Notes
935 days. Rather than pay for a parking pass, we parked in Nerstrand and ran the two miles to the park. It was such a nice start, a gradual 2 mile downhill with a 10-15 mph tailwind. Felt so effortless. I had never been in Nerstrand before today, but I will certainly be returning. The trails are rough, full of loose rocks and roots, and there is lots of erosion on the steep hills, but it's absolutely beautiful. There was a scattering of leaves covering many of the trails, overwhelming nostalgia for cross country seasons past took over my thoughts for the majority of the run.
But while I relived runs in Dunnings and VanPeenan, I found that these woods had magic all their own as well.
Just about a mile into the trails, there was a man sitting on a rustic bench, barefoot, strumming a tune on his guitar. A little further along, a waterfall streamed over some short cliffs and some excited kids darted around in the water below. Two fawns stared out of the brush along a winding trail, too startled or perhaps to curious to dart away.
The long climb back up the hill to Nerstrand, into the wind and back out in the sun, was an exhausting cap to a beautiful run.
Worth it.