The road was flat and easy to follow & the only possible hazard was possibly stepping on a big rock & bruising my foot. I was all alone again and my thoughts kept flowing out as fast as they popped up. Birds lined the canal: including 10-15 varieties of ducks, cormorants, white pelicans & red-winged blackbirds. They all worked hard to rise from the water a few feet and fly farther down the canal as I approached, until finally after a few short hops they gained a bit more lift and then turned with the wind to fly around me back to where they had rested earlier. Wind? A hard wind was blowing in my face & making me work even harder. It also brought back Bob Seger's old song "Against the wind, We were running against the wind." I hadn't previously thought much about my state line running coming to an end, but today I flashed forwards and backwards and could feel the end coming too soon.
The trail lay down in a basin and rain seemed to be falling on the mountains in every direction. It had not threatened me yet, but then, suddenly and without any other warning, the wind howled, shifting from straight-on to a crosswind with drops of rain. Then, about 7 miles into a 7.5 mile run, "What ... HAIL?" I pulled my second shirt back on, along with a light windbreaker/running jacket, pulled a skull cap and my gloves from the jacket pockets - I was prepared for this unpredictable high altitude weather! - and ran as fast possible (for me & for that moment in time) towards the safety and warmth of the parked car. This particular run couldn't end too soon! As for the ducks, they sought shelter among the weeds along the edge of the canal - seemingly not particularly pleased by the weather or my attempted pun to describe it as fowl.
Note: After the fact, running in the hail was a fun experience that I am glad I had.
A RAVE run!
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| Dike or Canal or Drainage - For the Birds |
