Only two more weeks until my 20th marathon, the Columbus marathon! This week I ran 40.5 miles this week, and my taper has begun. This week was full of all of the fun fall things – camping and football, running and hiking! Here’s what went down this week….
Rewinding to last Sunday, here are a few pictures from hiking around Pictured Rocks. It was a very pretty area which had some great backpacking/tent camping sites. It would be really cool to camp there (if it’s wasn’t hot and there weren’t any bugs… haha!). We ended up hiking 9 miles total today. More than I expected!
Mon – 5 easy miles. Another run down Reindeer Run road in the town of Christmas. I won’t miss that road but I will miss our beautiful campsite! We packed up and went south to set up camp near Mackinac City, home of the bridge.
We are now on a beach front campsite. We got a beautiful sunset.
Tues – 10 miles running. Pace miles was on the agenda today. The first part of my run was through the campground and around a pond.
I was a bit weirded out by the rest of my route today because it was down a lonely park road in the woods with no one around. Pretty, yes, but you never know who might come down that road! It did end at a point where you could see the Mackinac Bridge. I swear it’s out there!
Our last day of camping had a fabulous ending. I finally got to see the aurora borealis!! I’ve had major FOMO since everyone in my town saw it last year when we were out of town. But tonight I went down to the beach and caught this in the sky. The colors were only visible with my camera but the sky did have lines in it seen with the naked eye, so I knew something was going on. It was like looking through a magical viewfinder. So cool!! I was so excited and giddy when I saw it.
Here’s our camper. Such a pretty sight!
Weds – Rest day! Well, if you consider driving 7 hours with a cat crying to be “rest” then yes, it was restful! I struggled giving the kitties their chill pills before we left and I’m not sure they got a full dose, which may or may not have contributed to their restlessness on the drive. Sam was quiet 90% of the trip to the campground but was only quiet maybe 50% of the time on the way home. Yikes!! Kinda like driving with babies. They should be sleeping! Sadly our camping trip had ended. It’s been such a good trip! And the cats did enjoy camper life 🙂
Thurs – 6 easy miles. I opted to not do the track workout this week due to a suspicious feeling in my hamstring. No need to push my luck with speedwork at this point in my training! It was slightly chilly so I went with a neon yellow short sleeve shirt and reflective shorts. I don’t get to wear the reflective shorts often (pretty much only on warm fall mornings) so it’s always fun to bust them out. Sadly I didn’t even see any cars in my neighborhood at this early hour!
Fri – 5 easy miles. It was a bit chilly this morning, 52 degrees. Long sleeve neon yellow shirt today with a return of the reflective shorts 😉
Friday night is high school football night. We returned to the local high school to watch our team lose booooo. But the band played well and the visiting team also had a great band performance.
Sat – 14 miles, long run. My mind wanted to run 16 miles but my plan said 14 miles so that’s what I did. It was a great morning and a lot of people were out running. I ran the last 3 miles under 9 min miles. Yay!
Next, we headed to Ohio State to see Zach. Haven’t seen him since we moved him into his apartment in August so it was nice to get together with him. We had lunch and walked around campus. Then Alan and I went to see the marching band play. They sounded great (of course, TBDBITL!!) The campus area was packed and having fun because there was a football game. We were happy enough to just walk through the tailgating area and then we hit the road back home. Ended the day with 41,145 steps. Phew!
Sun – Rest day! Hopefully I can get a bike ride in because it will feel like summer! Speaking of summer, does anyone remember how I took a class to learn how to grow flowers from seeds in hopes I would be able to grow a bouquet this summer?? Well, that was a miserable failure as all of my flower sprouts died. Ugggh. BUT, I did end up finally getting some dahlias (from new tubers) and put together this little arrangement. My dahlias make me quite happy and I can’t wait to plant more of them for next year!
Need some more inspiration? I’m linking up with Deborah at Confessions of a Mother Runner and Kim from Running on the Fly for their Weekly Run Down. Check out all of the fun blogs there!
Q: Are there any other gardeners out there who grow flowers or plants from seeds?
It was too hard. I admit defeat!!
Q: Have you ever see the aurora borealis?
I love those reflective shorts! How’s your hamstring feeling now?
I have not seen the aurora borealis, but many people around us saw it last year when we were in Florida. My brother sent me some great pictures from where he lives!
I’m sorry your kitty didn’t do well on your trip home. Listening to the crying must have been stressful.
Even with headphones Sam’s wails were stressful 😆 I eventually put the carrier on my lap and pet him for the last hour! Too bad he doesn’t tolerate a harness or he could be out of the carrier.
Oh, and hamstring feeling fine now!
I have not had any luck seeing the Northern Lights (yet), but I’m hopeful! I had really good luck planting seeds in my “new” flower garden this summer. They’ve been thriving. I think a few may be perennials, so I’m hoping they return next summer. I have been saving some of the dead-feared seed pods, so hopefully I’ll remember where I have stored them in my garage when it’s time to plant them in the spring, LOL. Your trip to Michigan has left me with a lot of nostalgia! We watched some of the OSU/MInnesota game, but gave up in the second half (my fiend is a Gopher fan).
*deadhead seed pods (autocorrect fail)
That’s always my challenge too – remembering to actually plant the seeds I saved or remembering where I put them! 😆 I’m not sure if the OSU game was good to watch (my son hasn’t reported back yet!) but the pregame festivities were good enough for me. And made for a cheap day!
This all sounds amazing except for the cat drama. How are you giving them their pills? If you’re not already using the Churu treats, I highly, HIGHLY recommend them!!! Our cats absolutely can’t resist those, and you could grind up the pills and put them in. It was one of the things that got Muffin eating again when she had her mystery issue. The only problem is, the cats have not forgotten about them and they now want those treats all the time- SIGH.
Your photos are amazing!
Ah yes, the squeezy treats! My cats (and foster kittens) love those kitty crack sticks! However, I am a little concerned that they would detect the meds in it and refuse it, then that medicine would be wasted! But maybe not, those treats are irresistible. I had put the pills in a doughy cat treat and also covered in wet food. They kept eating around the pill! I will have to give the crack sticks a try next time 😉
Our cat hated travelling and every small trip was a struggle, so I know that feeling! Good to have chill pills! I tried a spray that was supposed to help but it never made a difference.
You’re keeping busy with training, hiking, camping and whatnot – your photos are lovely! Hope your hamstring settles down, especially with the marathon only two weeks away.
We put the cat carriers out for a week before we left and the cats were actually sleeping in them, like a hiding place! I guess the meds did help because they weren’t very dramatic, but Sam just wouldn’t stop crying.
It was a wonderful camping trip. I’m already planning another one soon. Gotta take advantage of the fall weather!
What a wonderful trip (minus the poor kitty problems), and beautiful photos!!! That sky is sooo gorgeous. I admire how active you’re able to be even while on the road/not at home!
I’m determined to incorporate my training plan into my life no matter where we go because it just requires a pair of shoes (and a Garmin haha!), right? And luckily the weather was very good for running!
Oh, I would absolutely weep with joy if I saw the aurora borealis in person. I don’t think I would ever emotionally recover.
The poor kitties! The pugs hate traveling by car so I feel your pain.
We had our first competition last night and it was good to be back. I don’t know what I’m going to do when Bandtober is over!
I think I was shrieking with joy when I saw the aurora! 🙂 What a crazy, beautiful and magical thing!
Oh man, I hope time slows down for you so you can savor all of those “lasts” with your son. But no worries, there are a lot more great “firsts” to come soon!! Enjoy!