10 miles at Alta. It's been too long! I actually managed one campground loop in the snow because I have a hard time considering it a true Alta run without at least one campground loop. It will be a few weeks yet before it is free of snow. It was great to get up there.
Cross country workouts start tomorrow so it looks like we'll be slogging through some snow for a while on our Wednesday Alta runs! Altitude, hills, and snow! What could be better?
Disappointed that I didn't see a moose. More deer than usual at Alta. You usually see lots of deer in Little Cottonwood Canyon but not so much up at Alta. Despite the snow, summer is in full swing. The Peruvian Lodge was hosting a wedding which made me think about Jake and Andrea's last year around this time. Lots of folks mountain biking up the summer road with skis on their back to the Devil's Castle. I was the only runner I think.
Thoughts on my run...
Sometimes when I'm running, I get a thought or idea in my head that sort of rolls around in my brain the whole run. I don't think I ever achieve the same kind of clarity of thought when I'm not running. Today I was thinking about a high school friend of mine who is now the pastor of a large Baptist church in Florida. I don't know him anymore but I do follow him on twitter. Last week he wrote "Mountains don't call people, beaches don't call people, only God calls people. The rest is just you doing what you want to do". I guess I was thinking about that particular tweet because I was skipping church this morning to run in the mountains. Ann took the kids to church. I think when people use a word like "call" they are obviously speaking metaphorically to describe a strong compulsion or intense feeling. One thing I do know for certain is that when I'm in the mountains or any other wilderness setting, I feel my stress levels drop and my feeling of calm and contentment rise. I don't want to leave them. Individual experiences may vary, but I know lots of people who feel the same way. Evolutionary biologists tell us that this is nature's way of telling us that we are on to something and in the right place. I don't think my high school friend believes in evolutionary biology but it doesn't really matter does it? What some people would attribute to nature, others attribute to God. So we end up in the same place right?
- not saying everyone should skip church, but the mountains were calling me this morning!
Dropped into the Alta Lodge after for a cup of coffee and to listen to the music on the back deck. Overheard a sad conversation between some early arriving Outdoor Retailler people about how much they are going to miss Utah and how much Denver is going to suck. It's sad when the interests of real people get crushed between the agendas of large corporations like Patagonia and the myopic politicians that inhabit our state legislature and governors office.
Happy Father's Day to all the dad's on the blog. I've got a couple great kids that I'm eternally grateful for.
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