Winter blues

It's 7.45am and it's dark! The sun struggles to rise and then after what feels like a few hours, it's dark again! If it weren't for my dog (Kibo), and my alarm, I would probably still be asleep at 9 or even 10am. Winter is hard and my mood does drop for sure. So what do you do? Get out, grin and bare it? Or hibernate?  I have decided to stick to shorter runs and gym sessions and when the mood takes me, maybe, I can get in some longer days out, preferably with others.
I have to say that I really admire people who can get out for hours and hours whatever the weather. Although I am less phased now, I am generally a fair weather girl. Lacking confidence in the mountains doesn't help and I just hope I can learn more and grow in confidence so that I am less phased by the possibility of getting lost.
I will end on a positive note though. Winter can be glorious. When the air is crisp cold, the sky is clear blue and the sun gives of a slight warmth. Going up into the fells is always worth it for the views on that day and so long as you wrap up nothing beats a winter day like that.

Solo run in the lakes

I should have written this a week ago at the height of my euphoria. I ventured out with Kibo into the lake district fells all on my own. Using my limited navigation skills I made my way round the Coledale Horseshoe (up Grizedale Pike) in pretty poor conditions. OK, I had a GPS but I did refer to the map and most amazingly I didn't panic. I felt myself ease into the run and just enjoy the challenge. Having mobile signal and some familiarity of the area helped but all the same it felt like a real achievement for me. I think I can do it again and really hope I get more and more confident and get to enjoy exploring new routes.