like to sun on the rocks. I always get "jelly legs" when I come across one! The day started out a little cooler and a bit gray. Here is Kathleen coming over a little boulder section, heading downhill. Yahooooo! Downhills are good! The clouds are hiding what is normally a great view of Pikes Peak in the background. Although it was a "quickie" run of a little over 5 miles, we are so blessed to live in such a beautiful area. We never want to cease being amazed at God's brushstrokes on His majestic canvas of nature! What a gift!

Red Rock Canyon Open Space

We got to spend the morning running in another of our local favorite spots, Red Rock Canyon Open Space. It is a reclaimed former rock quarry and, aside from having some of the best rock climbing areas in Colorado, also has some awesome trails for running and mountain biking. Once again it was "Chamber of Commerce" weather today and surprisingly light on trail traffic for a holiday weekend. From the Red Rock Rim trail you have fantastic views of the western half of the city, including the Garden of the Gods, seen in the distance in the photo above.
We have not run here before in the summer time, so today was the most green we have seen the park. We are usually struggling to get good photo contrast with the more desert plant life that is typical of this area, but today was actually quite photogenic. Steve is running along the Roundup trail on the upper rim of the park in the photo above.
Kathleen is showing off her new pink sleeves on the Contemplative Trail. She has had a tough time the last few rides and runs with a stubborn sunburn and the sleeves have been helping keep her arms protected (...and they are PINK, which is always a bonus!!!) We were able to put together a very nice 11 mile run today and enjoy one of our favorite spots in the process!