I’ve entitled this post ‘A Ridiculous Run’ for two main reasons:
1. Some of the hills we tackled today were so steep, it was ridiculous:
2. I went out, looking nothing short of ridiculous!
After such a lazy day yesterday, I was looking forward to getting out in the fresh air, and blowing away some of the cobwebs. Also, I wanted to run, in honour of fellow running blogger 278toBoston’s first ever marathon, which he is running today.
@TheWelshWookie had a complete moment of madness, and suggested that, instead of running our usual route, we should go off road, and run one of the trails behind Tarbert Castle. It sounded like a great idea!
I started with an espresso, though:
We decided to run with camelbaks, instead of using hand held water bottles. And it was raining. So I’m sure that I’ll have drawn some weird looks!
Instead of heading straight for the Castle, we decided to tackle my nemesis from the TT10K: Big Brae. So, we did. And we ran up most of it. Result! We then ran/walked the blue route, which takes in some of the steeper hills along the trail.
We ran up the hills, and walked some of the straight and downhill sections, to make the most of the day. It was tough, but in a good way!
Some of the viewpoints along the way give some great views down towards the village.
We ran past the Millennium Cairn, where is was particularly muddy today, due to the rain. It actually felt great, to be caked in mud for a change! Weird, huh?
I need to admit that the final mile and a half was virtually all walking: the downhill sections were pretty steep, and I don’t have great balance at the best of times. But, we got out there, and we did it!
And the heather was blooming:
Here’s a map of my run today:
When I returned home, I caught up on 278toBoston’s progress: marathon done in 4:14:32 – amazing! Well done, what an achievement! I hope that some of the cooler air from here made its way over to you 😉
Today’s Stats:
Run: 4 mile trail run/walk
Weather: cloudy, with both rain showers and sunny spells
Trainers: LunarFly GTX +3
Favourite Running Track of the Day:
Today’s Life Lesson: sometimes the tough runs are the ones you enjoy most!
What do you find yourself thinking about when you run?
TartanJogger 
That heather is beautiful! You live in a gorgeous part of the country (though an incredibly hilly part of the country!). M and I really do need to visit Scotland at some point.
Thanks! If you get the chance, it really is worth a visit: as long as you pack your trainers, waterproofs and midge repellent! 😉
That’s a beautiful trail!
Thanks, I’m so lucky to have routes like this on my doorstep!
You are too kind!!! Thank you for the mentions in your post. You had a great run and I’m glad to be a fellow blogger with you!!!
That sounds like an awesome run/hike. This weekend I sat in a camp hair, drinking beer most of the day. We managed to go on two different hikes, one was 2 miles, and one was a mile and a half. I did run up a long flight of stairs, that left me incredibly winded, but never let go of my beer:)… I think it still counts as exercise, but now, after reading this…feel foolish! 🙂
Hi Tia, thanks! Your weekend sounds absolutely fantastic- hope you enjoyed!
When running a particularly hilly route I tend to curse my selection while struggling on the way up, but end up coming around if there is a nice view from the top (or a quicker way down 🙂
Beautiful photos from your run!
Thanks! That’s exactly how I felt yesterday at times!
The scenery looks lovely where you are. I’m really jealous!
It’s fab- such a big change from the town I used to live in, so I do appreciate it! 🙂
Embrace the hills!