Schuylkill River Trail

I discovered the Schuylkill River Trail while visiting my parents and Piper in PA early last summer.  Since then, it has become a regular part of my runs during my visits.  I can pick it up about a mile from my parents' house, and it extends for miles and miles.  In summer 2017, I did many of my long runs on it training for Chicago.  This past March I did my final 20 mile long run on it before Boston.  It is a scenic, paved trail that runs for several miles along the Schuylkill River, through Valley Forge and on to Philadelphia. 

I had planned to run on it this summer, but that obviously never happened.  When I was visiting PA in August, I still wasn't cleared to start running again.  So when I arrived in PA yesterday, I was happy to get back to the trail.  I went one direction yesterday and ran the other (much hillier) direction today.  This morning was much cooler (and thankfully less humid) than yesterday -- and my time reflected that.  Despite the hilly conditions, this morning was my fastest pace since I started running again.  It feels good to know that my speed is starting to return.  I wasn't trying to go fast but just to maintain a comfortable pace and enjoy the crunching of the leaves on the ground and the sight of the trees starting to change color.

Fall morning on the Schuylkill River Trail