Running in strange places

One of the great things about being active is getting to see more, both around your home and especially when you travel.

Today, I went to San Jose on work and found a large park within a few miles of my hotel. The park is over 1,500 acres. I pulled in to the first parking lot for the park that appeared to have some trail heads.

I set off to find a trail head from the picnic area that I parked at. Their trails are a little different in California. They had just mowed a wide swath for the start of this one trail head. Okay, that is interesting, but a ankle roller for sure. I started off running easy.

Within 200 yards, I was in trees with a more "trail like" setting. As soon as I got in the trees, I saw a flock of about 8 wild turkeys. They got excited and scurried away, but it was kind of cool. After I came to a Y in the trail, I took the uphill course. Well, the hill was much steeper than I expected, and I wasn't planning on suffering today. It got too steep, and I had to walk a small part to keep my heart rate down. After it got to a normal pitch, I got backup to speed. I wound up on a ridge and just as I crested on the ridge there was a hawk riding the thermals about 50 feet from me! It was amazing to see a hawk riding thermals from such a close distance!

I kept wandering around these trails. The trails ranged from enough room to run with your feet fairly close together without having to worry about rolling your ankle, assuming you didn't step outside of that trough. I did that a couple times, when I was paying too much attention to what was around me. The the trails at other points were just wild grass that was mowed to about 3 or 4 inches, a complete gotcha for rolling an ankle, then other areas that were washed out.

After wandering some more, I ended up gaining more elevation and I ended up in what I would call a gecko haven. I ran across several gecko's that were sun bathing on the trail. They would see me, then they would run at full speed down the trail to a good turn out for them. It was pretty cool. When they start running, they throw up a bunch of dirt, and when they turn, they throw up a bunch of dirt. It made me think of the Dukes of Hazard car how it skid and threw up dirt all over. They were really cute to watch.

I came around a corner after gecko haven, and had another Y to decide. Somehow I always think up is the right one whenever I come to a Y? So, up we go. I come around another corner to find a buck with his doe. The bucks is still in velvet, so poor little guy may loose his girl at the end of summer. Yes, I did think about that. They were really cute on this grassy knoll about 75 feet away. I go past them and just down the trail, I come over another ridge. This ridge gave me a full view of the Bay area, and the San Francisco bay, and also made me realize how much I had climbed. A few steps later, I look to my left, and down, and there is another hawk riding the thermals and he is coming up the hillside below me.

At this point, I had to stop. I realized I was spectating something I had never seen before. To my left, there were 7 hawks riding thermals through these rolling hills that remind me of Napa valley (but more trees) and I am above these hawks looking down on them. That was on my left, on my right was the view of the entire bay. The site made me stop as I was filled with awe and emotion with the beauty. I sat there and just watched the hawks. Finally I started feeling my legs stiffening up, I had to get moving again. I kept running always with an eye on these hawks.

After I dropped off the ridge, I ran in to many more wild turkeys. They were pretty funny. They would get all excited when I would come around a corner. They would scurry 10 feet with their head peeked up over the long grass to make sure I didn't come too close. They reminded me of some old "hens" who got all excited over nothing. They could be 50 feet away, and they would run parallel to the trail but they felt better that they scurried somewhere.

The run was great, and I can't wait to come back and pick another trail in the same park.