First snow of the winter (for me)

Today's weather forecast predicted a high probability of rain but I didn't let that put me off my regular run/walk to Oxstones. Recently I've been tired and not managed to reach the stones in an hour, or on one occasion, not even completed the run. I'd even wondered if lugging 500g of camera uphill was slowing me down, I didn't have that excuse today.

This time I was happy to continue to the moor although I was delayed a little by the jacket off/on/off/on ritual due to getting warm in the woods whilst ascending and then being cold in open fields. In the plantation, a warm ascent phase, it started to snow, not a lot, but enough to show that winter has arrived.

Snow time in Lady Canning Plantation

There was a little more on the ground at Oxstones but it was cold and my fingers were too numb to bother with a photograph.

 

Bored of ice

The last ten days have been unusually cold. Sheffield used to get deep snow that lasted for days in the 1980s but that's been uncommon since I moved here in the early 1990s. At first the snow was pretty and it was a pleasure to be in the woods, even if the extra effort reduced how far I'd run. But, over the last few days almost all paths have become slippery with ice due to pressure from footfall and repeated thaw-freeze cycles. Twice I've been out and cut short my run due to fear of falling.

Paths on less popular routes are barely trodden but reaching them has become increasingly difficult.

The forecast for the next few days is above freezing so I hope it melts away soon...

First snow of the winter

The forecast had predicted 'snow on high ground' but that's pretty vague as everyone has their own definition of high. I expected that there would be some flakes over Sheffield and the Peak District as there's a long history of this area tending to be more prone to snow than nearby Manchester or the East Midlands.

When I woke up there was a thin layer in the garden but by the time I'd eaten and got out of the house that had started to melt. The local pavements were a bit slippery in places where there had been patches of melting and re-freezing but once on countryside paths there were no problems. On Blacka Moor there was a good covering that hid the roughness in the path and the cold running water beneath.

Just beyond the wall the wind was ever so strong and I was forced to walk

Houndkirk Road was unusually busy, the last time I saw so much traffic was in the snow last winter. I don't have any sensible reasons why snow generates cyclists and runners. My pace was slow, as of corset should be on a long run, but my heart rate was reported to be high. I think (indeed hope) the monitor is getting a low battery. Even though I was aware of the usual left knee  / right ankle combination I included the detour to Oxstones as I was enjoying myself too much to go directly home.

From the summit it's basically 9km of gentle descent back home, although there are a few inclines along the way to tax weary legs. The GPS data showed that I was the slowest I've ever been on this loop. Party that's because I'm trying  to be slow as some of my older, faster runs were at what I now understand to be a race pace and thus not sustainable in a training programme.

Incidentally, the Fuji shoes  did well on their first long outing. They weren't too hard at a slow trot on tarmac and gripped beautifully in thin snow and mud.  The neoprene gaiter didn't rub on my ankle either, that's a real boost.

I am wondering if higher paced road runs are the irritant for my knee. I did one on Tuesday and have known about it ever since...