Trail note: Despite the fact that I talked myself out of running on the drive home from work last night, I managed to gather enough motivation to do the 7 miler that I was supposed to run on Sunday. I actually felt pretty good; knees held out until I was almost done. It's a route that I normally run on Sunday mornings, so it was a little strange running on a Monday night. One difference was the food sights and smells: instead of seeing brunchers queuing up for breakfast spots and espresso, there was the smell of Buffalo wings frying. And I had an amazing surprise view of Mt. Rainier. I was crossing the University Bridge thinking I was traveling east, then looked up to my left and saw the mountain top, clear and white and huge. It took me several more miles of running to orient myself.

As I was running, I was thinking about how I might write up the run, and then wondered why I was keeping these "trail notes." After all, I log training miles in a spreadsheet, so it isn't for tracking purposes. I think the reason that I like writing about my runs is because they're such a huge part of the way that I experience the world. I've seen amazing things while running: people, places, flora and fauna. I've learned about myself and my community and human nature. I'm also hoping that I'll provide some inspiration to myself, and anyone else who might need a little extra push to get on the road.