Tag: Rain

In which we are entirely surrounded by water

21 April 2018

The peculiar heatwave that began on the night of the RR10 and baked us in thirty degree heat on our walk to Hamble continued for the next couple of days. It had all my running friends a little worried. The Southampton and London marathons were coming up. Everyone had trained in nothing but cold wetness. This morning weather warnings were posted. Marathon day was going to be hot, possibly hotter that the record breaking marathon day in 1996 when temperatures hit 22.7C. Heat is never a good thing when you’re running a marathon. Thunderstorms and heavy showers were forecast for this afternoon too but nothing could have prepared us for what actually happened.  Continue reading In which we are entirely surrounded by water

An amazing perspective on the old walls

28 March 2018

After the snow came the rain. It seemed as if the sky was constantly dropping something on us. Everything was wet. Everything was muddy. Walking was a chore, to be got over with as soon as possible with the least amount of getting wet. Easter was fast approaching but nothing felt very springlike. Miles were travelled as I went about my daily business but my phone stayed firmly in my pocket and my camera stayed at home. Then I read about something I couldn’t bear to miss, rain or no rain.

Continue reading An amazing perspective on the old walls

Lovely weather for ducks

15 March 2018

After the snow came the rain. It seemed to go on and on with one cold, grey, damp day following another. Walking was something to get from a to b as quickly as possible rather than an enjoyment. There was plenty of it but nothing that warranted pulling my phone out of my pocket. Today though, there was a brief dryish spell and I had an errand that took me along the riverbank.  Continue reading Lovely weather for ducks

Five run fifty at fifty – heading for half way

9 February 2018

We passed the runners with loud cheers and honking of the horn as they made their way through Netley Village.  Their next stop would be the Common just after eleven o’clock. We had two hours so we headed to the nearest Starbucks, on London Road. Sitting in the warm drinking coffee felt like heaven after all the standing around in the cold, even if there was a touch of guilt thinking about our runners still pounding the chilly pavements.  Continue reading Five run fifty at fifty – heading for half way

Fifty miles

27 January 2018

On a normal Saturday morning I can usually be found hanging around on the Common while Commando runs parkrun. Sometimes I volunteer, sometimes I just go for a quiet wander. For three weeks in a row though I’ve been conspicuous in my absence and it’s all down to Commando’s friend Rob and a harebrained scheme to run fifty miles and raise money for Alzheimer’s Research UK. Continue reading Fifty miles

Happy New Year

1 January 2018

First thing on New Years Day all the sensible people are in bed sleeping off a late night, too much food and way too much alcohol. My warm bed was just a hazy memory as I strolled across Southampton Common, wrapped up against the chilly morning air. For some reason the parkrun organisers thought it would be a good idea to have an extra parkrun today. In fact there were two, one at Netely and one st Southampton, with the Netley one starting before the Southampton one so people could run both. Continue reading Happy New Year

A parkrun milestone

4 November 2017

Some Saturday mornings parkrun doesn’t seem like such a great idea and I wonder why I’m getting out of bed early to watch a lot of runners going round and round The Common. This Saturday, with rain beating down and wind making it all seem worse, was a case in point. There was no way I was staying at home in the warm and dry though because this was a very special parkrun. John Grant, running club founder  and Event Director of Southampton Parkrun, was about to run his two hundred and fiftieth parkrun. Obviously, the gathered runners had a few surprises up their sleeves for him.  Continue reading A parkrun milestone

Winchester mills and flowers in the rain

3 September 2017

Sitting on a bench by the river in the rain is not the best of ideas. When I noticed mosquitoes buzzing round my legs I thought it was probably time to move, even though I hadn’t really thought of anywhere else to go. The nettle stings were enough to contend with without mosquito bites adding to the itching. Besides, sitting still was making me cold as well as damp so I began to march towards the entrance to the park. As I passed the last of the trees and came to the area of cut grass that had tempted me right at the start I found myself face to face with a deer.  Continue reading Winchester mills and flowers in the rain

Winnall Moors, giants, runners and walking in circles

3 September 2017

In the end I couldn’t resist going through the gate although I did stop to check the strange sculpture of the man from the other side just in case he held some kind of notice. He didn’t because he was actually the giant from the Winnall Moors Story Book not a guard at all but, of course, I didn’t know that at the time.  Continue reading Winnall Moors, giants, runners and walking in circles

Winnal Moors, otters, water voles and swan steps

3 September 2017

Back on the main trail again and trying hard not to scratch my itchy ankles and make them worse, I carried on. Google Maps told me the Winchester School of Art was somewhere behind the trees to my left but I couldn’t see it.  There was water too, part of a network of streams and canals running off the Itchen to drown the water meadows, but this too was invisible to me from the path. what I did see was another rustic bench, this one carved like the little totem poles I’d passed earlier. Continue reading Winnal Moors, otters, water voles and swan steps