Thursday, May 18, 2017

Pennyrile State Forest

A couple weekends ago, Luke and I went to one of our favorite places for a few days of rest, relaxation, and lots of hiking. Pennyrile State Forest is about an hour away from our house, just north of Hopkinsville, Kentucky.

Our cabin for the weekend
There is a lodge where you can spend the night, or you can rent a cabin nestled in the woods along the lake. There are plenty of hiking trails right outside the door. There are also mountain bike trails, a swimming pool, beach area at the lake, tennis and basketball courts, a golf course...lots of things to do! 

 

 View of the lake from our cabin
I'll let these pics speak for themselves. Here are some of the hiking trails:






Pausing for a rest on Fisherman's Rock
It was a little wet and muddy on the trail
Taking our hike to the golf course when the weather was rainy
Met a friend and saw lots of wildlife, especially on the golf course!
Cody had a blast swimming in the lake
Beautiful Views
























It was a fantastic weekend, even with a bit of rain. Not a whole lot of running, but lots of walking and hiking! Luke took his bike out on the road as well. I have been doing a lot more walking than running lately, but we did enjoy the Girls on the Run 5K last Saturday. This was the most encouraging 5K I have participated in, but if you are looking to hit a PR or be really serious, this isn't the 5K for you. We were surrounded by little girls and their running buddies who were attempting to convince them to run instead of walk. Girls would stop to tie their shoe right in front of you, no moving to the side of the road. There were girls sprinting, walking, crying, laughing, but overall just having a great time!

Here are some photo highlights:

Posing in front of the Titans stadium, it was cold!
   
Start line: lots of pink!
Girls and Running Buddies

Cheering at the finish line
This 5K convinced me that I want to find a local GOTR group and volunteer. It will motivate me to keep running as well. I'm moving pretty slowly these days, but I figure even if I'm walking, at least I'm moving!! I've also been doing lots of yoga and will leave you with a great, short video by FemFusion Fitness. This video would be great to do after a run or just after a stressful day. Enjoy!