Running East Chop in Martha’s Vineyard

East Chop in Martha’s Vineyard is a 3 mile loop that has amazing million dollar beach homes, that sit ocean front. The area doesn’t have any sidewalks, so if you run here, keep in mind that you will be running in the street. However, besides the beautiful homes, and ocean front views, the loop is very quiet. Not very many other traffic or people. It is just you, the wind, and the sounds of waves crashing.

If you need to squeeze in some hill work, East Chop is the place to do it. The hills are big and long, but not too steep. I actually didn’t run the loop, but rather ran 2.5 miles and then turned around for a total of a 5 mile run. It was a peaceful place to run. I highly recommend it.

Ocean view on the East Chop loop.

Waves crashing.

 

East Chop

The road I ran in East Chop.

The light house in East Chop

Views from my run.

 

My Newton Shoes running East Chop.

Well that is East Chop on Martha’s Vineyard.

Questions for You?

  1. Have you ever run East Chop?
  2. Do you like running around nature or through cities?
  3. Where is your favorite place to run?

© 2012

Never Forget 9/11

Today is September, 11th. As an American it is impossible to go though out the day with out constant memories, of 9/11/01. I woke up remembering where I was that morning. I have mentally said several unconscious prayers to those who were victims, for those who lost their lives, that violent day. Our country could have fallen into Chaos, but we didn’t, we stayed strong. Under the horrible circumstances, we came together and found order. I feel thankful, thankful for all those that have served our country. And grateful, and proud, extremely proud to be an American.

What is happening in DC

Today, my home, DC is under high security watch. There is traffic everywhere. The exit to the Pentagon is closed. No one can access it. But I still ran. Here are some pictures from one of my favorite running routes.

Washington Monument on the left. Exit to the Pentagon in the middle. Capitol on the right.

Air Force Memorial

Air Force Memorial

Night Shot of the Capitol

© 2012

Fishing in Martha’s Vineyard

MARTHA’S VINEYARD

I got home Wednesday night, from a five day getaway from Martha’s Vineyard. Before we left I spent all of Friday getting everything in order. That way I wouldn’t have to worry about a long list of things I needed to get done when I got back. Because of this, I was able to really let go, and relax. Actually my vacation ended up being so relaxing, that I felt refreshed and ready to head back to work on Thursday morning, that rarely happens.

So let me start explaining from the beginning, for those of you that are not familiar with Martha’s Vineyard – Martha’s Vineyard is an island off of Cape Cod, Massachusetts.  To give you a visual, it is the island that the movie JAWS was filmed on. Anyway, my boyfriend’s parents have a house there. When they first were talking about buying a beach house I assumed that they would buy one more local, but my bf’s stepmom is originally from New England. Also her sister owns a B&B there, and her grandfather was buried on the Island so she wanted to be there too. But let me tell you, it is a little bit of a hike to get there. We have to take a one hour flight to Boston, jump on a bus for two hours, then take a one hour boat ride until we finally arrive in Oaks Bluff, Martha’s Vineyard.

 

Right after we got off the boat and arrived in Oaks Bluff, we dropped our bags off at the house and then went fishing. This was the first time I actually held a fishing pole and caught a fish. What a difference it makes to be fishing and not just there for the boat ride. I had a lot of fun.

Taking the raft out, so we can get to the fishing boat.

Me, Heading out to the boat, to go fishing.

This boat is the boat from the movie JAWS. They left it here. These are the remains.

 

I spotted cool birds, on the way to our secret fishing spot.

 

Yep, you are not seeing things. Those are cows.

My first fish!

I’m so happy, I could kiss you!

My sexy man. He caught some fish but nothing worth bringing back.

I found a hermit crab!

At the end of the first day, we were exhausted. It was fun but traveling, fishing, soaking up the sun on the boat, made us ready to turn in early. My bf’s dad scaled my fish and put it away so it would be ready to smoke later that week.  Maybe it was beginner’s luck, but whatever. I am happy I caught a fish that big, and can’t wait to go fishing again.

QUESTIONS FOR YOU

  1. Have you been to Martha’s Vineyard?
  2. What’s your favorite beach town?
  3. How big was the biggest fish you have caught before?

Stay tuned. I have a lot more to say about Martha’s Vineyard and photo’s too.

© 2012

 

 

Running the coast of Martha’s Vineyard

My Morning Run in Martha’s Vineyard

I am from DC and it is a pretty good running area. It is full of trails, great bridges to run over, and running loops around the Monuments. But I have lived here all of my life and sometimes it can get boring running in the same place everyday. Somedays, I have that, “been there done that attitude.”

So on my way up to Martha’s Vineyard, all I could think about was running.  If you are a runner you would understand. One of my all time favorite things to do, is explore a new area by running through it. But the Vineyard isn’t exactly a new place for me. I had been there two years ago, and have memories of running the most amazing runs. Runs where I felt so good, that I could keep going. I just couldn’t wait, I was excited about running in cooler northern temperatures. Running with breezes from the beach. Running under sunny clear skies.  But most of all running along the coast with breath taking views of the ocean.

Finally, it was the first morning of our trip in Martha’s Vineyard. I woke up and immediately put my running clothes on. I had just purchased some new Newton shoes, so I was also excited to get running in them. The running route I took was the same one that I had taken two years ago.

RUNNING ROUTE 1

I ran down to the Oak Bluff’s harbor ran along the water, and then hopped on the bike path that takes you towards Edgar’s Town. The path has some hills, but nothing to steep. It goes over some small bridges too. It is fun having water on both sides of you. And just how I remembered, the sun beats down on you, while the breeze from the water cools you down. I went 3 miles and then turned back, doing a total of 6 miles. I probably could have gone further.

Oaks Bluff’s Harbor.

Me running along the coast of Martha’s Vineyard in my new Newton shoes, the Gravity. I am still using the Distance U too, in my rotation.

Ocean view from my morning run!

Ocean View on my running route

Views from my morning run in Martha’s Vineyard

So that was my morning run in Martha’s Vineyard. Along the coast from Oaks Bluff towards Edgar’s Town. I ended up running this route twice equaling up to 12 miles. Runs go by fast when you are surrounded by such beautiful scenery.

Questions for You

  1. Would you want to run here?
  2. What is the prettiest run you’ve been on?

©2012

Craters of the Moon

CRATERS OF THE MOON

On our way back to Boise from Idaho Falls, my boyfriend and I contemplated whether we should stop in Sun Valley or hit up Craters of the Moon.  This visit was suppose to be a quick stop, but this National Park was so impressive, we ended up spending four hours there.

Craters of the Moon is a National Park located in Idaho. It is known as Craters of the Moon because the old volcano lava that makes up the park resembles Craters of the Moon. It is also very popular because Hollywood uses the space to film any type of planet or moon scene.

We spent our time hiking through the park. When hiking I felt like I was hiking through a desert. It got really warm and there were not many trees to provide shade. The lava rocks were gray and black so the sun really heat them up.

We also explored two of the caves. I was nervous at first to go caving because we had to get a permit and sign a release form. I didn’t really want to see any bats, but we ended up only exploring the two caves that had natural light streaming through both sides, because the other caves required flashlights and we didn’t have that resource. It felt really refreshing inside the caves because they were significantly cooler. The caves also had that musty dripping water, which is just the way I pictured it.

Even though the park is made from lava rock, there is actually a ton of Wild Life that lives among the rocks. We saw this little guy, not quite sure what you would call him, but boy was he quick.

Wild Life living among Craters of the Moon

Happy hiking through Craters of the Moon.

In the end, I was happy we went caving, and hiked through Craters of the Moon. I guess next time we will grab lunch in Sun Valley.

Winter Wonderland

This will be my last post about Yellowstone, I promise. I know it seems like I am obsessed, but maybe I am a little. Anyway, my boyfriend and I were browsing around one of the gift shops in the Old Faithful Inn, and we came across a series of photography books, one done on each of the seasons. While looking through them, I came to the conclusion that my favorite images were taken during the winter months.

My boyfriend and I later talked about possibly planning another trip out to the west. We are thinking of going to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, one of these winter seasons, to snowboard, and then take a day trip to Yellowstone, so we can experience the park in the winter.

Unfortunately, I can’t remember the name of the books or the name of the photographer from the books that I saw in the gift shop. However, I did search online to show some examples of what the park looks like during the winter.

*none of the photos are mine. I found these at Nature Photography Adventures.

Bison covered in Snow

Wolf eating Ribs

Snow

Lonely Bison

Water

Old Faithful Geyser

 

 

©2012

I’LL TAKE A lil bit of this AND a lil bit of that…

BEACHES

I am a total beach bum. I love running barefoot on the beach, it is my favorite kind of run. I love swimming in the ocean, floating on my back, hearing the waves crash. I love boats. I love laying in the sand soaking up the sun. I love the warm tired feeling I get after a long day at the beach. I love eating seafood, especially lobster, crab, and recently raw oysters.

on the beach in Barcelona

Boats in Barceloneta

Beach bum… in Barcelona

Nemo and Coral in Barcelona

Island of Kos, Greece

Island of Kos, Greece

Mermaid Statue on the Island of Syros, Greece. In Honor of those lost at sea.

Boats in Bodrum, Turkey

Storms in Myrtle Beach, SC USA

good morning Myrtle Beach, SC USA

sun, waves, sand

sisters, sun-dresses, beach, Myrtle, SC USA

rainbow

A day at Bethany Beach, DE USA

Beach Yoga, Bethany Beach, DE USA

Camel on the Beach. Bethany Beach, DE USA

Brazil

Best Friends in BrazilThe Christ Statue in Rio.

Santa Monica, California

Hermosa Beach, California

OBX 13.1

finishing up a run on the beach in the fall in OBX, NC