Surprise on Maple Springs Road

Sunday morning (Presidents’ Day in the U.S.), I woke refreshed. Ever since I’ve switched to a ketogenic diet (8 days ago) I wake up awake. This feels so strange to me, because for years now, I have been waking groggy, and pretty much miserable to face the day, while trying to squeeze in a nap whenever I can. Sunday, it was not so. I felt refreshed getting out of bed. So, I braved the cold (and it was soooo cold) and headed out for Maple Springs Road in Silverado Canyon around 8 am.

Wow, what a morning! The trek up Maple Springs Road was difficult, but I never felt the need to rest. The skies were a beautiful blue with big white clouds. The road was crowded (relatively) also with drivers and cyclists (more so drivers). Again, I didn’t mind the “crowds” because I’m a little hesitant to get out in the wilderness again after so much time away.

A couple miles in, a female runner travelling down Maple Springs Road came around the bend and suddenly stopped just a few feet away from me. All bundled up, wearing dark sunglasses, I didn’t recognize her, but figured that we might know each other because of the way she deliberately stopped. She pointed at me, “Lauren?” I didn’t recognize her until she removed her sunglasses. And I was flabbergasted to see that she was my long time trail running friend, Kelly. For a second there, I thought that I might cry. It has been at least a couple years since I’ve seen Kelly. What a great surprise on Maple Springs Road!  The best surprise.

Anyway, after chatting a bit and also meeting her running partner, Maria, who arrived several minutes later, I continued my trek up Maple Springs Road. I took the road up to “Four Corners” where it meets Harding Truck Trail and also The Main Divide going off in two directions. It is a wonderful, sometimes desolate place. On Sunday, “Four Corners” was completely void of humanity. From my vantage point, I had views of The San Gabriel mountains in one direction, and The OC and The Pacific Ocean in the other.  I didn’t stay long though because the wind blew cold and strong. I just snapped a few pictures, and then I was off again, headed back down Maple Springs Road.

At “Four Corners”

I ran all the way back to the car. The scenery was so breathtaking that I couldn’t control myself with the camera. The only mishap was because I got careless. At one point, I looked down at the garmin on my wrist, taking my eyes off the road, and I kicked a rock. Ouch. It hurt. Though I tripped, I did not fall -- hallelujah.