The Long Trail to Discovery

There is something very simple, pure, spiritual, some might even say romantic about trail running in the mountains, but one thing is for sure, hidden within the confines of it's simplistic movement and beauty, lurks a whole world of self discovery. As the "Big Saturday" mountain runs got longer and longer it not only allowed me to access deeper and more remote terrain, but it also slowly pushed me into that shadier grey area of facing who you are. You might even think that running 40-50km every weekend in the mountains leads one to believe that you're running from something, but the opposite is so true. I always wondered if all that knowledge follows you around, like it is held within your shadow- stuck to you no matter what, and access to it gets easier and easier the more you shed your personal baggage. Run for just 45 minutes and that baggage is left behind. Run for another 3 hours and you start to loose your Carry On Baggage too. After several hours of running one seams to get stripped down to their basic self. "Breath"  "I think I need some calories- How long has it been?" "My foot is bugging me- should I stop and clean out my shoe?" "This pace is a little fast" "This pace is a little slow" "Look at that moss, that rock, that root, that fern, that creek is soooo clear!" "The smells are so alive" "My God look at this valley, those peaks". Ahhh- then you are there. But I've found "there" to be two possible places. One; You are 5 hours into your run and your body- spirit feels alive. Nothing can stop you, life is amazing and you are so proud of everything you are. Two; I just don't feel it today. My legs are tired, I can't seam to keep up to my usual running partners, am I bonking?, I can't do this I'm done, I am not good enough, I should be a better "this" and "that"...what's wrong with me?...Blah blah blah...
Then there are those long runs which seam to be more common than not- where you get to experience both the Love and Despair...sometimes several times during the same run!
We all pose limits on ourselves whether conscience or not. Trail running, or any endurance activity for that matter, allows us to breakdown those self imposed barriers and provides access and freedom into the exploration of ourselves. And as an added bonus, it also provides access to the most amazing back country areas one come ever dream up!....