~11 miles @ ~12 min/mi

"Nice headlamp!" a cyclist, resting on a park bench by Northwest Branch Trail, compliments me in the near-darkness. An hour earlier five deer pose behind the engineering building and stare at my approach. One is a big stag with a dramatic rack of antlers. I'm not much of a threat, they decide, so they continue across the trail to Paint Branch to take a drink. It's an evening op: wife and daughter are attending a concert at the University of Maryland, and I'm the night driver. So I prepare a bag of gear to stash in the car, since I'm arriving via subway.

Unfortunately I forget to include a fanny-pack—but hey, the weather is cool, the route is familiar, and I can get by carrying only water in one hand and cellphone in the other. Before running I restrain myself and only eat half of a carry-out veggie sandwich and drink extra water. I change in the restroom, ditch my street clothes in the car, and set off at 7:30pm. No extra light is needed on campus, but under the trees approaching Lake Artemesia things begin to get a wee bit spooky, and stay that way thereafter. At the North Brentwood sewer construction site (cf. 2008-09-08 - Anacostia Tributaries and Lake Artemesia) I ponder climbing around safety barriers, but the noise of diesel engines and the bright arc lights deter me. I take my custom detour from Crittenden St through Magruder Park and rejoin the trail without incident. A big just-past-full moon rises in front of me as I return to the UM campus and stop my watch at 9:45pm.

(cf. Jog Log ...) - ^z - 2008-09-24

(correlates: 2008-09-08 - Anacostia Tributaries and Lake Artemesia, 2007-09-19 - Paint Branch Trot, DavidNewsom, ...)