Since I last wrote just over a week ago, things have already happened that have had an impact on our lives here in Leduc.

Firstly, last Monday we lost our little cat Khayman. Although he was an old man, his passing was unexpected and so sudden that I still haven't got my head around the fact that he isn't with us anymore. He'd been fine on the journey up from Phoenix and he appeared to have settled into the new house quite comfortably, but by late Sunday evening, he was very lethargic and just wasn't himself. By 2am he had passed over that rainbow bridge and the little cat died in my arms whilst I cried my heart out. I felt guilty that I couldn't do anything to help him, but I was grateful that I had been there with him and he wasn't alone at the end. I still wonder if there was something I could have done but the reality is that at almost 20 years of age, his little body had more than likely had enough and it was just his time to go. I'm happy he made it back to Canada with us, that he was there on that last road trip with Andy, me and the dogs, and I know for sure that every time we hit the road, we will always have very fond and lasting memories of that easy going little furry adventurer.

Khayman on the road

Khayman xx

Needless to say, I grieved for Khayman over the following days and it took a while to accept that he was no longer with us.

Thankfully the dogs are here to keep me focused and entertained and there's absolutely no doubt that they too are loving their new lives. Every walk consists of being dragged into the bushes to sniff at anything and everything, and now that the snow has melted and the dog park has huge pools of water, they are getting well and truly dirty and smelly and muddy, but having so much fun! Tillie has never experienced water like this before and she goes crazy running around and jumping about in it. She's also never experienced the joy and thrill of running off-leash through woodlands and she loves to chase Wilson and Brandy around the trees, jumping over fallen tree trunks and weaving in between the fallen branches.

For me, I really couldn't be happier. Actually that's a lie. Andy still hasn't joined us yet and will be based in Phoenix for the foreseeable future but when he does eventually move back north of the border, our lives will be complete.

But I really do love the new house and I really do like Leduc. The city itself has a small town feel to it and with a population of around just 32,000, it's the smallest city I have ever had the pleasure to live in. The rush hour lasts for around 10 to 20 minutes and even then, the traffic is bearable. You can get from one end of the city to the other in less than 10 minutes in the car, or you can run it in about half an hour. What else I love about being here is the number of parks and pathways, the number of trees, and all the lakes in the area. There is so much open space and I suspect that in the summer months, everything will be a beautiful lush green, whilst the autumn colours will no doubt be simply amazing!

Despite the small size of the city, I am still managing to find some really good running routes and I am enjoying my running and getting back into it. The good news is that whilst Leduc may be pretty flat, just a 30 minute drive north takes me to Edmonton and the river valley where there are endless trails to run on and plenty of hills if you want them.

Last weekend, I did just that as I'd entered a race at Gold Bar Park. 

The race was organised by the MEC and I'd done several of their races previously when living in Calgary. They are cheap, no frills type of races that can be fiercely competitive or extremely low key, but the organisation of them is still impressive.

Gold Bar Park and the MEC Trail Race Series

Although I was getting back into the routine of my daily runs again, I was feeling extremely achy and sore in the back and glutes due to all the lifting and mauling of boxes and furniture. I didn't have any expectations for the race - I just wanted to blow off the cobwebs to see how things went.

I had originally entered the 15k race, but due to the melting snow, the trails were either ankle deep mud, shin deep puddles, sheet ice, or slushy snow with ice underneath. The City of Edmonton revoked the race permit on the single track trails that were meant to form part of the course - the trails were in such a bad way and they were concerned about the damage that would be caused by a couple of hundred runners charging along there and churning things up. They did however agree to letting us use the double track forest trails with some of the drier single track being allowed where possible. The course was shortened to 10km consisting of 2 x 5km loops and whilst it wouldn't be as technical as they would have liked, it still provided some good, challenging climbs and dodging of tree stumps, whilst the tufts of marsh grass in some sections meant you needed to pick your feet up.

I really enjoyed the run despite feeling extremely tight and heavy legged and I felt like I had a good run to finish in around 53 minutes and averaging out at just over 8 minute miles. It really didn't feel like I was going that quick, so I was extremely happy given the course and conditions. I hung around for a while afterwards waiting for the results in a brisk and chilly wind but a lack of phone reception meant that the results couldn't be downloaded. With the race starting in waves 2 minutes apart, I have no idea where I finished but I know that despite the tightness in the legs and back, I should be ok for my 50 mile race at the end of May. I guess I really need to find a good, reliable sports massage person - where's Mackenzie when you need her?!

Freezing cold, muddy and wet - but that was tons of fun :-)

It's almost the weekend again and I'm looking forward to heading out to the trails this weekend. I'm also looking forward to Andy being here for a couple of days. He's been out in the field in Newfoundland and Labrador, but he should be finished and heading back to us for a few days. I know for sure we're all looking forward to seeing him. And then next weekend we are off to Canmore for the CanniCross event where Wilson, Brandy and Tillie all get to compete in a 4km trail race with 27 other dogs and humans. Our friend Glady will be running with Wilson, if Brandy's leg is ok, she will be competing with our good friend Michelle, whilst Tillie will be running with yours truly. It'll be great to be in the mountains and it'll be loads of fun getting to run with the dogs and spending some time with friends. 

After that, it will be just 3 weeks until the big one which I am somewhat nervous about but also pretty excited. I love trails, I love ultra running and I can't wait to get out there and see what I can do :-)

Finally ..... a Little Update :-)

It's hard to believe that we only left Phoenix just over a week ago after an emotional goodbye to the city we had called home for the past 2 1/2 years. Sitting here now in our new home in Leduc, the intense heat and the desert trails to which I had become so familiar seem so far away in both distance and time. It's been a strange week - I've been so excited to be on the road heading north to start a new chapter in our lives, but I've felt pangs of longing when I've seen friends' pictures of those same trails on social media.

The build up to our move was pretty stressful what with Andy working away most of the time and me having to pack and arrange pretty much everything in his absence. Looking back, I'm surprised we managed to get moved on time and I'm pretty sure if our amazing friends Skye and Ian hadn't been there to help us load up in those last couple of days, we would have really struggled. Thankfully we hit our schedule and the truck with all our household belongings left Phoenix the same day as it too made the 1,700 miles journey to Leduc in Alberta, Canada.

All of our stuff - see you in a couple of weeks!

With all the stress of the move, it was hard trying to fit in my normal daily routine of looking after the dogs, working full time and of course getting in my runs, but I know that walking the dogs and running bring stress relief and make me happy, and  I actually think that the extra effort of maintaining my routine kept me sane in the last few weeks.

Before leaving the desert, I tried to run as many of my old familiar trails as I could and I had some very happy memories as I did so. There is no doubt that I was extremely lucky to live so close to such an amazing trail network in Norterra where I could literally hit the trails within just 5 minutes of leaving the house.

Saying totty bye to Deem Hills :(

One area that I hadn't had the pleasure of running was the White Tank Mountains in Waddell. Last year I had volunteered at the Mesquite Canyon 50km and having done the final sweep of the course, I was exposed to 10 miles of the course. I absolutely loved what I saw and so I decided to make Mesquite Canyon the last race I would do before leaving Phoenix.

It's now a month since I did the race but I can still remember the emotion I felt that day when I saw all my Phoenix friends at the start and the Aravaipa banner that has become such a familiar sight to me. I tried not to think too much about it being my last race in Arizona for a while and had every intention of just enjoying the day and soaking in the beauty of the course.

The race actually went better than I expected. There was a lot of climbing which probably lost me the race (I was just a few minutes behind the lead lady at Goat Camp and just 10 minutes behind at the finish), but the sheer ruggedness and technical terrain of the course had me hooked. I absolutely loved it! Running down the steep and rocky Goat Camp was amazing. I saw so many friends making their way up and I felt happy that I had spotted them and gave me a chance to say hello for the final time. There were some good runnable sections on the course and I really pushed on those stretches and manged to pass other runners in the process. The most exciting part for me though was running through the Canyon before heading in to the finish. Jumping down those amazing boulders and rocks was challenging on tired legs and yet I was like a kid in a playground and was having so much fun!

Absolutely  loving Mesquite Canyon

Podium Picture :-)

I expected to finish the race in around about 6 hours so was over the moon when I came in at around 5 hours 17 minutes and finishing second lady - like I said, it was a pretty amazing day!

I haven't raced since Mesquite Canyon and I admit to missing those Aravaipa Races which now appear to be in full swing. It's worse when Facebook shows me my memories of which there are so many linked to Aravaipa!

Saying all that though, now we are back in Canada I know we have done the right thing. As soon as we crossed the border, I felt different straight away - even more happy, even more excited, even more positive about our future.

The drive back to Canada went pretty smoothly too and we couldn't have asked for anything more. We'd opted to stay in Kamp of America log cabins to save on cost and stopped off at Beaver in Utah, Pocotella in Idaho and Great Falls in Montana before heading to Calgary for a couple of nights whilst waiting for the house keys to become available. We were driving for around 6 or 7 hours each day but it was a nice steady drive up and even the dogs and Khayman the cat seemed settled and relaxed with the drive. Our original plan had been to hire a car for the drive up and purchase a new one when we arrived but the extortionate cost of a one way drop off changed our minds. We decided instead to drive up in our wonderful little Jeep, "Pongy" and to re-import her to Canada. She's over 10 years old now, had 280,000km (nearly 180,000 miles) on the clock, but she has been the most amazing car ever. We trusted her with the 1,700 mile drive and she didn't let us down :-)

Our trusted Jeep :-)

Jeepy ready to hit the road :-)

We found numerous dog parks on the drive up and of course the dogs loved having all the space to run around in (they loved Deem Hills but it wasn't quite long enough for Wilson to get up to full speed!), although Tillie was a little unsure about the mud, and eventually the snow and ice which we encountered when arriving in Montana. Wilson and Brandy have both lived in Canada before but of course Tillie is originally from Mexico and has only known the heat. The good news is though that she is adapting extremely well and she LOVES wearing her little winter jacket to keep her warm.

Dog Park Fun in Montana

Dog Park Fun in Lethbridge

 One of our favourite dog parks when in Calgary was Sue Higgins and so we arranged to meet some friends there whilst passing through on our journey to Leduc. Wilson and Brandy certainly remembered Glady and Michelle and their daughter Abbi and it was great to see the reactions when they all saw each other again after nearly 3 years.

Old Friends in Calgary

Old Friends in Calgary

We got the keys to our new house last Tuesday and as soon as we walked in we were once again taken aback as to how nice the house is. We decided to down size this time so it's just under 1,400 sq ft, but it's warm, it's cozy and it has a lovely backyard for the dogs to play in. Andy had to fly out to Newfoundland on Tuesday evening so I've been here on my own for the past few days. Our stuff still hasn't arrived from Phoenix so I've been sleeping on the floor and working standing up. We've no television, no radio and up until a couple of days ago, no internet. It's been ok, but I'm now ready for our stuff to arrive - I tried to make a shepherds pie the other night and forgot that we didn't have a masher, and then we bought dog food but don't have a can opener. It's the small simple things you really miss!

Of course now I'm here, I can finally get back in to my running again. I have a couple of races planned with the first being a 12km trail race at Gold Bar Park in Edmonton next weekend. After that we're off to Canmore for a 4km trail race with the dogs which I'm extremely excited about. Glady and Michelle will be running with Wilson and Brandy whilst I run with Tillie, and all proceeds go to the sled dog association in Canada which promotes the wellbeing of care for all sled dogs in the country.

Then of course after that I have Blackfoot Ultra 50 miles on May 26th. I'm really excited about that one as it's on the woodland trails just an hours drive from home, it's the Canadian Championships so will be pretty competitive, and I will hopefully get to see lots of old friends out there.

I'm back into the swing of things with my training again and today I did a lovely 12 mile run. The weather had warmed up, the sun was out and we had beautiful blue skies. I found some lovely parkland trails to run along which took me to the nearby countryside and the vast open fields of the prairies, and it felt wonderful to be splashing through puddles and have water around me instead. Leduc is pretty flat so I will need to do lots of strength work to get the right muscles working for the hills I'm missing (Adam ...!) but I'm hoping to hit the trails at the weekends when things are more settled and hopefully I can get my climbs in.

12 miles of happiness, Leduc

So that's a brief summary of where we're at right now. In terms of work, I'm got a transfer with GE to Canada so for now, I'm still doing the same job but working from home. This alone gives me more time as I no longer have to commute and I can start and finish earlier as a result. How long this will last in the current climate I have no idea, but if it all falls through in a couple of months, I'm still planning on setting up my own business and hopefully making it a success here in Leduc.

For now though, I'm feeling very happy and content. I just need my hubby to come home so that when I stuff does arrive, he can set things up for me and I really will then be in my element :-)