Tag: trail

Can’t think of a title for what this captures!

Jess Guth2 Comments

I am struggling for a title because the usual ‘starting again’, ‘back to basics’… don’t quite fit. I had a therapy session this morning which was well timed because I have been struggling this week. Talking it through was so helpful and it all makes so much more sense now- I was/am completely over peopled. After a busy week that included a day on main campus, presentation to the Executive, 3 days of conferencing, running a team day, marshalling at a half marathon and then the great north run, my system is in shock. That tracks!

We talked about movement and running and whether I was in a need/have to or want space. I had already planned start a 5km running programme and do the first run today so as I was driving round to the car park at Bolton Abbey and getting sorted I was interviewing myself in my head:

So, Jess, do you enjoy running the moment?

No not really.

Really? Why is that?

It just feels hard and like I am not making any progress at all

But you still want to run? Tell us a bit more about that

Yes. I know the joy it can bring. The joy of being outside, of being in nature, feeling it, the joy of being able to move.

When you look back at your happiest running what comes to mind?

Well, running or run walking a loop at Bolton Abbey of whatever distance and having coffee and breakfast afterwards.

And then I laughed at myself. Running is only partly about the running itself. It’s also about the being able to run or walk and then have coffee, to not be in pain or so knackered that the only option is to go straight home. It’s about ticking runs off and the sense of achievement that comes with consistency. It’s about saying yes to long walks or uphill adventures without worrying about whether I can do it.

But mostly it’s about the joy of being able to feel the rain on my face, smell the rain on the car park tarmac, hear it rustling as it bounces its way through the trees. Running is a way for me to find joy in the everyday that I don’t get from anything else. I’d lost sight of that.

So I set off on my first run of the programme. Running 30 seconds, walking 2 minutes eight times. I deliberately turned my face into the rain and bounced into puddles. I laughed at myself as I sucked the autumn air into my lungs and wrapped myself in the solitude of the empty paths.

The run almost finished too soon. I ordered coffee and a bacon sarnie to relive a happy running tradition and to offer my system a gentle and calm restart.

I love running in so many weird and wonderful ways.

Happy more waking than running

Jess GuthLeave a comment

After my Happy Running in Bath, Edinburgh and at home, we headed to Seahouses for a week of writing and thinking for my DBA. We had a lovely little apartment and the perfect location and as well as some lovely walks on the beach I also had one little run.

I didn’t go far and I found it really hard and was initially frustrated at the lack of fitness. I was also a bit unsettled because we’d had to change plans. The initial plan was to drive Kath to Craster for her to run back and for me to have a plod there before driving back. But the road was closed and rather than trying to work out an alternative, we pulled into the car park at Beadnell Bay to regroup. Kath was unsettled and so was I but eventually we got going and she set off to run to Dunstanburgh Castle and I set off on my plod.

After about a mile I realised that I didn’t want to run, I wanted to walk in the sea with bare feet- so that’s what I did.

I didn’t run very much at all that week but I loved walking on the beach, playing with the sea and just being.

Hadrian’ Wall Day 1: Bowness-on-Solway to Carlisle

Jess GuthLeave a comment

We are tucked up in our Bed and Breakfast in Carlisle after a good day getting wet through walking in the rain. Our adventure started yesterday with a train journey from Keighley to Carlisle. This includes the Settle to Carlisle line which is a stunning route. From Carlisle we got a taxi out to our B&B – basically the route we’d be walking back today.

I’ll review the accommodation separately on Trip Advisor but Bowness House Farm, now Hunters Leisure complex or something like that was fine. Not luxury and with interesting decor (diamanté encrusted toilet roll holder anyone?) and average food but fine. After a little stretch of legs on the beach we ate and then settled in.

This morning the earliest we could have breakfast was 8am so that’s what we did. Then we left our bags ready to be picked up and transported on to the next B&B and off we went. We’d spoken to a guy at breakfast who had just finished the walk the other way had described our Day 1 as boring. it was anything but!

After the obligatory start selfie and stamp in our Hadrian’s Wall passports we made our way out of the village and along the road for a bit. The Solway Firth is quite spectacular really and we paused every now and again to listen to curlews and oyster catchers. We soon picked up the off road path for a bit before making our way past a Holiday park and along a lane. A little stretch along and we stopped to put our rain jackets on. And we didn’t take them off again all day.

A brief nod to Drumburgh Castle and we were on the Burgh Marshes. That’s a roughly 3 mile stretch which we walked part on the road and part up on the grassy mound. We could still hear and see curlews and lapwings. Once we crossed the cattle grid at the end of the marshes, we were heading into Burgh-by-Sands. Our taxi driver had told us that the Pub there was pretty much the only thing open for refreshments along the route and that it opened at 12. It was only 11.30 so no coffee and pee stop. It was raining quite heavily and as we continued on I got completely drenched by a car driving through a puddle. I lost my sense of humour for a few minutes and am marched on with soggy knickers.

We had been leapfrogging a woman walking on her own and she stopped at a portaloo by the village green and we decided to do the same. Feeling more comfortable we continued on with a brief stop to look at St Michael’s church. After that we walked along a few fields navigating the cows and sheep. We arrived in Beaumont with St Mary’s church sitting sort of above us on the hill and a welcome look bench round a tree inviting us to pause for a bite to eat. In addition there was a coffee trailer.

We had our packed lunch and coffee, briefly chatted to two women also walking the wall and then set off again. More fields, more cows and lots more kissing gates as we made our way alongside the river Eden into Carlisle. We walked all the way round the Sands Centre to find the entrance so we could stamp our passports. We saw the two women there again after having leapfrogged each other a couple of times. We realised we didn’t actually have to go all the way round and used a back exit to get us back on the path.

Technically the route for today was complete just before the Sands Centre but we decided to add a bit of tomorrow’s route on as we would need to walk to the B&B anyway and continuing on the path was really only marginally further. I jumped straight into the shower to get the worst of the mud off legs (I’d been wearing 3/4 length pants) and we rested a little before going for food in town. We went to Franco’s. Good pasta and pizza and the best espresso I’ve hard in a while!

So that’s what we did. About 17 miles all in. But how did I feel. My shoes aren’t quite right. They are quite hard/stiff and then they got wet. So my feet felt quite tender from quite early on. I’m considering my trail running shoes for tomorrow but they are quite tight so not sure yet. I got in my head every now and again. Early on I had a panic about whether I could do this and there were bits where I was anxious – some stone flag steps, fields full of cows, significant mud… but I’m fine. I’m tired because I’m not fit and my feet are a bit sore but it’s all good and tomorrow looks like it might be drier – which would be lovely!

Christmas Running and 500 Miles at last!

Jess Guth1 Comment

So that’s Christmas 2019 done. It has been a quiet one. After a Christmas Eve pottering about in the kitchen making oatcakes, the last batch of mince pies, chocolate mousse for our Christmas day pudding and what turned out to be delicious braised red cabbage, Christmas day started slowly. We woke up later than we normally do, had two cups of tea and mince pies in bed before opening our presents from each other. Then we set off for our Christmas day trot – our sheep loop backwards to end up at Kath’s mum’s for bacon sarnies and more presents.

The run was lush. Slow and with plenty of walking because my calves are still playing silly buggers and my feet aren’t much better either but we ran down to the canal. We were treated to an absolutely gorgeous sunrise with stunning colours. We stopped for a photo and as we set off again Kath spotted some deer. We stopped to watch them a little while and then were about to set off again (again) and I saw the blue flash of a kingfisher streaking through the air. It landed on a branch just a little further along the canal and we slowly walked towards it watching it. Such a stunning sight. Eventually it flew off and we went on our way too following it and being lucky enough to catch it take off and land further along a couple more times.

The rest of the stretch along the canal was a pleasant plod as we chatted, said Merry Christmas to the ducks and made the one or two dog walkers we met smile with our Santa hats bobbing along. We crossed the bridge over the canal and started walking up the hill. We stopped to watch squirrels and small birds and then saw a woodpecker. As we reached the top of the golf course we met a dog and his human who cheerily informed us that he had already escaped the kids to the lovely peace and quiet of the outdoors. As we made our way out of the wood at the other end we met some more dogs one of which was terrified of us in our Santa hats and after staring at us for a while she pinned her ears back and ran past us as fast as she could.

The rest of Christmas day was basically making food and eating food. Then came my birthday and another morning of tea and mince pies in bed. Eventually we got going and set off to Bolton Abbey for our Boxing Day/ my birthday trot round the Strid Wood/Aquaeduct loop. My calves were not playing in spite of starting with intervals. I made it run/walk about a mile before I admitted defeat and we walked the rest of the loop. Still, somewhere along that first mile I hit the 500 miles for the year. I should of course be excited about that. 500 miles is a lot of miles but it’s bitter sweet. At the start of the year double that number was on the cards. I was running the weekly miles needed with ease and was having fun. And then I wasn’t – running or having fun and getting to 500 miles seemed unlikely – so I am pleased to have got there. Anyway, I’ll leave the reflections on my 500 miles til the next post maybe.

I am sort of ready to end this running year, to re-set and start again, to work with the excitement of the endless possibilities a blank spreadsheet and no miles on the clock for the new year brings. The thrill of runs not yet had and adventures not yet started, the fun of planning, the routine of sticking to the plans and the rebelliousness of changing plans, breaking the rules and doing something different. I will end the year on 500 and a few miles but next year just imagine… maybe I will run 1000, maybe I won’t run 500 but just imagine the adventures that await.

Gettysburg Tourist Run

Jess Guth2 Comments

Well, we are home and jet lag is a bitch. My grand total of achievements for today is to get out of bed briefly and to make some hummus and then some lemon drizzle cake. I might add eating said cake to that list shortly. Still, there are tourist running blog posts to be caught up on!

We left Shenandoah on Friday morning and on the way out of the park stopped at the Northern Visitor Centre called Dickey Ridge and did a little loop walk from there. We just did the short Fox Hollow Loop which was a nice leg stretcher. We kept our eyes peeled for another bear, there were signs that one was in the area and warning people not to talk the loop with dogs as the bear was aggressive towards dogs. We didn’t see one though but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t there.

Then we drove to Gettysburg watching the landscape change again as we went. After a little walk round, a drink at the bar and a shower we headed to the Mason Dixon Distillery for food and a drink or two. After trying a spirits flight and then another cocktail our morning run was never going to be all rainbows and unicorns.

We set off and went in a straight line from our hotel until we hit the Gettysburg National Cemetery. It was too hot, too humid, too everything. I was struggling to breathe and my legs were heavy. I huffed and puffed my way for that half mile feeling pretty crappy. Well what do you expect drinking a mix of vodka, rum and rough as a bear’s backside stuff the American’s call whiskey.

We walked round the cemetery and then into the Military Park. We walked through the park from monument to monument. It felt a bit odd to run so we didn’t. I was more than happy to walk! It is a quite spectacular site and the scale is hard to capture.

After a quick pee stop and after having seen lots of people running through the park we decided to run back to the hotel. It was roughly 2.5 miles ish and had some hills in. I wasn’t optimistic but clearly walking round the park had woken my system up and as soon as we started running I knew I felt better. We plodded our way back through the park and then along the road rather than through the cemetery and actually it was a good little run in the end.

After breakfast we set off for 3 nights at Chesapeake Bay to wind down completely before home. The first run there I have already blogged about here.