Running On Empty

What better way to wind down after working half of Saturday than to head out for a run in a new location, and one that I've meaning to visit for years? Muchas gracias to The Wife for giving me the time and space.  So, Whittle Dene it was. A few years back, I was googling for good places to see bluebells in Spring and this was one of the top recommended places. It's a bit late now to see bluebells in their prime, but there were still a few around today in among the wild garlic. There were moments on this run, which started across the river at Prudhoe Riverside Park, that were properly beautiful and the discovery of the little huts near Whittle Mill  partway in was delightful, but the few photos I took were rubbish, sadly. I'll just have to go back someday and take better ones.  There's another reason why I want to go back too: I didn't do the full route I'd planned to run. I simply didn't have the time. I came close, but by the time I turned back ...

Today was unbelievably good weather for a run. Sunshine, blue skies with fluffy white clouds, and just 10°C. Given the choice between the Tyne valley and a return to the Seaton Sluice area, the latter won out for the sake of being marginally quicker to get to. Looking south along the clifftops to the lighthouse on St Mary's Island, Whitley Bay This time, we'd head south from Old Hartley clifftops (the southern end of Seaton Sluice, basically) towards St Mary's Island and Whitley Bay before coming inland past the caravan site and the golf course to reach the waggonways. From there, another 90° right-hander to head back northwards along said waggonway to Holywell Dene and then down into and through the dene and up again towards the Delaval Arms and down the bank back to the clifftops. A nice mix of seaside running, fields, railway lines, a tree-filled valley and riverside run. I really was blessed to grow up in this area; it's as delightful now for running as it was for g...

Yep, an actual parkrun. And a new location, to boot. On holiday, no less. Wonders may never cease. It's too much of a cliché to have your photo taken next to the venue sign, right? So I went meta instead and took a photo of someone having their photo taken. In the days leading up to today, the weather has been glorious. Today, we got Lake District weather, albeit with only cloud and not rain. Nevertheless, it was lovely to be out in a fresh, green landscape and on a course that was new to me. In terms of challenge, it felt similar to Morpeth. Two laps and with a brief but notable climb. Here, however, you only had to do that climb once rather than the three times you get in Morpeth. Mostly running on grass, and with a decent dew, meant my feet got a bit soaked even before we'd started. The trail shoes were a bit unnecessary, but I wasn't sure what to expect . 🤷 Given this was my first timed event in 6 months, I really wasn't expecti...