Winter came quick and hard to the Midwest.  We’ve had lots of below zero windchills and neverending snow. I made my annual trip up north to Prairie du Chien to see my parents for Christmas.  This time I had my sister with me.  Thankfully, I had new all season tires on my car (don’t ask about my old tires), since we saw plenty of people in the ditch.  Despite the long drive, I get to see my folks and also enjoy the natural beauty of the Mississippi River.  I’ve run at Wyalusing State Park for most of the Christmases that I’ve been home.  Usually there is little or no snow, but this year there was a base of about 12 inches on the bluffs.  Yikes!

I was more worried about the cold than the snow (more below zero windchills), and thought that sticking to the Turkey Hollow Trail would be a good idea since it is protected from the wind (and relatively flat). I keep forgetting that this “flat” trail is anything but and is even hard in nice weather.  In a foot of snow, it was more than just a little challenging…:)  My quads were killing me and with my mile splits at 12+ minutes, I decided to finish my run on the roads (which still had 3-4″ of snow).

My legs were still hurting for a few days afterwards, but I had a great time and it was a perfect way to celebrate a White Christmas!