Yesterday as I joined others in my running group for their annual lavender run (running alongside the local lavender fields) one of the lovely ladies commented (with some surprise, I think) that I had actually made it back from my holiday in one piece.  And yes, other than that incident with the stitches in my mouth I had managed it with no problem. I should have known it wouldn’t last.

The running involved yesterday was a bit sparodic as kept stopping to take photos – it was so pretty and I knew if I went back on my own I’d just get lost, so I made the most of it:

We stumbled on a fire engine show and one fireman took a picture of us:

And one of himself:

They suggested we join them for a bacon sarnie, but we just did another photo instead:

Part way through all this I realised I was a bit behind the rest of the group, put my phone away and started my version of running. And suddenly all I could see was the sky.  I might have managed a week away without incident, but a few miles from home I’d managed to fall into the hedgerow. Specifically a patch of nettles :o(. This was a bit of my back last night:

This morning I thought rather than a proper run I would explore and try to find myself a new route.  I ended up in grass up to my thighs:

Discovered there was a very good reason someone had built this bridge and if I had used it, I wouldn’t have ended up with quite such muddy trainers:

I realised I shouldn’t have attempted to run down the centre part of a tractor trail as 1) the water either side was strangest and 2) it joined up in the middle in parts.  My trainers are now muddy and have a slightly stagnant aroma.

And for some reason this bridge only goes part way over the stream, adding to the routes obstacle course flavour:

It was fun though. I also met a lady called Barbara who was having a coffee at the end of her garden that backed onto a field.  She has chickens and ducks and luckily also held the secret of how to get out of the field I seemed to be trapped in.

Not your average runs, but it’s lovely to do something a bit different sometimes.  And when I got back I washed Paddington and James the bear, just because that seemed a bit different too. They are now doing in the garden :o)