Category Archives: Running

Our World – Turkey Mountain

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It’s October and the temperatures are cooling here in Oklahoma. Not like they are elsewhere as we are still running our air conditioners but the weather is cool and dry. October is the Oklahoma’s best month. I happened to have Saturday morning free so I headed to my favorite running spot, Turkey Mountain. I had the place to myself. I’ve signed up for the Tulsa Run 15K race late this month and the Route 66 Half Marathon in late November so I’ve been running longer miles during the week. My goal Saturday was six miles of easy running.

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I started down the trails but I noticed a short side trail that went to a road and I could barely see an opening on the other side. Hmm, I didn’t know there was a trail over there so I headed across.

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And sure enough there was a faint trail over there. It wasn’t very big and it wasn’t very long, less than a mail loop. Guess what though. No litter. Yep, no red bull cans, no water bottles, nor candy bar wrappers. I scared up three white tail deer though. They don’t stick around for me to get my camera up and going though. It was pretty nice. I didn’t see any side trails though.

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It was nice although the trail almost petered out a few times.

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The only man made object I saw was this old barbed wire fence. Soon enough though I looped back across the road back to the park. Going from illegal to legal.

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I made a turn through a privately owned area of the mountain. The owner bulldozed down a lot of brush and trees earlier this year and got everybody all excited that he was going to put something up but he was just clearing things out so it would be easier to sell. Still not good news but maybe somebody will step in and buy and and give it to the River Parks. Its happened before. Keep your fingers crossed.

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Several bikes passed me. I passed one who called my name out as I went by and I yelled who’s that. He yelled “Tom.” I know a Tom who rides bikes and would ride by without stopping. It’s probably him.

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There is one spot on the western side of Turkey Mountain looking east where you have a good panorama.

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You can see from the pics that the leaves haven’t turned here yet. I did find some color.

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I also found this little green snake. When I first started looking at him he reared up and was doing his cobra thing. Dang little dude has spirit. I have to give him that. This is actually the first snake I’ve ever seen on Turkey Mountain. He and I went on our separate ways.

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I looped through the West Side YMCA. Earlier this year this pond was nearly dry. I’m glad we have been getting some rain.

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More color on the mountain. 

Anyway, I had six really slow, lazy, nice miles. I had a great day.

How are your days?

Our World Tuesday

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Skywatch Friday – September Sunset

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It is the middle of September and summer is hanging on and not letting go. It was over 90 and humid on Wednesday. I’m still training for the Tulsa Run 15K in late October and maybe the Route 66 Half Marathon in November. Last night I ran eight miles along the River Parks trails here in Tulsa.

I’m a very slow runner. In fact I would have to speed up to be slow but I don’t have any time goals in mind for the races. My goal is to finish vertically. Training on the next to the river is very peaceful and it easy very easy to just zone out and flow with the other runners, walkers, and bicyclists. I have been running the trails for over 21 years now and just love them.

Do you have a place where you can go and just zone out?

Skywatch Friday

Pondering the Mysteries of Labor Day on Turkey Mountain

I really can’t figure out Labor Day. We celebrate labor by taking the day off? What is up with that?  I can’t figure it out, you know Memorial Day we fly flags, July 4th is Fireworks, Halloween is pumpkins. What is Labor Day and why do we celebrate it. I don’t know? We don’t really celebrate those who labor do we? No we just give them more work. Celebrating labor is slightly socialistic. What we really like is wealth. Wealth means no labor, at least not for them that has it. Lets have a national wealth day. I’d rather be rich than work. What about you?  Oh well, nothing to get the mind on straight like going to Tulsa’s urban wilderness, Turkey Mountain.

#selfie #beforemyrun #turkeymountain is my #happyplace

Here I be!! I don’t take too many “selfies” as such pics are called on Instagram. I just wanted to show how happy I was to be there.  Plus I got a rare haircut. I mean I paid 22 bucks for it. That comes out to be about 50 cents per each hair cut. That is is kind of high in my opinion. I mean cutting 44 hairs should cost less than 22 bucks I think. I think 10 cents a hair  is more like it. What do you think? Another reason I’m smiling is cuz of this.

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I smoked some chicken leq quarters the day before and after I get through running and getting cleaned up we are going over to Nana’s (the world’s greatest MIL) to eat the chicken along with a whole lot of other stuff.

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 There is not a whole lot to take pics of during the heat of the day. The deer and other critters are way off deep in the woods resting ( or that special place that waiters and waitresses go when you need your check). So I thought I’d take pics of the flowers I saw. There isn’t much color on Turkey Mountain this time of year.

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You know what kind of flowers these are. Well some are yellow and some are purple. That is the sum of my knowledge about wildflowers.

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It is hot, but only in the 90’s and the humidity is lower. Fall is coming. Autumn is my favorite season of the year. Warm days, cool nights, football. Unfortunately I’m a Dallas Cowboys fan so I football isn’t as enjoyable as it used to be.

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There were also a bunch of spider webs out in the woods shaped like funnels. I would think that it would take some very energetic and creative spiders to create these. They are kind of like the roach motels of spiderwebs. My friend mister Google tells me that these are funnel-web spiders. The American kind is not really a bother to people.  The Australlian variety is deadly. I wonder why that is, maybe it has something to do with spending their whole life upside down. I can’t think of anything else. Can you?

The thing about Turkey Mountain is that the trails are crowded with people the for about a half mile then it thins out rapidly especially to the northwest end of the mountain. I like to run out there to the Westside Y because it feels like a long ways.

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I ran clear to the north side of the wilderness area to the Westside YMCA. They operate a day camp during the summer and give lots of kids a taste of the woods. This pond almost dried up over the winter but we’ve had some rain in the Tulsa area so now the kids have some water to canoe on. Or at least they would if there was still camps but the season is over.

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I ran on back and came upon a bulletin board with maps and warnings and such. The River Parks authority has put several of these numbered stations across the mountain. The idea is that if you have a problem and can make it to the station then you can call 911 and tell the dispatcher what number you are at then they know where to send help. I think it is a good idea. There is water at the main parking lot but nowhere else. If you go up on the mountain take lots of water and if you are taking a dog take water for them also.

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Nearby is what I call Wagon Wheel Lake (All the ponds on Turkey Mountain are called lakes for some reason, so I get to call the pond a lake also.) We have a had a wet year, usually the ponds are dry and the vegetation dried out by this time of year.

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I finished up my run and took another selfie of me. Notice how I got my jaw forward to cut down the number of double chins? I tried that trick but it sure makes me look stern. 

#aftermyrun #selfie #notflatteringatall

I ran the pic through the grunge filter on snapseed. I love this result. Sure makes me look grungy. I smelled pretty grungy too so I went home and cleaned up and we headed off to Nana’s.

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Oh yes, after a pre-dinner Tanqueray and tonic we had the chicken, and purple hull peas, sliced tomatoes, marinated cucumbers, Sweeties home made cole slaw, and on and on. I was too busy eating it to take a picture of everthing.

 So Labor Day turned out okay. I guess that I’ll stick with Labor Day and not agitate for a Wealth Day Holiday. I’ve been thinking about it and if you are wealthy then every day is a holiday. That’s what I think anyway. 

Skywatch Friday – Running the River

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I love this time of year for a number of reasons but a big reason is that the sun is still up during my Wednesday evening “kitchen pass” run so I can run for a while and take photographs for a little while.  I’m trying to get ready for my 20th consecutive Tulsa Run 15 kilometer race in late October, plus I am going to see if I have one more half marathon in me for in November, so I’m starting to build up mileage and there is no prettier place to do that than along the Arkansas River in Tulsa.

Soon enough I’ll be running in the dark. That happens when you are as old, fat, and slow as me, but hey I’m still in race.

Skywatch Friday

Weekend Reflections – Turkey Mountain

Wednesday evening after work I headed to Turkey Mountain. Much has been happening lately and I can always get my head on straight up on the Mountain.

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It has been raining lately so the trails are not as dusty as they were last summer. 

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There are even some sizeable puddles alongside some of the trails.

Puddle Reflection

I’ve been experimenting with puddle reflections lately. You can really do that during a drouth. The above is one of my favorites so far.

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The Westside YMCA runs a day camp on the north side of the mountain. They had spruced up their trail signs. I could hear some loud drumming and yelling going on. I was curious about what was going on but I stayed away. 

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I did stop and take a pic of their fishing pond though. Nice to see them starting to fill up again.

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A previous employer of mine has a pipeline that runs across the mountain. I’m big into connectivity and I’m very familiar with this pipeline and the network it connects to. If I bang it with a hammer (I’d never do that of course it would damage the coating) I can just imagine the sound traveling from here to almost every state in the lower 48 and Canada and also Mexico. I have maps so that I can show you just how that would work. Of course, you would have to put your ears to the pipe and listen very attentively to hear me hammering.

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My new trailrunning friend. We ran together for a little bit but I was too slow for him so he waved and was off.

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At the parking lot, two final reflections, Cityplex Tower and the full moon both reflecting the sun back at me.

A Skywatch Friday Running and Geocaching Ramble

Wednesday night I had a kitchen pass so toook advantage of it to do some multitasking. I was going to do my two favorite hobbies running and geocaching at my favorite place, Tulsa’s River Parks, a network of trails and parks along both banks of the Arkansas River which runs through town.

Tulsa Power Station

I parked at the soccer fields on  the west bank. West Tulsa is where all the dirty, smelly, nasty industrial stuff in Tulsa is located like the power plant above and the refinery below. The sky views are just as nice if you don’t mind power lines, distillation columns, and smoke stacks.

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The dirty smelly nasty stuff on the west bank is what provides the money for all the nice stuff on the east bank like chic shopping centers, the opera, the museums, and all the rest. But please don’t be rude and say so if you visit.

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I headed down the river and made several stops looking for geocaches. Geocachers, fishermen, and homeless people pretty much end up in the same places like this little cove in the Arkansas River where you have a good view of downtown.

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Or this little view across the river framed by some trees.

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We have some weather coming in Thursday. We are told it my snow in Tulsa. In May!! Stuff like this didn’t happen before Obama became President. Anybody else besides me notice that? 

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A couple of the caches I was looking for were hid in the rip rap. The clue said “Rocks” do you see it? It took me a while.

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This doesn’t have anything to do with anything. I just love construction equipment. If I had a gazillion dollars I’d still be driving my Kia Soul but I would definitely have one of these puppys in my back yard. What would I do with it you ask? I don’t mind telling you. I would dig holes with it and then fill them back up. That’s what I would do.

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Back at the soccer fields. Time to get home. I had a very nice outing.
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Post Oak Lodge 10K featuring the Hill from Hell!

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Saturday bright and early I got up and headed to the Osage Hills northwest of Tulsa to participate in the Post Oak Lodge Challenge 10K.  When I got there I fell in love.

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With this fireplace and a very comfortable leather chair. It’s a real fire. We have a gas fire at home and it is all nice and everything but nothing puts out a nice glowing warm heat like a real wood fire.

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So I sat there napping off and on as they prepped the 25Kers on following the green ribbon.

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And then I sat there during the prep for the 10Kers. We were supposed to follow the pink ribbons. You see.

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And then the moment of decision. To I get up out of MY chair and go run the race or just kind nap some more. You like my hat, you think its funny. Hey it was 30 deg at race time and I was warm. So laugh all you want you cold eared people.

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So off we go!! Following the pink ribbons. The Shadow knows.

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The aid stations were fantabulous, water, gatorade, pb&j sandwiches, chips, homemade cookies, salted potatoes. Wonderful. The Shadow also knows this.

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We’ve had a little bit of rain so it was nice to see the creeks flowing again. We had a little bit of mud but not to bad.

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We took a turn through the Oklahoma Centennial Botanical Gardens.

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And we went by the Post Lodge’s Zip lines. At least that is the cover story. The real deal is that Oklahoma has erected these watch towers to keep Democrats out of the state. They are also a last line of defense to keep those pesky Canadians who are enslaved by the national healthcare system out of our state. Rumor has it that they are massed at the border trying to get in.We are ready for them.

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The thing about trail runs is that the good ones are have lots of ups and downs. This was a good one.

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I finally got to the top of the Hill from Hell. Holmes Peak is the tallest point in Tulsa County. You can see a long ways.

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Way over yonder (as we say in Oklahoma) where the cars are is the start and end of the race.

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Heading down the Hill from Hell. . That is downtown Tulsa off in the distance.

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This race had a beer stop. They said, “Want a beer?” and I said “Do you have any other stupid questions?”

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The finish line!! Yeah we are done!!

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Lots of food and adult malted beverages available. This is some white chicken chili.

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And then back to my spot. If you happen to be up at the lodge anytime soon. Make sure nobody is sitting there, cuz its mine. You can sit there if you want, just don’t get too comfortable.

It was a great race, well organized and everybody had lots of fun.

I had my GPS watch on. If you want to see the route click on the green balloon above and it will take you to another screen. Click on the thing that looks like your DVD “Play” button to the left and it will show you just how slow I am.

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I Gotta Go Find Something on Turkey Mountain

Saturday, I had several free hours. Anytime I have a few free hours I’m going to running and geocaching  and photographing.  Most likely I”m going to do that on Turkey Mountain. Tulsa’s urban wilderness area. Its close in and convenient.

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So I hit the trail with a bunch of equipment. My running GPS enabled watch, my Geocaching GPSr, a camera, and my smartphone. And a pen. Can’t go geocaching without a pen, and a knife. Right?

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An old cistern. I don’t know but I get the impression that Turkey Mountain was a rough and ready oilfield and farming area. There is some oilfield debris still left but very little left of farmsteads and such.

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Parts of Turkey Mountain seem very remote. I’ve been all over the mountain and some areas, you just never see anybody.

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Lots of mysteries, like what is this? An old outhouse? Who knows.

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There are a few old pipelines left. I don’t know if they are live or not. I can tell you, and maybe you should listen. You can’t proceed just on assumptions. Unless you want to bet your life on it.

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At the far end of Turkey Mountain from the parking lot you run into the Westside YMCA. Nice place for urban kids to get some nature in them. The Y has a “Ropes Course.” I helped build part of it as part of a United Way Day of Caring event about 20 years ago. Ropes Courses were all the rage back then but you don’t hear that much about them anymore. The theory is that you take a group of coworkers out in the woods and have them work on things together and that leads to better teamwork.

Sorry to water on the parade but let me tell you how guys work. (Women, you have to speak for yourselves.) The way guys work is that you can take a group of guys who hate each other and put them on a team to do something and it’ll be great. They will  work together to complete the task. When they are done, they still hate each other. I did ropes years ago, climbed the rope ladder, did the zip line, walked the cable, jumped off the poles, did the trust fall,  the whole shebang, helped my team mates over the wall. I’m done. No more. How about some golf instead? Does just as much good!

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I finally reached my objective, Pepsi Lake. Don’t snicker at it, we have had a drought and the water levels are way low. I came out here to look for a geocache. named “What are these doing here...” A cache that I’ve looked before and couldn’t find.

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The “these” are Pepsi delivery truck bodies arrayed on the dam. Why they are there. I don’t know. There is a Pepsi warehouse closeby. Maybe this is where they send their trucks to die.

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Oh, by the way, I did find a cardinal playing hard to get in the shrubs near the trucks.

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I also found the cache. Not very many people have found the cache. I’d love to show it to you but the owner of the cache has threatened to delete the logs of anybody who gives a clue. DELETE the LOG, to a geocacher that is worse than any fiscal cliff, or the Affordable Health Care Act, or even the Designated Hitter Rule. So sorry no clues from me.

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I will tell you that I climbed in, under, and on top of these before I found it.

I wore my GPS enabled running watch. It ran out of juice while I was searching for the cache. You can see me route to the cache from the parking lot, just hit the white triangle on the green circle. It’ll take you to the web site. Hit the button that looks like your DVD play button and you will see just how slow a runner I am.

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