In Between Rains

Rain came down yesterday, and all through the night.  We’re in a drought here in California.  Though drought is our natural state, this one is worse than normal.  I’m hoping that we get enough rain to fill the dry creek beds in my mountains.  Lots of people are hoping for enough rain to fill back up our reservoirs.  (How selfish am I?  Though in my defense, I seldom complain about rain anymore because I realize how much we need it).

I have a 40 mile goal for this week.  If I didn’t get out today, I was going to have a difficult time making goal being that I’m only running one day this weekend.  So, I forced myself out the door beneath gloomy skies.  I wore pants (yes pants!) while running down Highway 1 on this cold morning.  After crossing over the pedestrian bridge to the beaches, I was ready to unlayer (though, I did not for a couple more miles.)  

A replenished estuary – this is where the Pacific Ocean meets San Juan Creek (San Juan Creek meets Trabuco Creek, which I write about often, about 3 miles inland):

Within two miles of this morning’s run, the dark clouds parted.  The birds came out in abundance.  Runners came out in abundance as well.  I dodged the puddles, stopped for a few pictures.  I saw our local Olympic qualifier, an amazing runner I used to see every day I ran in my beginning running days – back when I only ran roads.   He’s still out there, running super strong.  I know he was a qualifier because back then I stalked researched him on the internet after memorizing his bib number from a local race that I ran.  Muhahahaha. 

Anyway, back to the subject -- a wonderful road run this morning!  Felt good to get my feet running quicker than usual, still slow, but much quicker than my normal slow.  There was a time when the trails were closed, I didn’t run.  I didn’t think the streets could give me the enjoyment that trails did.  But I did enjoy today’s run.  I really did. 

Six Creek Crossings

Thursday morning, I changed my running plans on a whim.  I just didn’t feel like the rolling coastal hills of Aliso/Wood Canyons.  I was more in the mood for the long, lonely, stretched out trail called Arroyo Trabuco.  I parked in Las Flores, a town not too far from home, and kicked up my feet along a strand of dirt next to The Water District,

and made my way down to Arroyo Trabuco:

I made 6 creek crossings (or crick crossings, depending where you’re from) --

One:

Two:

Three:

Four:

Five:

Six:

I had some close calls, but didn’t fall in once.  I ran all the way to the back entrance of O’Neill park (at the base of the Saddleback Mountains).  Here I turned around and headed back --

My total out-and-back measured about 13.5 miles (approx. 22k).  I made the same number of creek crossings for the “back”, minus one.  I was running out of time, so I took a short-cut back to the truck.  Ends up the “short cut” was such a climb, though I cut some distance from my run, I don’t think I cut much time. 

After the Rain

We got a downpour last night.  A loud, windy downpour.  We needed it.  The only bad thing about all the rain is that after a rain like that, the local trails are all closed.  So, I woke this morning, pretty dang sure a trail run was out of the question.  That was a-okay.  I spent the morning with my husband and then with chores – groceries, scrubbing the bathtub, washing dishes, laundering, napping (yes, napping! ). 

After getting the boys home from school, I took off out the front door for a cool evening run along the local beaches.  Everything was clean and beautiful as it always is after a rain.  The skies were bigger than usual, the clouds puffier.  The ocean was a deep blue, the sand a rich brown. 

Glorious.  It’s a wonder I drive all the way to the mountains to run when I have this here at home. 

Miles logged:  5.41  Elevation gained: 171’

Maple Springs to Santiago Peak

When I stepped out of my truck Saturday morning in Silverado Canyon, I thought I had made a big mistake.  It was DANG COLD.  I’m talking Southern California cold of course.  But that’s still quite cold to me.  I’m guessing it was about 45F (That’s around 7C).  Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. Fortunately, I was layered and wore my trusty beanie and warm gloves. 

I ran without music up Maple Springs, enjoying the quiet.  Well, not exactly quiet.  Wind bursts arrived every five or so minutes, trying to rip my beanie off and dropping the temperature down about 10 degrees.  The wind made a tremendous roar, sometimes a whistle as it blew through the canyon.  About a mile in, I realized that I could hear the wind from miles away.  The leaves would rustle, the trees would creak.  The noise moved up the canyon until boom, the wind hit me.  Just like an ocean wave.  And then again, some minutes later, I’d hear it from afar, and it would travel through the canyon and blow right through me.  My smile was wide enjoying these waves.   Wide like the Chesire Cat.

I was not the only person who thought they’d enjoy a beautiful morning up Maple Springs Road.  Several trucks passed me by, as well as motorcyclists and mountain bikers.  But I arrived to a tranquil “Four Corners,” with only one mountain biker who had just rode up Harding Truck Trail.  I took in the views of several counties (San Bernardino, Riverside, LA, and Orange) and turned off on one of the “corners” heading up toward the peak, Santiago Peak that is. 

View of San Gabriel Mountains from “Four Corners”

The road up The Main Divide toward Modjeska Peak (which I only ran past, not up to) was rocky.  When I write rocky, I’m talking about those fist-sized and some a bit larger rocks covering the road.  A challenge to say the least!  At one point I heard an engine revving up this road.  It was a little, and I mean tiny, low to the ground, yellow automobile.  Rocks clinked and clanged the bottom of his car as the driver drove past me.  He wore a huge grin and sat low to the ground.  The scene reminded me of a couple Harry Potter movie scenes.  It seemed to me that this guy driving up the mountain (quite quickly, I might add) was like the bus driver of that crazy, magical bus, manically driving through the streets of London (Prisoner of Azkaban).  At the same time, I saw Ron Weasley in Chamber of Secrets when he stole his father’s car and drove wildly through the countryside.  I had to chuckle. 

That yellow car is about to turn the corner in the background of this picture: 

After I passed Modjeska peak, I ran the saddle of Saddleback mountains.   The wind blew strongly.  The views were immense.  I rarely run the saddle, which lies between Modjeska and Santiago Peaks.  A treat indeed!   While running the saddle, that little yellow car came racing down from Santiago Peak.  I snapped a picture and the driver quickly stopped on the road right next to me.  He turned off the engine.  Red-faced and smiling, he looked at me questioningly.  I grinned back and laughed, “Are you crazy?”  (Like I’m one to ask, standing in the saddle of the saddleback mountains all by myself).  “You know,” he said, “Yes.  I do believe that I am crazy.”  We both laughed and chatted a short bit, then went our separate ways.   I ate my peanut butter and jelly sandwich on whole wheat bread as I made the remaining climb to Santiago Peak. 

In the Saddle:

Santiago Peak where the wind took no prisoners!

The run back down to my truck was tough.  It was after all 9 miles of downhill.  And my foot did not like it one single bit.  I did see several hikers, chatted with some.  More trucks made their way up Maple Springs and countless mountain bikers as well.  My foot ached a great deal for the last two miles.  But I still trotted in.  Arriving at my car, I found another driver parking in the best spot in the whole canyon.  It seemed like I had been the only person to discover this parking place, even though it’s so obvious.  He was a mountain biker, and agreed that we had indeed found the best place to park.  When I pulled out, he pulled into my spot, and set up to make his way up the mountain.  As one comes down, another goes up.

What a WONDERFUL morning!

Triple Digits

I went out for a run in misty winter weather, California winter that is.  My goal: run a minimum of nine miles so that I can hit triple digits for January’s mileage.  It’s been a few months since I’ve had a triple digit month.  Now that I’m training for Twin Peaks, I’ve got to get my mileage up.

Turns out, my mood was low, quite low.  I didn’t really want to run.  But once I got out of my truck, I knew that running would be the best thing for me.  And it was.

I began at Oak Tree Park in Las Flores, ran down Antonio Parkway and caught the Tijeras Creek trailhead.  I took that down to Arroyo Trabuco, a flatish trail, all the way to O’Neill Park (which rests at the base of the Saddleback Mountains).

The trails were nearly empty.  I saw one runner.  He was wearing a shirt that read, “Freedom Run,” and I saw him on the way out and on the way back (we ran in opposite directions).  Other than that runner, I saw only two other people, a man and woman riding their mountain bikes together.

I had six creek crossings on the way out, the same on the way back.  I did not get one toe wet. (Yay!) With a mile remaining, I got some light rain.  So, I quickly stopped and packed up my phone, camera and ipod.  The remainder of the way in, I could hear the bunnies and squirrels and little birdies scampering about in the brush and leaf litter, apparently in preparation of the rain.

A lovely run.  Miles logged:  12

Tijeras Creek Trail:

Arroyo Trabuco:

Time to turnaround (O’Neill Park):

Taking Arroyo Trabuco on the “back”:

Familiar Ground

I woke without a limp this morning.  Hallelujah.  After dropping the boys off at their schools, I headed off to Aliso/Wood Canyons.  My feet felt good on familiar ground.  The skies were white.  Yes, WHITE with fog.  It was lovely.  It was cold.

I felt fatigued, but still chose the hardest climb, Mentally Sensitive.  I put in almost 11 1/2 miles on my home trails.  I came in with only a minor discomfort in my PF foot. 

Running down Mathis back into Wood Canyon:

Running down Mathis after the sun poked through:

The only creek crossing on Mathis: