After the past two day’s runs of 20km and 26km, my legs were starting to get a bit tired. I set out with a friend to go for a really relaxed run with minimum vertical. My achilles were starting to take some strain, so keeping the vertical down was a priority - and not that easy in Cape Town.
We decided to do a 15km or so run, starting at Deer Park and heading around past Devil’s Peak through to Newland’s Forest. It was another absolutely perfect day, and we started later at around 8:00. Keeping the pace and heart rates as low I could we ambled along, just enjoying the scenery and taking it all in. Cape Town is a runner’s paradise, even if you are predominantly a road runner you can find some nice easy trails to enjoy.
We head around Devil’s Peak and through the winding tracks. The clouds were laying low as they had been the past few mornings, completely covering the city and surrounds. We starting heading further down as the route took us closer to Newland’s Forest. Tumi, a good friend and my running partner for the day, had never been to the forest, so we decided that some exploring must be done.
We head straight through the forest, and then up and through following some of the smaller tracks that lead along the back side of the river. Ducking and hopping along the path, we were in our element. With the seasons changing the leaves carpeted the trail path, making for some truly magical scenery. We came out at the other end of the forest and decided to start making our way back. The cloud was lifting, leaving only traces behind as the sun streamed through. We looked down a path to see a photographer admiring the beauty of the trees and the sight was breathtaking.
We slowly made our way back around. 15km is still pretty long and we managed to get a decent run in. A flat run in Cape Town, as it turns out, still includes around 500m elevation gain. Most of this was walked or slowly run so the achilles and calves had a chance to heal a bit. We finished the run feeling refreshed and ready for the day ahead. There are few better ways to start a Sunday.
