This was written for the Axe Valley Runners newsletter and includes some references you might not understand but removing them would alter the spirit of the piece so I've let them stand.
I like running on the beach. Most of you probably knew that. I also like a run on the wild side. Most of you knew that too. But I'm not the only one. Did you know that? 'Course you did. So who would join me for a trot along the beach from Seaton to Lyme, returning via the Undercliff? Phil "Evergreen" Bayliss, of course. (More like "Evergrey" really but don't tell him I said that!)
The ultimate beach run round here has to be from as far west of Seaton as possible to as far east. I understand its doable from near Budleigh to Portland but not on one tide. Well, not without swimming, anyway, and my ability in that realm is severely limited. For now I'm just doing a bit at a time.
Part 1: Rockaway Beach.
So there we were, Phil and I, crunching along the cobbles heading east from Axmouth Harbour. It was easier than the last time we'd done a beach together (the nine miles of gravel on Chesil Bank) and, with warm, still weather, the conditions were nigh on perfect. My only regret was choice of footwear; studs would offer better grip for the return along the Undercliff but provided little protection from the stones pummelling my insteps.
After a while the beach became more heavily littered with boulders and it was difficult to find a runnable line on the cobbles. Soon after that were were walking for the first of many times. In fact we walked more than we ran, picking our way through fields of small boulders, a foot or two across, or over solid shale pavements. We had chosen low tide on purpose to maximise the choice of line but it didn't really help as the highest part of the beach was invariably the best line and the rocks were all slightly wet and more than slightly slippery!
But what the "run" lacked in runnability was made up by the interesting things we saw. The rusted-out remains of a tracked JCB-type crane a mile or so from the harbour! A small pine trunk whose wood was strikingly stained a deep, rich magenta, presumably due to the salt water leaching colour from its bark. Large ammonites, up to a couple of feet across. Some excellent geological sections of alternating silts and shales in the cliffs which prompted me to give Phil a bit of a geology lesson. (Me teaching a teacher! Teaching a teacher teacher, no less! I hope I got my facts right but I was never really that good at geology and a geology degree does not a geologist make. Anyway, they say that those who can, do; those who can't, teach; and those who can't teach, teach teachers!)
There were a couple of nice runnable stretches, particularly one little cove about half way along which gave a few hundred yards of stretching out, wondering whether anyone had ever run there before. (Probably not.)
The hairiest parts were where the cliffs were actively collapsing as we passed. The fluid mudflows running down the beach weren't much of a worry but the frequent sound of even small amounts of shale tumbling down reminded us of the precarious mature of the cliffs and focussed our minds somewhat!
Then we saw a large pile of stuff which must have fallen that morning since the spatter marks on the rock all around hadn't been was washed away by the earlier high tide. It was on a runnable line so had we been there a few hours earlier ...
Finally, after nearly an hour and a half, we were striding out on the firm gravelly sand with the Cobb looming out of the mist.
Part 2: It's a Jungle Out There.
There's not a lot to say about the return along the Undercliff. Those of you who have run it will appreciate the joy of twisting and turning, rising and falling, watching our feet all the time and Phil occasionally getting a close-up of the ground! (Glad I wore studs!)
The vegetation was luxuriant, as ever. Of course, many trees had lost their leaves but the heavy floor covering of hart's tongue fern, the dense undergrowth of brambles and shrubs, the thick ivy climbing everywhere and the rope-like creepers dangling like lianas were all there and the close, damp conditions with drifting mist made it feel even more like a tropical rainforest than usual.
In fifty minutes or so we emerged from the jungle and, after a bit of dodgy route-finding in the mist, got across the fields to the track. On crossing the golf course we considered writing a message to OLO [one of my clubmates who is also the green keeper] in the sand of a bunker (but didn't), took Golf Club Hill the easy way (i.e. down!) and arrived back at the cars after a most enjoyable run on the wild side.
The beach had been the main aim of the day but wasn't at all satisfying as a run. However, I had to do it sooner or later (if you have to ask "Why?" I'm afraid you wouldn't understand the answer), we did see some interesting things and, of course, the Undercliff is always a pleasure so it was definitely worthwhile.
What next? Well …
It's not often that a "normal" run is more memorable than most races but this one definitely was!
Two days after my Seaton-Lyme run I decided to go to the club for the first time in I-don't-know-how-long. The fact that it was the annual pre-Christmas pub run may have had something to do with it, of course! But I fancied a bit more of a run than merely stumbling from pub to pub so decided to run over to Seaton from home (and then worry about getting back once I was there!).
Part 1: Running Blind.
It was a rather wild night but warm. I had a head torch mainly to increase my visibility to cars and initially only turned it on when one was approaching since I could easily run without it. However the Trinity Hill road was so busy that I eventually left it on all the time and put up with the reduced middle-distance visibility. It was quite blowy along the top but in a refreshing way with the light rain and mist all around making me feel rather isolated. As I pulled up Shapwick Hill the cloud thickened sufficiently for cars approaching from behind to cast my shadow onto the mist in front of me. It was quite spooky and by the time I crossed the A3052 it had become distinctly murky!
I always prefer to run without artificial illumination if possible since I can generally see further ahead, albeit without the clarity of torchlight, and the lane past Charton Farm was reasonably easy by the limited natural light. But the path to Dowlands was as black as the Ace of Spades and so rough that I first twisted an ankle then stumbled in the mud, even with the torch. This was not a night to disable myself in the middle of nowhere with virtually no prospect of anyone else passing - this run was becoming quite an adventure!
And then things got really exciting! The mist through the grounds of Dowlands was a real pea souper. Without the torch I couldn't be sure I wasn't going to run into something and there wasn't enough light to see the lane. With the torch I got a lot of reflection from the cloud and could barely see ten feet ahead but it was better than nothing so I jogged very slowly, looking directly at the ground to keep on the road.
I occasionally saw lights from the few houses in the grounds but they didn't help much. At one junction I nearly veered up the wrong way as it was very difficult to keep my direction when not looking ahead and there were no lights there for directional reference. After a while I got worried about running into the gate at the far end but finally passed under the gatehouse so walked through until I was clear of the gate and out on Stepps Road.
Although the mist was still quite thick I thought there would be little chance of obstacles on a public lane so turned off the torch and found my way by the slight glistening of the wet road. It was so dark I couldn't even see my feet but I was thoroughly enjoying this bit after the painfully slow progress just before. After a while the light from Seaton diffracting off the mist began to improve visibility and then the mist itself cleared as the lane lost some height so I switched back on and could once more properly see where I was going. The track to the golf course was more-or-less one long puddle and the golf course itself saturated, making for very slippery going. But soon I was in Seaton and arrived at the club after 70 minutes of running for the nine miles, very satisfying given the conditions.
Part 2: Pub Running.
There's not really a lot to say about the pub run. Pubs were visited, drinks drunk, the lights in Beer viewed and Father Christmas hats with flashing lights were the least outrageous of some peoples' attire!
Part 3: Running Out Of Time.
I had told my wife that I'd be home by 9pm. At 8:05 I left Beer Social Club with a lot of work to do, given that Beer is a couple of miles the opposite side of Seaton from Axminster! I ran via Bunts Lane and Harepath Road to Colyford then Boshill Cross. From there I had intended to take the shortest route home via Bruckland (the back side of Musbury Castle), Bulmoor Cross and Trinity Hill. However, given that it was nearly 8:30 I felt that I ought to phone Marie since she doesn't like me running in the dark at the best of times, let alone 25 miles on a wild night with a few pubs en route, and might start worrying that I'd conked out somewhere! So I changed my plan and ran along the main road into Musbury.
On the way I began thinking about asking Marie to pick me up but by the time I made the call I had decided to continue, even though she actually offered to collect me. (It wasn't so much the desire to finish as the thought of how I would feel if I didn't, if you see what I mean.) Incidentally, I had intended to carry a 20p coin for just such an occasion but there weren't any in either my wallet or Marie's purse so I had to reverse the charges!
I restarted with 45 minutes to make my new deadline home which, with five miles and a big hill, was still a bit tight in my by then rather weary state! I ran up through the village, intending to take the lane up past the castle to Bulmoor Cross but turned left too soon and ended up back on the main road! So I took the next right which I thought joined the lane I wanted but came to an unexpected T-junction and turned left ... the wrong way! I then reached the point where the Musbury Castle Challenge comes down across the fields from the top of the hill so began following the footpath up to the top but went wrong yet again! After a few very boggy fields I finally got onto the lane and was back on course!
Bulmoor Cross was an age in coming, as was the Trinity Hill road. (It's amazing how far away you can see house lights - they look so close yet can be so far!) Then I was trundling along the top looking forward to the high point from which it would all be downhill and I could stride out. But when that came all I could manage was the same old shuffle that I'd been doing since Musbury! I reached the main road and followed it down but, as its gradient eased, so did my pace, and I was getting slower and slower until I felt that I would grind to a halt and never actually reach home! But I didn't and I did, if you see what I mean and, boy, was I glad to stagger inside!
I felt like I'd just done a very long day in the hills with legs aching and not knowing whether I was more tired, hungry or smelly! I was actually very all-of-them so fixed them in reverse order - bath, food and bed!
Part 4: Postscript.
Writing this a couple of days later I'm really glad that I did the run, at least the outbound leg which was one of the most amazing I've ever done. My shadows on the cloud over Shapwick Hill, the sense of complete isolation on the path from Charton Farm, the impossibly low visibility through Dowlands (lower than I have ever encountered in the hills) and the near-pitch blackness of Stepps Lane will all stick in my mind.
Coming back was a bit of a let-down. While I nearly bit off more than I could chew (and certainly more than was palatable!) I definitely enjoyed it until not being able to stride out coming off Trinity Hill and it was very character-building so good practice for my next foray into insanity … watch this space!
Some people might suggest that running in the dark is not to be encouraged but I would disagree. It gives a different angle on running and I currently enjoy the lanes around Raymonds Hill at night more than many of my usual off-roaders during the day. Even Abby (10) has enjoyed a torchless jog around Trinity Hill woods with me.
I don't normally take a headtorch unless I expect to encounter either a lot of traffic or low visibility, or I will need to read a map. I use a Petzel Tikka triple LED - while it doesn't reach as far as those with conventional incandescent bulbs the battery life is far greater (supposedly over a hundred hours although I doubt it's much use after more than fifty or so) and it's very light so doesn't bounce.
I always wear a high-visibility reflective vest when doing any significant amount of road running and I find the Saucony zip-up ones work well over a thermal top, also providing some protection from the cold air.
For long runs such as the one related above I normally take a windproof top in case I conk out since windchill after dark can be biting although I stupidly didn't on this occasion.
I try to avoid really rough areas and paths with lots of low branches but certainly don't baulk at good, muddy tracks!
And I enjoy it!
Footnote: After surviving these couple of runs unscathed, a week later I really came a cropper.