Monday, December 17, 2007

Friday's run amongst the Christmas lights redux

Friday was part one of my longest mileage weekend ever - 10 miles. I finished up work and decided to run near downtown. I picked out a route that stayed mostly to busy areas since it was going to be getting dark while I was out there. I hit the Bow River pathway, crossed over to the north side of the river, and ran up the hill at the Calgary Curling Club to McHugh Bluff. I caught this amazing view of downtown at the top of the bluff. I decided to run along Crescent Road - a swanky neighborhood with houses that all have this terrific view to downtown and the mountains. Apparently this is a good area for Christmas lights so I was looking forward to the back part of my run when it would be dark.
I passed this monster house here - you should see it on Google Earth....room for five cars in the garage. I think the fellow that lives here used to complain about the Bikini Boot Camp classes that would be held at the park right next door. Maybe because none of us were working out in bikinis?

I decided to run from Crescent Road up to Confederation Park - the site of the Lions Festival of Lights. I couldn't find anything on the internet about what time the lights actually turned on at, but I assumed the lights would be on when it got dark. Imagine my disappointment when I run past the park and see the sign that the lights are on daily from 7 pm to midnight (I think). These were the only lights I did see on....

Confederation Park was my turnaround point so it was time to head back towards downtown. The run was going by pretty quickly and it was feeling pretty easy...

There were some nice lights on around Crescent Road. I almost think I enjoyed just looking at the houses more, but it was really pretty out there.

After the 10 miles were done it was time to grab some food, head home and shower, then head off to a Christmas party. 20 miles coming up on Saturday morning...

4 comments:

Laurel said...

So beautiful!!

Anonymous said...

I went to U of C and was disappointed as well that the lights in Confederation Park didn't turn on as soon as darkness fell. You should check them out at some point though; it's really pretty! I used to run through that swanky neighbourhood too, the houses are incredible.

julie said...

ok, so, slightly stalkerish here- I'm a new runner in Chicago and DESPERATE for some tights that i don't freeze my ass off in. Considering the fact that you're farther north than I am, I was wondering... what tights do you run in in sub-freezing weather? thanks from the newbie... and good luck on your marathon!

julie said...

the Sugoi tights you like- are those the Firewall ones? I have my eye on some Craft Storm tights since I get a discount on them, ever tried those?

Enjoy Singapore! I've never been.