The Mighty Mississippi

Yes!  My longest run since the Chicago Marathon on Oct. 9 is in the books!

Distance: 12 miles
Weather: 22 degrees, light breeze, cloudy skies
Sidewalk conditions: Nice!  A gentle dusting of snow, but nothing sticky and nothing slippery

I really wanted to get at least one 11- or 12-miler in before the Polar Dash Half-Marathon on Jan. 1, and I was happy with this run.  It was also comforting and relaxing to travel the river road a little farther than I have been lately, to the places where I logged some long, long runs this summer in marathon training.

The truth is, I complain inwardly about the monotony of the river road all the time (and I think I've touched on this topic before on Miles and Laurel, too).  It can definitely get old to run miles and miles along a single road with the river either on your right or left, with only a bridge crossing or two to break up the route.

But today that darn river road felt exciting and novel to me, and I thought about how neat it actually is to be able to watch the Mississippi River - the Mighty Mississippi - several days per week, through the full year.  I've seen the river very high and very low, frozen and rushing, and flagged by colorful leaves and no leaves.  A couple of weeks back, I posted pictures of the river gradually freezing over for the winter.  This week, the ice is still there in spots, but warmer weather means that the hard freeze is on hold.  The river looked completely different.

All in all, a good reminder that while the route may get monotonous, the river itself is never, ever boring.

Happy Saturday!  I'm heading for some coffee and a nap.