View from Cariboo Dam: Sunny and once again weirdly warm.
The stats and conditions for today’s run were remarkably similar to Monday’s (I did not run Wednesday because my Garmin watch recommended a rest day), but the title of the post still makes sense, because while Monday felt like a horrible slog, today’s near-identical pace was a more deliberate choice and my performance was pretty steady throughout, with a slightly faster start and finish.
I’m still not entirely sure what is dragging my performance down this week. It may be a combination of things:
Spring allergies
Maybe a virus of some kind?
Probably not Spring Fever
Definitely not Boogie Fever
The much higher-than-normal temperatures could be a factor
Speaking of, it was 17C for the run. The normal daily high this time of year is 12C, to give you an idea of how much warmer it was. Humidity was 50% and while I didn’t experience DMS1Dry Mouth Syndrome I could sense it beckoning. I did a short loop today and didn’t experience any issues, nothing at all like Monday. I was slower, but didn’t struggle, because the slowness was more a choice.
I saw one guy jogging with a jacket. I almost started sweating spontaneously just looking at it. Seriously, you do not need a jacket when it is sunny and 17C, unless you have, I dunno, translucent skin or something. Maybe he did.
In all, not a stellar week for running (other than the great early summer-like weather), but I got through it.
Sun shining on forested area just past the end of the run.
Stats:
Run 1,025 Average pace: 5:54/km Training status: Maintaining Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW, short loop) Start: 11:32 a.m. Distance: 5.03 km Time: 29:39 Weather: Sunny Temp: 17°C Humidity: 50% Wind: light BPM: 147 Weight: 167.1 pounds Total distance to date: 6,950 km Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation) Shoes: Saucony Peregrine 15 (220/360/580)
In my travails of trying to get a dual boot system going on my new PC with Windows 11/Some Linux Distro, one of the things I need to prepare for is the possibility that a particular Linux distro will overwrite the Windows MBR (Master Boot Record), which can prevent Windows from loading.
I have a few command line instructions available on my older PC to fix this if it happens, but to get to the commands I need to switch input on my monitor, swap keyboard cables (no KVM) and it’s a general nuisance.
The easier solution was to write the commands down in a paper notebook, all old-timey style, and keep it nearby on the desk, ready to be consulted. Fortunately, my handwriting (or printing, rather) is still quite tidy and readable. All good and I have followed the instructions several times (cursed Linux distros).
And now that I’ve done this, I realize I have the notebook itch again. It’s that feeling I get when I walk down the stationery aisle of a store or walk into an actual dedicated stationery store, like The Letterbox back in my hometown of Duncan (interestingly, The Letterbox is, not surprisingly, long gone, but just a few stores over from where it used to be is an office supply store, so its spirit lives on nearby). Stationery, but also pens, paper, typewriter ribbons (kids, ask your parents), notepads, fountain pens (kids, ask your parents–again!– also, fountain pens and lefties don’t go together well, but I didn’t care) all of this stuff has delighted me since I started writing back as a wee one and still does today, even as nearly all of my writing is done via keyboard.
But now that the notebook itch is back, I’m on the hunt for a new notebook to keep on my desk. The one I have (for free, from the UBC Sauder School of Business) is nice, but it doesn’t lay flat, and it looks like Muji has some that do. I am on the hunt. I’m going analog, baby.
(For some things. I’m not ready to abandon all of civilization quite yet.)
View from Cariboo Dam, pre-run: Unusually warm and clearing.
Spring as in the weather was suddenly not just spring-like, it got up to 17C during the run, which is more than twice what it was on Friday’s run.
Without the spring because I felt weirdly off. It’s hard to describe, but even though my first km was decent at 5:41/km, the metaphorical wheels started coming off shortly after. I even paused the run at the halfway mark and walked a bit (but only for 10-15 seconds). The best way to describe how I felt is, imagine how you feel if you haven’t eaten for a long time and you start to feel a bit wobbly or weak? It was like that. Except I ate breakfast before going out.
Anyway, it meant the run was a slog, as I got progressively slower until the final km, where I managed a pace of 5:47/km. It’s possible that while it was not hot, the temperature difference might have still affected me. My BPM was even higher, despite the lower output at 151. In all, not an auspicious start to the week.
On the plus side, it was my first run in months when I went out wearing just shorts and a t-shirt, so that was nice. I even dabbed a bit of sunscreen on the back of my neck just to be safe.
The trail was a bit more crowded than normal, but wasn’t too bad, and much less crowded than Friday. I saw a man jogging with a puppy in his hand. No topless runners, though, which was odd, given the weather.
Anyway, I’m still intact, so that’s good.
The lake, post-run.
Stats:
Run 1,024 Average pace: 5:54/km Training status: Maintaining Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW) Start: 12:16 p.m. Distance: 5.03 km Time: 29:38 Weather: Mostly sunny Temp: 16-17°C Humidity: 63-59% Wind: light BPM: 151 Weight: 169.1 pounds Total distance to date: 6,945 km Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation) Shoes: Saucony Peregrine 15 (215/347/562)
Where: Reifel Bird Sanctuary (Delta), Tlahutum Regional Park (Coquitlam), Burnaby Lake (Burnaby) Weather: Sunny, 17°C
NOTE: I am missing the previous entry, from March 28. It will be posted soon™.
My first (light) sunburn of the year, woo.
Reifel Bird Sanctuary
Some green returning to the marshaland at Reifel.
After months of being closed due to storms and bad bridges, Reifel Bird Sanctuary finally re-opened this week, so this was our first destination.
The only downside were two trail closures, the East Dyke (mostly) and the North Dyke, which shortened our outing a bit, bot not much. A few of the open trails are still in pretty rough shape, as the volunteers could not bring in needed equipment to repair while the bridge was closed.
But it was all good, because the very first thing we saw made the trip worth it. As we entered the parking lot, I noticed the section immediately on the right was cordoned off. I assumed it was another repair, but no, it was due to babby-making!
Specifically, a pair of killdeer chose to make a nest in the northeast corner of the gravel parking lot. While this was fine when the sanctuary was closed, it is more problematic now. We saw both parents and one of them was dashing about and then plunked down on what appeared to be three or four eggs, with the occasional head bob, as killdeer do. It’s adorable, though you can’t help but worry about how the future Killdeer will fare. On the other hand, Killdeer favour nests in the open, and they’re still around, so they may yet survive us.
In other birb news, we both got our first (blurry) shot of a Marsh Wren. They should become a bit more visible as they start looking for love in earnest.
The mallards especially seemed to miss us, because it felt like some were following us around the entire area, no doubt hoping for seed we did not have. Sorry, mallards! I compensated slightly by taking copious beauty shots of them.
We saw one or possibly two Sandhill Cranes (in separate locations) and witnessed a few duck battles (the inevitable goose drama was yet to come). Hormones make everyone crazy, it seems. Well, except geese are just naturally like that. And there was a mass of Western Painted Turtles on the logs at the London Slough. I’ve never seen so many. Some were so big you’d think they’d fallen into radioactive sewer water and mutated. If you’ve ever seen one of those “Western painted turtle sighting” signs, just know the answer is: Reifel.
In all, and despite the inevitable crowds (first weekend open, long weekend and sunny, mild weather) it was very nice to finally be back at Reifel.
Tlahutum Regional Park
Coquitlam River, especially low today.
The Mountain Bluebird quest continued at Tlahutum, where multiple birds have been sighted. And success! We saw a couple with Big Lenses on one of the main trails and lo, off in the bushes were at least two Mountain Bluebirds. Sadly, they were a bit far away so even my 400mm lens struggled. I had to switch to manual focus to get anything even a bit decent. How old-timey! They are a very lovely shade of blue. Hopefully we’ll see more, and maybe a bit closer up.
We also saw Buffleheads, Gadwalls and a scruffy-looking immature Great Blue Heron, who was busy practicing his death stare (speaking of, and in reference to the title of this post, today was apparently my day for getting shots of birds staring directly into the camera).
Nic got some good shots of Tree Swallows, who were out in abundance at the big pond and we finally dared to venture around the still kind of flooded community garden, mostly skirting the edges, but it’s still a bit early. Many of the plots are still under construction. We shall return.
Piper Spit, Burnaby Lake Regional Park
Burnaby Lake, looking full and still lily pad-free.
We ended at Piper Spit and sought to silence our inner Bird Police, knowing someone would be feeding the birds. And there were people feeding them.
Speaking of feeding, on the way out, we saw a squirrel noshing away and it looked surprisingly similar to the chunky boi they have on the No Feeding signs.
At the spit, the water level was too high for shorebirds (boo) and apparently for seagulls, too, as they were absent. Left behind were the many golf balls they had collected. Seagulls are weird.
It was here that the geese reverted to form and generally went berserk, doing the cobra chicken thing over and over. I’m sure the internet could tell me why they do this–a show of dominance, some weird style of affection or something, but I like to think they’re just kind of loco.
And as a final bonus, a train passing through actually cleared the track before we got there, so we weren’t delayed on our departure.
In all, a fine outing.
The Shots
Shot with a Canon EOS R7 with 18-150 mm kit lens and 100-400 mm telephoto.
A few shots, gallery pending:
A Dark-eyed Junco looking for grub in the Reifel parking lot.A cormorant sunning itself on a log, with American Wigeons drifting by in the background.One of a nesting pair of Killdeer at Reifel.
The Birds (and other critters)
Sparrows and sparrow-adjacent:
American Robin
Anna’s Hummingbird
Black-capped Chickadee
Brown-headed Cowbird (allegedly heard but not seen)
Today is Good Friday, which is a holiday for many people, but the day was also cloudy and threatened showers through morning and early afternoon. Holidays usually mean the trails are more crowded, but the threat of rain could keep people away.
The threat of rain did not keep people away. As a bonus, it also didn’t rain.
But the trail was packed with joggers, walkers, people with dogs and the occasional robin.
It was so crowded, in fact, that when starting on the Avalon Trail, I kept going past the turn-off onto the Southshore Trail and connected with the Freeway Trail, which is about as sexy as it sounds. I tried to stay on it as long as I could but turned back onto the main trail a bit too soon. I’ll know better next time!
While on the Freeway Trail, my left AirPod made some kind of noise and abruptly stopped working. I paused the run, put both buds in the charging case, then popped them back in my ears and everything was good. I am concerned that this means the AirPods are getting close to self-destructing, forcing me to find something else.
As for the run, I started out decently, but this was apparently overdoing it after some recent bad sleep and stress, as my pace collapsed in second km to just under six minutes. I picked up a bit after, but remembered my watch had recommended a recovery run, so never really pushed. My BPM was 149, which felt right for the condition I was in and my pace was 5:48/km, a lot slower than Monday, but again, given my current state of being, this was perfectly cromulent.
A moody-loooking Still Creek, post-run.
In all, a decent wrap to the week and dodging the rain was a nice bonus.
Stats:
Run 1,023 Average pace: 5:48/km Training status: Productive Location: Burnaby Lake (CW) Start: 10:56 a.m. Distance: 5.03 km Time: 29:12 Weather: Cloudy Temp: 8°C Humidity: 87% Wind: light BPM: 149 Weight: 168.8 pounds Total distance to date: 6,940 km Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation) Shoes: Saucony Peregrine 15 (210/334/544)
What the title says. The text logo is…fine, but it’s not even actual text, it’s an image of text. And it’s a little plain. I feel like I need to go all 2005 retro for this.
Although it does disturb me a bit that 2005 is now retro.
Here is one I whipped up in Canva a few years ago that I did not use, because even I have my limits:
Whoops, I’m a day late because of strata shenanigans and a very late night last night.
Good news: I was up a mere 0.2 pounds. If I’d gone to the loo before weighing, I would have been down (apologies if that’s TMI). That means the month was basically neutral. And I am down today (April 1) as I type this.
The flip side is I didn’t lose weight. All of my stats basically didn’t budge.
But the other flip side (so many sides) is that March was the first time in years when I did not count my calories, I just ate what I wanted, focusing on having more fruit and vegetables and trying to boost both my fibre and protein intake.
I think I was at least partly successful.
I’ll probably start tracking again this month, I just need to find an app, and the main reason will be to verify I’m getting enough protein. Once I get things locked in, I probably won’t keep tracking. But we’ll see.
Stats:
January 1, 2026: 169.4 pounds
Current: 169.8 pounds Year to date: Up 0.4 pounds
March 1: 170.2 pounds March 31: 170.4 pounds (up 0.2 pounds)
Body fat: March 1: 26.3% March 31: 26.2% (down 0.1%)
Skeletal muscle mass: March 1: 30.0 kg March 31: 30.0 kg (unchanged)
