The video… #hike #nationalpark

8r4d It’s been a long weekend on my feet, a sixteen klick hike yesterday followed by a sixteen klick #rivervalley #running adventure this morning before the heat of the day kicked in. We made up a route on the fly, but it worked out well enough.

8r4d scenes from a #hike

8r4d As our big #hike adventure inches ever closer, another practice was in the cards. We spent nearly five hours doing a long trudge around the mosquito-infested trails of the nearby #nationalpark and wildlife preserve east of the city. The sixteen klick loop circled around one of the lakes and strolled through a variety of forested and open terrain, but it was all pretty flat—well, except for climbing over all the fallen trees from a recent windstorm.

8r4d I’ve been told that even though this local #nationalpark hosts one of the largest wild #bison herds around, it is pretty rare to see this bit of #wildlife as close as we encountered. I’ll have a story about that in the near future.

8r4d The 2024 #olympicgames started in Paris this weekend and so, of course, the feeds and the channels are filled with little else. Here’s my obligatory (and heartfelt) “Go Team Canada!” post! [read more...]

8r4d After a #downtown dinner adventure we checked out the Taste of Edmonton #festival

8r4d After missing my morning #coffee vibe because of a fast (blood work!) I am back in the cafe this morning highly distracted because of all the millions of newsy things happening around the world and closer to home, too. Sometimes my visits here spawn inspiration. Other times they only spawn tiny sample latte drinks delivered by smiling baristas.

8r4d The #running season had been brutal this month between the #heat and the #firesmoke the latter of which is burning down parts of our beloved mountain park town of Jasper as I write these words. I’ve run in Jasper on multiple occasions and as much as I complain about a bit of smoke, there truth under those words is really me holding back the anger of those who deny humanity’s role in the destruction of our fragile planetary ecosystem and then wring their hands as we sit helplessly witnessing the consequences. We logged a 7km run this evening at a sparsely attended #runclub but with the ongoing high temps my heart wasn’t even into it very much.

8r4d After a week of #heat the poor puppy and I finally found enough reprieve this morning for a nice long #walk around the hood.

8r4d I don’t know where you’ve been for the last week, but between the #summer #heat and the #firesmoke those climate change deniers got some ‘splaining to do. At least my basement is cooler and I can hide out there. [read more...]

8r4d The weekend was hot, but at least I wasn’t standing in a high school sports field in a local suburb-city wearing a wool kilt and dancing. Oh, and did we mention that the #firesmoke has returned? Ugh! What a day. At least it payed off for the kid and she danced her heart out and won the first first of her dancing career. Hard earned and well deserved. #highlandgames #dancedad #firstplace