Summer is Over

I just returned from an overnight trip to Shenandoah National Park. I'm slowly working away at all 500 miles of official trail in the park, as I did in Joshua Tree. It's something to do, I guess. The dogs are allowed to come with me, so that's nice, but I don't think George's hips are up for it.

Long Green Tunnel, just beginning to turn red

Margo happy at the one sunny spot

The trip to the Boundary Waters was fun. I prefer mountains, but a canoe is a nice change of pace, and I could definitely see Amy and I spending a month or more in a boat sometime if the opportunity ever arises. It would have been better if I were more confident in my chanterelle identification, since they were all over the place. 

Kevlar canoes make this way easier than I remembered




Caught & Released

The trip to Western States and Hardrock back in June/July was obviously the highlight of my summer, but I just finished my third and likely final 100-miler of the year last weekend: IMTUF. I first ran it in 2015 as part of the Onion Slam (Tahoe 200, IMTUF 100, and the Bear 100 on consecutive weekends). Repeating it was definitely worth it--I'll write a full race report next time--it's just overshadowed by everything going on, work definitely included. (Ask me in person sometime. Let's just say I'm always open to new and exciting opportunities.)

I've got one quick desert weekend coming up, and then I'm running CIM in December. I'm looking forward to running less, but faster; hopefully that actually pans out. 

I read Frémont: Explorer for a Restless Nation by Ferol Egan, Watership Down, by Richard Adams, and Lonesome Dove, by Larry McMurtry. I don't count audiobooks as reading; I read these, and I liked the feel of the musty old mass market paperbacks in my hands. I liked the writing as well.

Taking Amy to see a movie made me realize how absurdly expensive movie theaters are, so I joined the local chain's unlimited subscription plan and watched a lot of bad movies at marginal cost of zero dollars, only the time that I can never recover. I disliked Americana, Honey Don't, and The Long Walk, thought Weapons was OK but not great, and really liked Eden.  

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