Pawnee Buttes

Saturday we went for a drive out to Pawnee Buttes, about an hour east of here. The drive was more like an hour and a half because of the winding dirt roads once we got off highway 14. It's on the way to Nebraska.


It's hard to find information on this place, it's out in the middle of nowhere and I did go to the website for the federal govt, and there isn't much on it. There's this little townsite of Keota and you basically follow unmarked dirt roads, there's an occasional sign pointing you in the direction of the Pawnee Buttes, but it would be easy to get lost. Finally we reached the town site of Keota. Complete with water tower, cemetery, and a cool old fire hydrant...

Once we got through Keota we drove for what seemed like forever and couldn't see any buttes. We did see the big wind turbines to the north. We were considering turning around and going home up since we weren't seeing any buttes. Finally, they appeared. We drove in that direction and parked at a deserted dirt parking area and picked out the trail up ahead.








It was cold and windy, the kind of wind that bites and goes through you, no mater how much clothing you wear. We went for a short hike and then went home. We were both tired, Dennis slept on the way out while I drove, and then I slept for 45 minutes on the way home.





The Buffaloes loved the drive, whenever we get on a dirt road they get excited, they know they are GOING somewhere to play. They saw cows and sheep driving through on highway 14. Lots of good smells...to them.

I doubt I will go back out there for a while unless I have a lot of time. They close one of the trails starting March 1, for nesting of predator birds, so we got there just in time. There are some trails, and it looks like decent mountain biking except for the cactus and other prickly things that cause flat tires. It's too far of a drive to justify the short trail distances for running.

This week I was so tired, I was having trouble sleeping again. It starts up and then goes away. I took the girls to Riverbend Ponds and the ice is almost gone. I managed to get a 16+ mile run on the hills of Centennial Drive and Bingham Hill again, Lead legs, but I'm not walking and I feel strong. I look forward to doing speed training, which I should be able to start within the next few weeks. Maybe that will get me excited about training for something.

Today I ran the Tortoise & Hare 6K. It was freezing! There was a good turnout at Spring Park at 8 am when the temperature was 24 degrees. I was slightly disappointed ran 16 seconds slower than last fall. I'm trying to look at the small positive steps. The good news is, I ran my first mile too fast in 7:06, and that didn't hurt my hamstring, so I consider it a big improvement. I couldn't do anything faster than 7:30 pace for a long time.

I've managed to lose 2 pounds so far, I've cut way back on eating carbohydrates, and I think I'm feeling it in my running, but that's okay, I'll adapt soon. We've been eating mostly salads and fruit and meat, and it seems like I'm having an easier time with my mornings. I've been eating nuts and Lara bars at work, I still need snacks every 2 hours but at least I don't get to the point where my hands are shaking every 2 hours and feeling like I'm going to pass out.

The other night Venus and the crescent moon were out. I was exhausted when I got off work but when I saw the sky and I had to get my camera.










Next weekend is my birthday run, we're starting at Grandview Cemetery and will run about 45 kilometers, and then meet at the Rio afterwards.