Vacation report: Week #2 - And still more beaches

Husband's goal for this vacation was to make sure I got to the beach so often I'd get sick of it. (Riiiiiight. Like that's ever going to happen.) And, fortunately, the weather's mostly cooperated. It rained last Wednesday but we were in the city to spend time with a friend visiting from Yukon so didn't mind at all. And, as it turned out, the rain let up long enough to show him around and have supper outside! Otherwise, most days have been perfect for beaching - though some have been a bit breezy.

We spent the majority of our days at Risser's Beach last week but we made it back to Hirtle's on Sunday, when we had friends visiting from the city, and I rode Patti there again today after touring Mahone Bay and Lunenburg. The waves were terrific both days. We had a blast body-surfing on Sunday, and I snapped these photos of some adorable beach faeries during a long walk up the beach and back. 

Husband and I also spent an idyllic day at Cherry Hill Beach last Friday. It's only about 15 minutes down the shore from Risser's but I hadn't been there in years. Now that we've been, I can't understand how we forgot about it. What a gorgeous spot! And we had the beach almost entirely to ourselves for much of the day.

Unfortunately, all the warm humid weather has made marathon training more challenging. I managed to complete most of my workouts last week but at an abysmally slow pace. If I don't pick it up soon, there's a good chance my next marathon will be slower than my last - which is not what I was aiming for. Given that the forecast for this week and next is more of the same kind of weather, I'll focus on making the most of my hill and interval training in hopes I'll be in shape to run faster when temperatures drop a bit. 

So far this week, I've done a hill training session (7k, including 7 hills) and an 8k easy run. Tomorrow is interval training and on Saturday I plan to run 26k to Risser's Beach. I know from past experience that I'll enjoy cooling my legs in the ocean when I get there and the route is gorgeous so there'll be plenty to keep my mind occupied if my body gets cranky about the hills along the way. Assuming all goes well, I'll take the plunge and register for the Valley Harvest Marathon early next week. If it doesn't, I have some hard thinking to do. The Legs for Literacy Marathon in Moncton takes place a two weeks after VHM and is considerably less challenging so it might make sense to run it instead. However, I've really been looking forward to VHM because much of the route is along roads I traveled regularly in my youth. I'm hoping the happy memories will distract me from the pain in the final kms of the race. Stay tuned!

All in all, it's been a great second week (and a bit) of vacation. At the moment, it seems inconceivable that I'll be ready to return to the office on Monday but I suppose I'll cope. 

Hope you're enjoying the last gasps of summer too. Happy running and writing!

P.S. I almost forgot to mention that, of course, we've been eating ridiculously well this vacation - another benefit of staycationing. Last night, we whipped up a yummy bumbleberry made with blackberries from our own garden, local rhurbarb and strawberries. Yum!! And there's been tonnes of hodge podge (new potatoes, beans, peas, cream and butter) not to mention fresh corn steamed on the BBQ. My goodness, I love all the lovely fruits and veggies we get this time of year!