We've been so lucky with the weather this autumn - the sun has been shining, the temperatures have been well above the norm, and we've been able to enjoy running outdoors for much longer in near perfect conditions before the cold, wintry weather sets in.
I've certainly taken advantage of things, and given that autumn is my favourite time of year, I've made time to fit in some trail runs out in Devon where the vibrant autumn colours look absolutely stunning. With no races to train for, it was fun just being there for the hell of it, although I will admit to putting in a little bit of effort on some of those Strava segments just to see if I could PR.
I had opted to help out with the kids race and then later in the afternoon, I would be course sweep which meant making sure runners were ahead of the cutoffs, and clearing the trail of flags and any garbage that had been left behind. It was going to be a full day, a long day, but with so many friends being there in either the volunteer, crew or racer capacity, I knew for sure that I wouldn't be bored.
I took Wilson along with me for company and he was so good! He enjoyed sitting around basecamp whilst waiting for our volunteer shifts to start, he waited patiently whilst we stood marshalling the kids race, and he absolutely loved the course sweep where we jogged and walked the 12km island loop, and he got the chance to have a swim and a paddle in the river.
The organisers did a great job managing the covid situation, and despite all the restrictions imposed at the race, there was still a fantastic atmosphere, we were still able to have a chat and cheer on the runners, and it really felt like the races of old, those that we were used to before covid. It was a wonderful day all around, not just for me and Wilson, but also for many of the friends we had missed so much in recent months.
The warm autumn weather lasted for several days after REU, so I headed out to Devon a few more times to fit in more trail runs and enjoy those gorgeous golden hues. Whilst the weather was still favourable, I also made sure to take the dogs out for some runs with me and they have certainly been in their element, running happily together with Wilson leading the way, and me following behind with a huge beam on my face.
The week following REU, a small group of runners in Leduc arranged to do a 10km run on the Saturday night around Telford Lake, using it as a night time virtual race they had registered for. I love running at night so although not registered for the race, I still joined the group and took Wilson and April along with me.
It was such a gorgeous night with the harvest moon lighting up the sky, and we all had so much fun making our way around the lake in the dark. The geese on the lake were making a good old noise as they were settling for the night, and the pups could hear something calling out in the distance which had them on high alert. For my part, it was my second run of the day and it felt nice and relaxed as I ran along with Wilson at my side whilst Jess had taken April and they were happily running along together.
October 2nd came and went, and I officially left my job of almost 5 years. It was Thanksgiving Weekend here in Canada, so we made sure to still celebrate and do something a little different, despite being laid-off We headed out to Elk Island with the pups to have a little hike before a late afternoon picnic, with the intention of spending a couple of hours stargazing and hopefully capturing the Northern Lights.
It was the perfect time of day to arrive - we saw endless bison, we saw muskrats at the lake along with two huge beavers, squirrels were busily packing up for the day, and the water birds were all getting settled in for the night. We were also treated to a wonderful sunset whilst we sat on the beach trying to keep warm. The night air was definitely chilly and after our little walk and our homemade chicken soup and a bread roll, followed by some pumpkin pie and whipped cream, we still couldn't stay warm. The clear skies showed a magnificent array of stars but cold hands meant that the photo opportunities we were hoping for would need to be put on hold as we couldn't quite get the lighting and the settings required for the shots we wanted.
We decided to head home instead but we were perfectly happy with how the evening had panned out. especially with the wildlife sightings, and of course, being together as a family and us all being happy and healthy, is all that we could wish for at Thanksgiving
In recent days the wind has picked up, temperatures have started to drop off a little, and the leaves are starting to fall from the trees. With not working at present, it's hard sometimes not having that structure to my day so I am trying to stick to a routine that includes running and entertaining the pups whilst I look for work. I am of course finding that I have lots more time to do other things in addition to applying for jobs, and already I am taking more notice of things as I potter and I'm practicing my photography skills, I have also restarted a latch hook project that I started several months ago, I'm revisited my colouring, and of course, I hope to do more frequent updates to this blog. When time allows, I enjoy being creative, and with winter approaching, I think I will find myself doing alot more of this kind of stuff.
For now though as fall is well and truly underway, I'll continue to enjoy the gorgeous weather, get outside as much as possible, and spend some time doing the things that I otherwise wouldn't be able to do when working a full time job.
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