A crisp 43 degrees

It's August and it's normally hot, it's not normally wet and green and chilly. That's reserved for spring and late fall, but I am personally enjoying this nice change. There is a lot of wet hay in the fields and whenever the sun is out there is a lot of work being done to try and harvest without mold.

The seemingly daily deluge of rain has made the yard go from 'OMG don't step on the grass' to a very fast 'Hi, can you please mow again before the cabin disappears in the grass?'. It's been a blessing to have someone that is able to do a few things around the property, not that I didn't enjoy 3-4 hours of mowing a week, but my running takes a lot longer now. The person doing the work is a great kid, not that we had ever thought it would be any other way, but it's very refreshing knowing we don't have to worry about the work being done when we aren't there.

The clover has spread out, master plan at work!

Our 'pond' is normally dry in August, now the water lulls me to sleep

This neighbor is an escape artist, but I can't blame him for visiting.

In the city, the garden continues to grow... and grow... and grow... and when the sun does eventually make it's appearance for more than a few hours, it's going to be a madhouse of veggies. So far it's been beans and zucchini, but once the sun does it's magic, the tomatoes will be abundant. Cucumbers are almost ready to start picking and the carrots will be ready to pull this week.

This is all great news because I eat a lot more food than I used to. Perhaps not as much as when I was heading upwards to 300 pounds and size 40 pants, but I consume some serious calories. My long runs burn 3-4k calories and my regular runs and workouts take their toll on the nutrition as well. My Saturday routine is up at 4am, running by 4:45am after a drive to the trailhead. This weekend was nice with a clear sky and bright moon so I didn't need a headlamp for the first hour. 3 hours and 3 minutes up, 5200 feet of elevation gain, 2 hours 10 minutes down.

You can see the trail/old road as well as the amazing views

Horseshoe lake, very inviting and tempting in the sun

An idea of the footing on the upper half of the route

I fell twice running on Saturday, there didn't seem to be any options for stable foot placement, so I had to slow it down a little. I don't want to get hurt in training and not be able to even start the Marathon next month. The lower portion of the road gets a lot of ATV traffic, and for some reason most people have the need to tear everything up when they ride, instead of just enjoy and cruise. The route is very technical and getting harder each week, but it's still a joy for me. Zero talent and natural ability, just stubborn determination and a never quit attitude.

We (ok, not really both of us, but I don't mind) decided to fence the road side of the property and install a cattle guard. My only requirement was that it needed to be 4 strand barbed wire to make sure we were open range compliant. Our friends and down the street neighbors helped get it all worked out and installed, and it turned out really nice. We just need to install some 'people' gates and tie in the fence with the cattle guard posts. This might keep the little black pony out, and whatever else the Amish seem to misplace frequently. We picked up some wagon wheels to turn into gates, hopefully they will turn out as well as everything else.

Our friends who have helped with all of this have been really amazing, especially considering they are still building their house. Some of you might have followed the blog one of them had when they were in Cali (what if it is today) and I can say they are all doing well. It's not easy adjusting to a completely new location and life but they seem to have adjusted great to the valley and Colorado altitude living. We are so grateful and appreciate of the friendship.

Rock is doing well, although the frequent thunderstorms rattle his nerves a bit, he loves all the fresh grass he can eat (and later vomit back up), and the high water in his favorite swimming hole. We often have father in-laws dog with us as well, we know that will be a permanent addition to the family at some point fairly soon. She doesn't go swimming. She has a high pitched glass shattering bark. She demands to be fed twice a day. She is always underfoot in the kitchen. She doesn't really like me.
Oh well, there are a lot of people who don't like me, but at least she knows where her next meal is coming from (when I'm damn good and ready anyhow).
Enjoy your week!

Retractable leash = fishing with Rock bait.