I’m having a lovely time with my running at the moment. It’s one of those phases where I’m excited to get out, I can see progress and I’m looking forward to what’s coming next. Ask me next week and I’ll be on a downer again but for now? Loving it.
I’ve been making the most of the light evenings and running after 8pm. The added bonus of that is that the wildlife is at its best around here. On Saturday, I ran 8.2km and yesterday it was 5.6km (embracing the random numbers). Running for time rather than distance real helps me stay at a chilled pace for runs that are supposed to be easy. I’ll lump both of those runs together…
The fields were full of bunnies. There are black rabbits as well as the standard brown ones, I don’t know if someone’s pet escaped and interbred with the wild population or if it’s a genetic quirk. Either way, it’s absolutely lovely to see them, especially the little baby ones.
As the sun was setting, I paused to appreciate the view over a field of long grass and and the sensation of being watched. I spotted a pair of ginger ears poking up above the flowers. Then a pair of eyes appeared and it was a small fox. A very heathy looking fox. I tried not to think of predator-prey curves from my biology teaching days and just appreciated how nice he looked! His head popped up, and as I tried to take his picture, he showed me his tail and ran for the hedges.
Running along the lane, a family of blue tits seemed to be following me. A robin perched on top of a tree singing his heart out. Swifts (or swallows-I’m never sure) were fly catching on the wing. I felt like if I held my hands out, they’d come and land, Disney princess style!!
Looking across the fields, I spotted some new calves and a couple of Shetland pony foals. Super cute and a good reason to avoid those fields for now! I’m not running into any protective mother cows/ponies!!
The highlight was on the way home on Saturday, I followed a young deer along a county lane until it disappeared into the woodland. A real life Bambi!
Finally, I’ve officially made a new friend. There’s an extremely friendly cat who lives at one of the farms I run past. Whenever he sees me, he comes running out and runs with me! I briefly thought that I didn’t want my stats to show I’d stopped for a bit, but when you’ve got a lovely cat who wants a cuddle it would be rude to say no. Plus, what are my runs really for? Having a nice time!!
So that’s a rundown of the local wildlife that was on display! Those were such great runs for putting a smile on my face that I didn’t even mind coach B standing me up and refusing to play.
Anyone else feeling like they’re in a Disney film with nature being so spectacularly lovely at the moment?
Happy running everyone!
