During Juneathon, I enjoyed quite a few early morning runs in one of our local nature reserves. It makes a nice 3ish mile loop, it’s very calming (I stomped there on a spectacularly but pointlessly angry run once. It worked.) and it’s good to get off the main road. I usually take out my earphones to try to focus on the sights and sounds around me, there’s usually a low murmur of quacking to accompany me around the lodge. It turns out that it’s less quiet on a Sunday lunchtime on a bank holiday weekend. After leaping off the path for one too many duck feeders, I opted for looping back along a quieter path away from the water.
The ducks are coralled in a tiny bit of the lodge. They do have a bit more water available to them this week, but you still get mobbed for bread by a quacking mass of feathers.
Having woken up a touch achy this morning, my quads grumbled about any part of the route that wasn’t on the flat. It’s unfortunate (or a wonderful opportunity, depending on how much of a positive spin you want to put on this) that the return part of my loop is either via a short sharp hill or a long steady hill, neither of which seemed terribly appealing. Long steady hill won and slowed me down (by a minute/mile), but I made it to the top and home in time for dinner.
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Travelling Hopefully 
nice to have such a personal sanctuary nearby
Love the photo – one of the ducks (lower right) looks like he’s ice skating 🙂 I’m sure the aching will subside, nice going.
Quack! How sweet!
brilliant! I don’t think I saw any wildlife on my run, except a magpie which I obviously saluted!
Know what you mean about sore quads mine fine till I sat on the toilet first thing this morning! Will the muscle soreness wear off or continue for the next month as in theory we wont have any ‘rest days’?
I know that quad strain pain all too well, well done on tackling the hill, not sure I would have had your commitment/determination! good work
It’s either go up the hill or catch the bus home!