Running Log - 10.1.12-10.7.12

Tuesday - Big River Management Area - West Greenwich, RI - 5.4 miles

I was looking forward to getting in an afternoon run at Big River to break in the legs after Sunday's epic run.  I didn't realize it was raining until I opened the door.  But it didn't seem to be coming down that hard and it wasn't too cold so I stuck to my plan.

I parked on Hopkins Hill Rd and took the BR Expressway trail in order to try to find the "scenic outlook" which I've heard about.  In the end I didn't seem to get much of anywhere and the trails kept leading to that quarry.  There were some "No Trespassing" signs so I opted to head back before I got lost and ran into trouble.

I decided to just do part of the loop I had done the last time I was here.  I jumped on the Sawmill Trail and took that down to the old piles of scrap wood.  I like this trail as it's wide and you can move pretty fast on it.  Sawmill trail turns north and I stayed on it until it met the BR Expressway trail, which I took all the way back to my car.

Still a bit sore from the marathon but overall not in too bad a shape.  When I left my car there was only one truck in the lot but when I returned there were four additional vehicles.  I guess I wasn't the only one interested in exploring Big River, rain be damned!

Friday - Road & Trails - Smithfield, RI - 7.6 miles

 Decided to run after work and try to capture a few segments in the area.  I do a lot of running up here - I need to defend my territory!  I pushed it up the Technology Way Climb and then headed into the woods.  The dirt bike trails behind Fidelity really are a lot of fun to explore.  I'm finally starting to get a handle on where the various trails go.  It was starting to get dark making the trails a bit hard to see but the real challenge was all the fallen yellow leaves that layered the trails.  Not only did it make it tough to see various obstacles but at certain points it was even tough to see where the trail went.

I took the trails out behind the North Smithfield Elementary.  I decided to bail on the trail at this point before it got too dark.  I gave the kids at soccer practice a wide berth so I didn't freak anyone out and headed for Douglas Pike to try to grab another segment.  This one was a pretty steep climb but I pushed the pace and felt pretty good at the top of the hill.  Glad I brought my headlamp as it was pretty dark by the time I got back to my car.

Saturday - Charlestown roads - 13.8 miles

There's a trail on Route 2 that I drive by every morning just past the railroad overpass.  I've always wondered where it went so I decided to use this long run to find out.  Started off on Old Coach Rd and saw a new R over the front of the new Rathskellar.  Looking forward to when they finally finish the place.  I ran over to Biscuit City Rd, as much for its awesome road name as anything else.

I took Route 2 up to the mystery trail which turned out to be pretty wide ATV trails.  Ran into a bowhunter who was friendly enough.  Guess it's time to throw on the orange vest when I go running.  The trail ended up coming out next to the horse/turf farm nearby.  It looked like it was heading behind the houses on Route 2 so I looped around and followed the trail back.  Passed Mr. Bowhunter again and jumped back on Route 2.

Ran down Lewiston Rd which I had never been on before.  What a lovely little country road.  Beautiful houses and farms with donkeys and llamas.  I wasn't sure where I came out until I realized it was Kenyon Industries.  Took Route 2 down to the dirt Pasquiset Path in order to take the Narragansett Trail back to Old Coach.  This is a fun little trail - it has high shrubs on both sides but the trail itself is smooth and free of obstacles.

Back near my house I could smell woodsmoke.  Fall is in full swing!

Weekly mileage - 26.8 

Year to date - 951.9