Love the Run

Recently I was asked, "Do you love where you live for running?" I wanted to respond with a resounding NO. I dream about living in Colorado or California and running in the mountains. I imagine being trapped between the mountains and the sea so I can run along both. I want altitude and heat and technical trails.

And then I realized.... A lot of people would love to live (and run) right where I'm at. So I decided to capture why western Pennsylvania and, especially our little slice of the Yough River, is so cool.


How many places can you run for tens of miles and catch glimpses like this the entire way?

 

Where else can I appreciate the destructive beauty of an acid mine drainage waterfall?

 

I eagerly anticipate the day I catch a glimpse of the beavers who built this dam.

 

 

I can run 10 miles and treat myself to an icy treat and then run back, all without touching a road.

 

And as Independence Day approaches I am reminded just how much history lies in these lands. In this ancient, forgotten cemetery lies soldiers of both the War of 1812 and the Civil War. Alongside them lay the family members who suffered through food shortages, loss of their men, disease, and war.

Some monuments remain tall while others are broken or missing completely.

Margaret E. aged 1 year, 1 month, and 10 days.

List of the soldiers from both wars interred here.

 

Yes, it's true. Pennsylvania is a beautiful place to live and run. It doesn't change my desire to explore far off places but it does remind me just how lucky I am to have all of this just outside my back door.