Doudy Draw.

for better viewing click on the image.

A couple of weeks ago I explored the area south of Boulder, beginning at the Doudy Draw Trailhead.

My Wednesday run, November 11, I branched west for 7.5 miles, into the new trail areas just south of Eldorado Springs townsite. No camera, but as I do on all runs was wearing my Garmin Forerunner.

The next Saturday I began at the same point and headed east, along Community Ditch for a 9.5 mile run. The panorama here is looking due west from Colorado Highway 93, showing Eldorado Canyon in the background at left, Community Ditch and Trail snaking its way toward camera and along the base of the image, to north. (One of the things I like about this image is the way it blocks out the spectacular mountain backdrop. It can be pretty distracting sometimes, preventing us from seeing the subtle, even sensuous beauty of the rolling prairie land and multi-colored grasses we actually live in. Just look at the range of greens, golds, greys, reds, yellows, blues--awesome.)

The terrain in the west run, along Spring Brook Trail North, is mountain, with some good grade and single track trail finding its way through forest. At the juncture with the Goshawk Ridge Trail, a steep drainage, I found myself on switchbacks under heavy wooded coverage, silent except for the sound of the creek splashing gently over rocks, the air fragrant with ponderosas. As I crested the hill I ran through grasses and the autumn reminders of wildflowers of every variety--I'm sure technicolor in July. I'll certainly return to witness that.

At the Fowler Trail, the mountain trail meets up with a railroad ROW, unmistakable from a deep cut through the grade. City of Boulder Open Space Mountain Parks Department has produced a beautiful brochure of the entire area, here at pdf.

The image here is from a thoughtful, generous blog exploring the trails of the Boulder area, well worth a visit.

image Rich Wolf

To the east at the Greenbelt Plateau the terrain is open meadow, nice for a long, easy run at low heart rate. My casual pace was reinforced by the audience that greeted me, pausing from their mid-morning snack long enough to check out the guy who was gawking at them.

I felt right at home.

The temperature for both runs was comfortably cool, beginning in the 40s and ending in the mid 50s. On Saturday a light snowfall was arriving for my last couple of miles. The overcast sky made for a great lightbox, soft greys enveloping the autumn rusts, grassy browns, black greens.

If I hadn't made other plans I'd have wanted to keep running, such a heavenly setting. Best for my body that I kept it where I did. Recovery was easy and straightforward, with no hint of aftereffects.

Doing the research for meaningful hotlinks for this journal entry, if find this blog exploring hiking, photography and diabetes. I'll enjoy spending a bit more time with it.

Writing this a couple of weeks later, I'm coming up blank wondering what the heck I thought of as I was running for more than three hours here, on two different days. At the railroad ROW cut, I know what was on my mind. Other than that I believe all I thought about was the splendor of the world I'd found myself in. And the Grace that has brought me here.

Be here, now.