The weekend's activities pre-eclipse included running, soccer, home maintenance and trail maintenance.
I did a quick run Friday night to put down a route in Ash Canyon to post. It was surprisingly fast for me, and I was happy with it. I decided to expand that route into a different and slightly longer one for Saturday after the soccer match. That run also went well enough. Both routes are now locked in as downloadable Garmin routes and on the Google Earth kmz file on ccrunners. Check them out.
Soccer was once again a mixed bag. Mikaela's team was up 2-0 in the first half, only to watch the lead evaporate and eventually lose 3-2. I don't know what happens. On the bright side, they lost to this same team in the fall by 7 or 8 goals, so they are getting much better!
Today's trail maintenance was semi-guerrilla in that I didn't ask, nor expect permission to do what I did. In fact, I don't think anyone will especially notice any changes, except for a lack of scratches on their legs after passing through. I did a "Run With Loppers" along a stretch of trail (used by a popular race in the area) and pruned back the rabbitbrush, sagebrush and desert peach so that a runner's legs don't get scratched up. Over the years, the brush had been building along the sides of the trail, until this year, when, in some parts, there was no option other than to force your way through the middle. Uncomfortable to be sure, since desert peach has sharp, two-inch spines. I don't think anyone will stop and think, "Gee, someone must have come through here and pruned, because I didn't get scratched!", and that is a good thing. The best maintenance goes unnoticed.
After my Boy Scout deed for the day was done, I parked the loppers and went exploring - looking for trails in the area I hadn't been on previously. I found a few reasonable ones, and one interesting rock formation:
I did a quick run Friday night to put down a route in Ash Canyon to post. It was surprisingly fast for me, and I was happy with it. I decided to expand that route into a different and slightly longer one for Saturday after the soccer match. That run also went well enough. Both routes are now locked in as downloadable Garmin routes and on the Google Earth kmz file on ccrunners. Check them out.
Soccer was once again a mixed bag. Mikaela's team was up 2-0 in the first half, only to watch the lead evaporate and eventually lose 3-2. I don't know what happens. On the bright side, they lost to this same team in the fall by 7 or 8 goals, so they are getting much better!
Today's trail maintenance was semi-guerrilla in that I didn't ask, nor expect permission to do what I did. In fact, I don't think anyone will especially notice any changes, except for a lack of scratches on their legs after passing through. I did a "Run With Loppers" along a stretch of trail (used by a popular race in the area) and pruned back the rabbitbrush, sagebrush and desert peach so that a runner's legs don't get scratched up. Over the years, the brush had been building along the sides of the trail, until this year, when, in some parts, there was no option other than to force your way through the middle. Uncomfortable to be sure, since desert peach has sharp, two-inch spines. I don't think anyone will stop and think, "Gee, someone must have come through here and pruned, because I didn't get scratched!", and that is a good thing. The best maintenance goes unnoticed.
After my Boy Scout deed for the day was done, I parked the loppers and went exploring - looking for trails in the area I hadn't been on previously. I found a few reasonable ones, and one interesting rock formation:
They Pyramidal Eye
It kind of reminds me of the back of a dollar bill, with the eye in a pyramid. Being the literal guy that I am, I christened the trail "Pyramidal Eye." Of course nobody will know, but that's OK.
At the end of that trail, I was admiring the view, when I heard a noise. At first, I thought a truck was making its way up the hill out of sight. Then, as the pitch changed, I thought it might be an ATV or motorcycle, or even a lawn mower. I didn't see anything, though. Finally, I figured it out, snapped a few shots, and got out of there.
I didn't realize I had another gear in me, but I guess I found one when this came my way over the hill. Expand the photo if you can't see the depth of the swarm of bees.
At the end of that trail, I was admiring the view, when I heard a noise. At first, I thought a truck was making its way up the hill out of sight. Then, as the pitch changed, I thought it might be an ATV or motorcycle, or even a lawn mower. I didn't see anything, though. Finally, I figured it out, snapped a few shots, and got out of there.
I didn't realize I had another gear in me, but I guess I found one when this came my way over the hill. Expand the photo if you can't see the depth of the swarm of bees.
I've never seen a swarm on the move before, it's pretty cool. I watched for a bit, until they got too close for comfort, then I bugged out (pun intended).
Off to see the eclipse shortly!
Off to see the eclipse shortly!
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