What I Sometimes Think About When I Run

 
   I generally will only attempt a blog post when I have a run I want to share. This means I've gone through occasional long stretches when there isn't anything to blog about as well as the occasional stretch where there do seem to be things I think someone else out there might be interested in hearing.
   Today, I don't have a run I'd like to go on and on about. I would like to talk about something I think about pretty well every time I get out there, however.
   

2013---running through the forest begins!

I'm a heavy guy who runs. I'm not the only heavy runner I've encountered on the internet or in magazines but I'm one of the heaviest runners I've seen in these parts of Ontario---and I see a lot of runners, London is kind of a hot bed for runners, so even when you don't want to see any (like if you're injured, for example) you still see them.
   I suspect the odd runner I encounter who has noticed my weight has then looked at me with some sympathy, mild interest, or possible disdain. I suppose it's also possible that some of them see me and silently congratulate me for just getting out there. I also have the feeling that the occasional runner simply does not see me, in any way.
   Any and all of this is fine with me, I'm not out there trying to impress anyone but here's the thought that runs through my head----not many people could do what I'm doing. 
   To explain, not many runners I see out there could move 230 pounds through a forest as fast as I can. I see lots of slender men and women out there running who are very likely anywhere from 50 to 100 pounds lighter than I am. I then imagine them being given a fifty to a hundred pound rock to carry with them and then seeing just how far, or fast, they can carry it. I don't see them making much of a go of it for very long or very far.
   I don't run fast with my 230 pounds but I run further and further all the time and, because that's the only thing I'm really trying to do, I don't see the need to do it quickly. 
   But I can run fast. As a matter of fact, if one of those slender runners and I were to stop somewhere in the forest and pick a tree about a hundred meters away in order to race to it, I strongly suspect I would win. Now, if that tree were two hundred meters away, I strongly suspect I would lose (or come in second, as I would choose to describe it!) 

Me, in the middle, buddying up with Jessica Zelinka
and friends at SprintFit last summer. As much as I
enjoy the forest, it was nice to be on a track,
running sort of fast for a change!

   I'm not sure but I suspect my body type is more like that of a sprinter, rather than a distance runner. It is, however, likely dissatisfying to write a blog post about the 13 second run I did on the weekend! There is a mystique to long-distance trail runs that I seem to have bought into and I guess that's why I do them. I also have the feeling that the type of training I would need to do as a sprinter would not be nearly as fun as running through forests, past streams and deer and mountains.
   Like most people, I have body image issues. Part of me would love to be lean and svelte, to look the same as the other runners out there, the ones that are passing me effortlessly. As I relentlessly move my 230 pounds through the trees and up the hillsides, however, I tell myself a couple of different things--- one is none of them could do this and the other is I am amazing!

   

Upping The Mileage And Some Good News!

   Yesterday, in an effort to get my mileage up one more notch, I borrowed my wife's car (so that my wonderful stepsons would have the opportunity to put snow tires on my car) and headed off to Kains Woods once again.
   It was a couple of degrees Celsius when I left the house, so I layered up nicely before I walked out the door. I did this in spite of the fact that I knew much warmer temps were in the offing in the afternoon but I am kind of a wuss when it comes to my upper body being cold---I have a hard time forcing myself out the door on a run day if I know I'm going to be cold for the first twenty minutes or so. Better to start off warm, then yank off a layer or two.
   

On the paved walkway, running
around the collection pond.

I entered at the end of the trail where the first kilometer or so is paved walkway. This is kind of annoying as I was wearing Salomon trail shoes and their large lugs are not conducive to running on pavement so I tried as much as possible to run on the grass borders. Eventually I arrived at the true trail portion and things were much better. My right knee initially was giving me some minor grief but this went away after about half a K.
   It did warm up and by about halfway through my run I was way overdressed. I was running into people running in shorts and t-shirts and congratulating them on their choices!
   The goal yesterday was to run 8K. My plan was to run 4 and a half K and then turn around and head back. One of the problems with the trails in my area is that none of them are any much longer than 5K, so this always necessitates me doubling back to get in the mileage. No big deal, though, and I managed to reach my goal with few issues.
    Kains was a busy place yesterday, lots of hikers and more than the usual amount of runners as well. And lots of dogs! Dogs are supposed to be on a leash at all times but most of the ones I ran into weren't. They were all well-behaved but, at the same time, I don't know that until they demonstrate it. Until they demonstrate it, I have to stop dead in my tracks when I encounter them. I also wonder what would happen if a well-behaved dog suddenly spotted a deer or a skunk off in the distance...oh well. Now that I come to think of it, the only time I've actually ever been harmed by a dog while out running was a beagle (on a leash, on a sidewalk) that unexpectedly leapt up on me as I was passing and tore a hole in my brand-new running shirt, breaking my skin with a paw. So maybe it's safer in the forest!
    After the run, my right knee was more tender than usual. I don't actually experience pain in it while I'm running but the aftermath is swelling and the accompanying tightness. This usually disappears after a couple of days but is problematic enough that I might actually try and see the doc about it. Something tells me it might need to be drained....

Through the trees, on the other side
of the river, you can see the golf
course belonging to the London
Hunt and Country Club (careful how
you say that) Could hear the skeet
shooters as I ran!

   Good news! In my blog post last week I briefly mentioned that I had quickly gained a huge amount of weight recently. I signed off with a throwaway comment that perhaps I should start going to the gym. Well...I did! I finally got up the drive to head over to the Goodlife in the nearby Superstore and use my Fit For Less membership. I've had this membership literally for two years and have never used it! Stupid or what?! It took  me awhile to remember how to use some of the machines but eventually I got into the swing of it. The best part, though, is that the ice has finally been broken! I'm off again today!
   

Yesterday and Today and 7K!

Behind those trees, "The Steps"!

      Yesterday, Sunday, I had a little bit of free time in the afternoon and really wanted to get out there for a run. Hopefully, I would be able to get 7K in the books, in an effort to continue upping the mileage. What I did, though, was fritter away a large chunk of the day doing pretty well non-stuff and then, by the time I finally gathered myself up to run, the sun was perilously low in the sky. It was still very bright though and bright sunshine is not something we've seen a lot of lately here in London, Ontario so I headed out anyway. I drove to the Oxford Street bridge, near the entrance to Kains Woods, and parked on the bridge (there is room for this). From there it was up the hill and into the woods and off I went!
   I can't honestly say the legs felt all that good, however, and the more I ran the more I had an opportunity to do the math in my head wherein I calculate the length of time I need to get in 7K versus the actual amount of sunlight I had to work with. The math really wasn't working in my favour and the very last thing I wanted to be doing was running through a forest in the dark. Not to mention the "coyotes at dusk" warnings posted at pretty well all of London's forested areas. So I cut things short, ran about half a kilometer, and the hiked the rest of the way, all in all about 4K. No big deal.

This is the top of what 230 pounds
of Brian Baker looks like!

    Today, Monday, I had the day off and, after a little bit of work stuff first thing, I was able to head out with lots of daylight at my command. I headed for Komoka Provincial Park and left my car at the easternmost end of it. I usually walk the first half kilometer to get warmed up but I took a couple of extra minutes when I got into the forest and did some stretching. I then started to run. Slowly. As usual.
   It was about 4 or 5 degrees Celsius today with no precipitation and a good deal of sunshine left over from yesterday. Pretty awesome for running! There were a couple of muddy sections due to recent rain and a little bit of snow but these were minimal and un-deterring.
   I'm out of shape. Today I was propelling almost 230 pounds of Brian Baker through the forest and that just ain't right and shouldn't be. For a variety of reasons, I have had huge meals lately (and often) and I have done a terrible job of showing any restraint. I hopped on (gingerly) the scales last night and by the time the digital readout had done its thing, I was weighing in at 229.5. It's been ages since I've weighed that much and my jaw just kinda dropped. Okay, time to get back to work. The only good thing about weighing that much is that I can get it off pretty quick if I'm a little more conscientious. This, however, only usually gets me back down to about 224 and there is truly so much further to go! Perhaps that gym membership I've never used....

The mighty Thames!

   The run today was fairly uneventful. Passed a few people enjoying the park, which is always kinda nice. In aiming for 7K, the plan today was to run for 4, turn around (you almost have to turn around, the park's only 4K long), and then run another 3, on the way back. This was over almost before I knew it and I then hiked another kilometer to get back to my car.
   A weird thing happened when I got into my car. As I was lowering myself into the driver's seat, all of the sudden I started to get a muscle spasm on the outside of my right calf and shin. It was quite uncomfortable and I hopped out of the car as fast as I could (not very fast) to get the leg back into a comfortable position. As I was standing beside my car, I lifted my leg off the ground and my foot started to rotate to the right, all of its own volition. A very strange thing to feel and watch---my muscles making my feet do things I hadn't asked them to do! I plopped the foot back down on the ground, stood on it and then walked around til it felt as though I could get back in the car and drive. By the time I got back home, it was more or less back to normal. I put the whole episode down to perhaps having over-exerted my lower legs with the uneven trail I'd just been on for the last almost two hours. Will keep an eye on it for next time!
   Last week I bought a combination lock. This was my radical first step toward getting back (it's been years) to the gym once more. This week, I'm actually going. The scary part is, I just told you I was going.....
   
   
   

Not the right kind of "cold, wet one"!

   I was checking my stats on Blogger just yesterday and what it told me was that there had been no page views that day and there had been no page views the previous day, either. This meant that people had stopped even accidentally reading my blog and was a sure sign that I had not written anything in a long, long time.

   

Out of the reasonably clear...

I really only blog when I run and I had not run in about four weeks, partially due to a nasty head and chest cold and then a stream of social commitments, not the least of which was my wife's 50th birthday. Today, however, was a day in which nothing had been planned and my legs were feeling kind of restless and so I thought let's give 'em a go!

   We have been through a long, bleak and wet spell in these parts lately and today was no different. Rain was in the forecast but by the time I was ready to go there was nothing more than a wet mist going on out there. I threw on a light running jacket just before I headed out the door, it wasn't really cold enough for one (it was 8C) but the mist just seemed to make it feel that much colder.

...and headed into the dark and dismal.

   I headed to Komoka Park, hoping to be able to park for free at the far end of it and, with the nasty weather today, this seemed like a pretty good bet. Sure enough, lots of room to park and off I went. My normal routine is to walk the first half a kilometer before breaking into a run and this is what I did today. I was a little worried after being off for four weeks that my legs wouldn't respond and was pleasantly surprised when they reacted appropriately.

If you're from around these parts
and do any kind of hiking or
even reading about it, then you've
probably seen this tree. It has all
sorts of  love notes on it but today,
in the wet gloom, it looked kind
of antediluvian and foreboding

   I wanted to run 7K today and had a bit of a rough idea what portion of the park I would use for this. About 3K in, though, it started to rain in earnest. This was no really big deal but then, when I looked down at my Garmin, it had switched from the usual screen telling me time and distance and had reverted to screen which shows me how my virtual run partner was doing. This would have been okay if perhaps I had set this up beforehand but i hadn't (I rarely use this option) and in fact my virtual partner today was riding a bike. And I was 24 minutes behind him/her. This was not helpful and, in the rain, I had a lot of trouble getting the Garmin back to the correct screen. When I eventually got back to the screen I needed, everything had been set back to zero!

   This, on its own, did not stop me from continuing my run but soon my ankle and Achilles started to act up and then I just lost my, for lack of a much better word, mojo. At that point, I turned around and walked it back in. No, I hiked it back in, that sounds better.

   By the time I made it halfway back, I was drenched. My running jacket is not rainproof and provided little comfort. It was only about 3 p.m. but it was dark in the forest and I actually started to run again just to get back to the car a little faster.
   So, as it turned out, I did not get my 7K run in and, really, this was fine by me. I had assuaged that restless feeling and this was the main purpose of getting out today. Hopefully, I can now get back into a more regular routine and actually give people something to read, either by accident or on purpose!

Ran 6K And Stayed Upright!

   It was a warm and dry late-October day here in London and I decided to head on out to the trails once again. The plan was to tack on another kilometer to the mileage I've been gradually increasing so today that brought me up to the huge total of 6K! Woo hoo!

The view in Warbler Woods

   I've gone out to Komoka Park the past couple of weekends and I thought I would change things up a bit and head for Kains Woods. Kains is within walking distance and I usually hike through nearby Warbler Woods, under Commissioner's Road, and then on down Oxford to the southern entrance to Kains. I then continue to hike til I get past a couple of problematic ravines. Once past them I break into my typical slow run.
   After my little face plant episode last week, I decided to pay way more attention to where my feet were landing today. The problem is that this time of the year the path is covered with leaves and, underneath said leaves, lurks the gnarly root. Fortunately, today went well and there were hardly even any close calls.
   It's bizarre and unseasonably warm these days and I don't know whether this is brought on by global warming or is just one of those cyclical aberrations. Whatever the reason for it, I can only enjoy if it's not also responsible for Puerto Rico getting wiped out....
   

The view in Kains Woods.

I decided to run 3K and then turn around and run 3K back, for my 6K total. Running such a short distance does always feel odd but, at the same time, I'm trying to break in an injured knee very slowly, hence the low mileage. At the end of the run portion, I was then left with a 3K walk back to my house. I think this might be the part I didn't plan out all that well. The past couple of weeks, I've been able to park right where I did the running, so no hiking to get there and then no hiking to make my way home. Today, I ran the farthest I've done in  months but was then faced with a long walk home. At the end of it, I was looking at close to 12K of being on my feet and this evening, both my knees are feeling it! So we just won't do that again!

Back to 5K! And a Face Plant!

   It's the weekend again and today looked like it was going to be kind of rainy so I took the opportunity to get out yesterday and give it a go at running 5K on the trails.
   Once again I headed to Komoka Provincial Park, have finally found a little place at the far end of the park where you don't have to pay the parking fee so Komoka is now a more affordable option.

Passing through a grassy meadow.
It looks flat but is actually pretty steep.

   There were, however, drops of rain on my windshield by the time I arrived and off in the distance the skies were pretty threatening so I wasn't quite sure how dry this run was really going to be. No raingear with me but it was unseasonably warm so I headed out anyway.
   Once again, I briskly walked the first half a kilometer to get warmed up and then I started a slow run. A very slow run. It was the kind of run where you can actually have a fairly lengthy conversation with walkers as you sort of pass them. Yes, that kind of run.... 
   I am, however, much more interested in accumulating some mileage these days and seeing how my injured right knee holds up. At some point, the speed with which I run will be addressed.
   I ran in Komoka last week and I really didn't want to replicate the same run today so when I reached the junction of the Blue and White trails, I headed off on the Blue. This takes you up and down a few steep sections, so I quickly began to wonder if I'd made the right decision. In the end, though, I figured it was all part of the process.
   I ran with trekking poles once again yesterday, as I'm now accustomed to doing. I got used to them on my hiking adventures this past summer and find that they provide a little more stability on some of the more technical terrain. In my mind, they also enable me to imagine that I am some sort of badass mountain trail runner. On level parts of the trail, I

Some of the scenery at the west (and
less-traveled) end of the park.

simply carry them in my hand. I'm starting to become fairly adept at switching back and forth and moving quickly (for me) up and down rocky slopes. What much of this means is that in a park where most of the people are either walking their dogs or spending romantic time with their significant other, I really stand out. And that's fine, kinda enjoy doing my own thing!
   Just before the end of the running portion yesterday, I passed one of those romantic couples I just mentioned, going the other way. I was about 10 meters past them when my toe snagged on a root and I landed hard. The noise of this (imagine a tree falling in a forest) alerted the romantic couple and they turned around to see me lying there in a heap. They asked if I was okay. I assured them I was and that only my pride was slightly bruised. I also swore them to secrecy and they were fine with that. It was my right (and injured) knee that took the brunt of the fall and I was quite happy to see and feel that there were no ill effects suffered. Good to know, actually, it confirmed in a new and different way that the knee is continuing to heal the way I need it to.
   

The aftermath. All is well, though!

So my 5K trail run is in the books and the good news is that I could quite easily have continued. The knee is a little swollen today but is not paining me at all and did not pain me yesterday as I ran, so this is good. My plan is to try and incorporate some kind of run mid-week this week so that I end up running more then just once a week. The other good thing that occurred to me about having run 5K yesterday is that it is an actual race distance. You quite often hear people talk about how their 5K run went and it is simply nice knowing that I am once again back to that level. Onward and upward!
    
   
   

Upping the mileage in Komoka Park

Good to be back in the
Komoka woods!

   Yesterday was a day off for me and I took the opportunity to head out to Komoka Provincial Park and get in a bit of a hike/run.
   I've been trying to make sure I get out every weekend and up the mileage each time as I work my knee back into ship-shapeness. I missed last weekend due to a little bit of toe tendinitis which had me limping around and this weekend was busy with Thanksgiving plans so yesterday was the day.

The Steps! A good place to turn
around cuz, if you don't, you
have to run up them!

   It's been unseasonably warm here in London the past couple of weeks and yesterday the temp was in the low 20s (C)---perfect for shorts and a t-shirt. I managed to find free parking at the far end of the park and started my hike/run there. I hiked for half a kilometer and then started a slow run.

The Maples always turn first

   The goal for yesterday was 4K, just adding a kilometer every week at this point. I hiked for the first half a K and then started the run portion. There was almost no discomfort in the knee whatsoever and the 4K went by without incident. I ran as far as the bottom of The Steps and then turned back and continued to run until I hit the magical 4K mark. What made it even more magical was that I really felt as though I could have kept on running (so slow was my pace, likely) so I guess this bodes well for my next outing, which will be 5K. From that point, I just hiked my way back to the car.

Looking out at the changing
colours of the Thames Valley.

   It's starting to become clearer that I can likely up not only the mileage (thank goodness, it's kinda hard to report on 4K runs) but the frequency, as well. Today I feel as though I could hit the trails again and not be suffering too much so perhaps one more day a week is in the offing? We'll see!

I Am Twelve Years Old (Again)

    Today (which will be yesterday  by the time you actually read this) I decided to give running yet another go and, once again, try to up the mileage just a touch.
   I gathered up and donned all the usual running accouterments and just before I left I gave my wife a kiss goodbye. As I was getting set to walk out the door, she looked at me, giggled, and said "You look like you're twelve!"
   

Me, doing my best impression
of a twelve-year-old!

At my age (not twelve) I've kind of gotten past the part of caring a whole heck of a lot about how I look anymore. This goes as much for street clothes (I believe grey goes with anything) as it does running attire. Notwithstanding all this, her comment gave me pause. I'm sure she saw me more as the young boy headed out to baseball practice or perhaps joining the Scout group or maybe even headed off trick-or-treating. I get it, I really do. Even the people on the street give me funny looks occasionally so when I finally hit the forest I do feel a little more at ease (although there was that time I was hiking through the woods and came across this young family whose three-year-old looked at me like I was Bigfoot and quite often the other hikers are wearing flip-flips and I'm dressed like I was running the Barkley Marathons but I digress...) 

This tree fell in the forest (across
the trail in Warbler) but I'm not sure
if anybody heard....

   Back to what matters. The simple plan was to make my way back to Kains Woods via Warbler Woods and run a slow 3K. Due to some right knee issues, I've very gradually been upping the mileage, having started at 1K and then 2K and today up to 3. You may have noticed a pattern and quite likely will be able to guess how far I'm running next week! The knee, which had been feeling awesome the last couple of days decided to feel not quite as awesome today (which is now yesterday) and I wondered if being out on the trails with it was even a good idea. Like a lot of other times, though, when my knee or perhaps another body part is feeling kind of iffy before or at the beginning of a run, by the time I'd run a couple hundred meters everything was fine. And because this all happened yesterday, I can tell you that the knee still feels fine today!

   

At the end of 3K's worth of
running. They don't want you
to go this way, so I didn't.

I'm not sure if global warming is the issue or not, but even this late in September we are in the midst of a heat spell that rivals easily anything that occurred mid-summer. Mid-thirties now for several days in a row. Somehow or other, I did not take this into account with my hydration and, in spite of the fact that I was wearing a hydration vest which could have accommodated two chest bottles and a bladder, I set out with only one chest bottle. Huge mistake! With the extra little bit of running and ending up just that much farther away from home, I didn't have enough water to see me back. Because of this, I ducked out of the forest as soon as I could just to avoid the extra labour and walked back along city streets, thinking that if anybody was out with a hose I might get 'em to either spray me or fill my bottle. Well, no such luck. About half a kilometer away from my place,

Cutting out of Kains Woods early.
Not a lot of fun, traversing
those large concrete blocks...

though, I did run into a house where they were watering the lawn and the sprinkler was mercifully spraying the sidewalk at the same time so I walked back and forth in it for a bit and it was heavenly. Yet another lesson learned. It was the same kind of a mistake that a twelve-year-old might have made...
   

I Ran TWICE As Far!

   I had a little free time yesterday afternoon so I thought I would head over to the nearest trail and see if a little running was in order. 

   
 I more or less did the exact same thing as I did last week and headed over to Kains Woods via Warbler Woods. My goal was to try and add a little extra mileage this week as the last time out I had run a paltry one kilometer. To be fair, I am really experimenting with my right knee these days and any sort of mileage is just a bonus right at the moment. In light of this, I actually doubled the kilometers this week and aimed to do two, yes, a whole two kilometers!

   I hiked briskly through Warbler then got back out on the streets til I got to Kains. Once I got to the three K mark I started a slow run.
   The one difference between this outing and the last was that I didn't feel any real pain in the knee right at the beginning and didn't have to make up my mind as to whether this was actually a good idea or not. Not only that but when I hit the 1K mark and then ran through it I didn't have the feeling that I was in dangerous territory---in fact I felt like I could have run a lot farther! Right from the get-go, the knee felt strong and good. At the end of the running portion, I found a log to sit on and munched a couple of granola bars I'd brought along. Very briefly, the knee protested when I stood up and started to walk again but after a few feet the pain disappeared.
   Today, I can tell that I was out running yesterday. It's a kind of discomfort that I'm actually appreciating because it's the old discomfort, the aches and pains of a body that worked hard as opposed to a body that's broken! And that's good!

On The Trails Again And Some Actual RUNNING!

   This was supposed to have been the summer I really got into trail-running. I got a bit of a taste of it at the end of last summer and vowed that I would get into it full-time come this summer.
   I actually ran trails most of the winter long (it was a reasonably mild winter here in London) and felt that I was well on my way to enjoying an awesome Spring and Summer. 
   Unfortunately, these plans got a little de-railed back in May. Wanting to see what marvelous benefits my winter training had wrought, I attempted to go run the streets in my neighbourhood. My knee popped on me about four houses down and that was it for running. My doctor told me that walking would be okay, so that's what I did. Started easy and then got into it with a vengeance and ended up hiking about 110 kilometers worth of the Thames Valley Trail in the month of July.

Warbler

   I also spent a great deal of time  on my knees in the  backyard, laying stepping stones and border rock. What with all the hiking and kneeling, my right knee never truly had a good chance to recover.
   Lately, though, I've managed to take a break from all this and my knee ended up feeling much better. So much so, in fact, that I actually decided to try and go for a short trail run this past Thursday.
   My plan was to hike through nearby Warbler Woods and then on to Kains Woods, which are more or less adjacent to each other. Once in Kains, the plan was then to run for at least a kilometer and see how I felt.
   Well, I started to run and it did not feel good. Had a fair amount of pain in the knee and after about a hundred meters I shut it down. In my head, I began this list of all the medical stuff the knee was going to require and especially began entertaining concerns that I was now dealing with something chronic, as opposed to temporary.
   And then I remembered almost every other time I had ever gone running, especially after a layoff. My knees always hurt. And even though they always hurt, I persevere until gradually things loosen up, parts fall into place and I end up running just fine, thank you. It occurred to me then that this might be what was happening. I decided to give it another shot and, sure enough, after a little bit the knee came around and ended up being quite workable. I ended up running for the allotted kilometer and then returned to walking briskly. I had set my Garmin when I walked out the door and as soon as it hit 5K I turned around and headed back the same way I came.
   

The entrance to Kains Woods. Took my
trekking poles for the hilly, hiking parts.
While I was running, I pretended they
were spears.....*giggle*

The right knee seemed fine at the time but I knew that the telling part would come the next day. On Friday, however, the knee continued to feel good (well, as much as a 64-year-old knee can) and I had no issues with bending, kneeling or using stairs. Woo hoo! 
   So now the plan is simply to do this a little more often and up the running portion of it by small increments. I also still have the option of seeing a PT for the knee, as I do have a referral, if at some point it flares up again. Perhaps a little hard work mixed with
optimistic caution will get me trail-running next summer! We shall see!

Recap: End-to-End on the Thames Valley Trail

   Just about a week ago, I hiked the last remaining section of the Thames Valley Trail. It had taken me slightly over a month to complete the 110 kilometer trail and involved nine separate hikes, averaging about 12K each.
   When I began the quest, I really had no time frame in mind---all I really knew was that I wanted to get it done by the end of the year, as doing so would make me eligible for the Thames Valley Trail End-to-End patch. The thought of walking the whole thing was a little daunting, both distance and time-wise, and this would be my first real experience at hiking so I wasn't at all sure what I was getting myself in for.
   As you can imagine, it was quite the learning experience. It seemed as though every time I set out I learned something new which would better prepare me for the subsequent hikes.
   

Sample of a map and some of
the directions (hope no copyright
broken....)

The first section, from Southdel Road to Sharon Creek, started under threatening skies and stayed that way right until I got about 2K away from the end and the heavens opened up. I had brought a rain jacket with me but it barely covered me with a backpack on and did nothing whatsoever for my legs. I was wearing shorts and I don't mind wet legs but what happened was that all the rain water flowed into my hiking boots. My boots are Merrell Moabs and are waterproof. This is only really good, though, if the water is on the outside. If the water is on the inside, it just stays there. After that first hike, I made a trip to Canadian Tire and bought waterproof rain-gear, both tops and bottoms. And, of course, it never rained again! I also got eaten alive by mosquitoes on that first hike and so purchased insect repellent with Deet. Hopefully this would also provide protection from ticks, as this has been a particularly bad season for them.
   I combined the following two sections as they were shorter and also tacked on an extra bit from the first section, because I had missed a turn near the end and wanted to be able to say I'd walked the whole thing. This was part of a tactical error on that day and I later on found myself in some reasonably serious trouble as I'd totally miscalculated the water I'd needed. It was about 34C (93F) that day and substantially before the end of the hike I found myself feeling dehydrated and sick to my stomach and out in a forest with no true way of getting help in a hurry, if things got any worse. I did

Marriage of humans and nature

eventually make my way out of the woods but by this time thigh cramps had started to set in, making it a very gingerly trip to my car. HUGE learning experience here, both about fueling and hydration and what your body is (or isn't) capable of. The result of this, and of hikes to come, was that I spent some time musing over the safety issues of hiking solo. There are numerous times on the trail when a slip or a trip might send you tumbling into some rocky ravine and I often imagined myself at the bottom of one of them, tangled in underbrush and unable to reach my phone. I think hiking solo may continue to require some careful consideration.
   On subsequent hikes, I learned how to marry the maps and the guidebook a little better, how to keep my hat on my head, how to keep my food cooler, how to be patient and wait for the blazes to appear, and how to check both sides of the road for trail markers.

The badge and the guidebook

   The end result of all this is that I did finally get my End-to-End badge! I contacted the Thames Valley Trail Association, gave them a link to this blog so that I could certify that I'd actually completed it, and was able to pick up the badge from Paulette Renaud, the Association's Activities Director, just a day later. Also had a wonderful chat about the Trail while we were at it!
   Where I go from here, hiking-wise, is kind of up in the air. There is no shortage of amazing places to hike here in Ontario, if you are so inclined, and perhaps I'll check some of them out. Doralyn is not a hot weather person so maybe once fall arrives the two of us might be able to get out and do a little exploring together.
   One of the things I do need to do, though, is get back to running. This was to be a trail-running summer for me but that was derailed back in the Spring when I did something to my knee and the doctor said WALK. The knee, for the most part, is starting to feel better and I think it's time I started thinking about hitting the trails once more!

Hiking the Thames Valley Trail: Section 15-Highway #7 to St. Marys

   Woo hoo! I. Am. Done!
   Today, I completed the final section of the end-to-end Thames Valley Trail! It's taken me about a month, but I finally finished all 110 kilometers, from south of Delaware, through London and on to St. Marys.
   Doralyn (my angel) followed me to the end point in St. Marys, where I left my car, this morning and then drove me back to the last spot on the trail I had finished, which was on Highway #7, near River Valley Golf and Country Club. I then needed to traverse the bridge over the river. The bridge is not really designed for pedestrians, however, and I waited until there was no traffic coming my way before I started across. As it turned out, I made it most of the way across before a car came along and I was able to hop the guardrail at the last minute.
   The first section takes you toward the golf course and then actually on to the course itself before you get to the little side trail. The guidebook actually recommends watching out for stray golf balls (which I did) and I even found a couple, which I threw onto the first tee box I passed.
   After the golf course, the trail essentially follows the Thames River all the way to St. Marys, with a brief bit of highway walking as you get into town.
   It was a brutal kind of day, in some ways. There were some parts of the trail which did not appear to get much traffic and were overgrown. This made the going a little tougher but the worst part was, with all the vegetation underfoot, you were unable to tell where the holes and the uneven parts were. Came close to rolling my ankle several times.
   Possibly the worst aspect of the day were the spiders. The path was inundated with them and they strung their almost invisible webs right across the trail, generally at waist and face height. After awhile, I got into waving my trekking poles in front of me as I walked, just as a precaution. In the car afterwards, I was still yanking cobwebs off me!
   The trail itself was tough, yet quite beautiful in spots. Lots of hills to climb and tree trunks to either go over or under. Plant life was amazing and lots of wildlife as well. The weather was warm at 26C (78F) and there was a nice breeze, so, all in all, a great day!
   So here we go with obligatory photo dump because, once again, I walked the walk!

Quick pic of where I left off the
most recent section

And on to the start of the final section!

Headed to the golf course.

On the course, walking parallel
to one of the fairways

The ever-beautiful Thames.

Spotted one deer venturing out into
the river and by the time I could
get my phone out for a pic there
was a whole family!

Scenery

Pretty rugged-ruggedly pretty

Moo-moos!

Kinda hard to see, but there's
a thin, electrical fence here

Beautiful

Look carefully (unless you're
afraid of spiders...) These
were all over the place.

A nice flat, fairly spider-free section

And then, out of nowhere, an old
abandoned camper. Blanket
on the line, firepit, jacket. But
no road to get it there....

Ah, the crossroads. Always nice,
knowing where to go!

No idea what this used to be!

     

The highway back into St. Marys

Me, at the end of the Thames Valley Trail!