I love running the trails that crisscross Bidwell Park
this time of year. My favorite spot is right off of Upper Park Road adjacent to the Sycamore
Channel. Golden poppies and blue and yellow wildflowers peeking out from the
tall lush grass add a special joie de vivre to the park.
Sunday, heading down …

My wife and I
were able to make it to AT&T
Park Friday for the SF
Giants home opener against the Pittsburgh Pirates. What with work schedules and
ticket cost, this was the first time we’ve ever been able to go to an Opening Day.
We left Chico
under cloudy skies and in the middle …

There
is something transformational about running in the rain. Colors seem more
vivid, sounds more loud, and smells more potent.
Running
past the Wildwood Park roundabout late Wednesday afternoon on my way to one-mile,
wildflowers seemed to explode with burst of blue and the roar of Big Chico
Creek filled the air as it rushed downstream, …

Watching Bidwell Park
as it slowly awakens from its winter slumber begs the question, is it possible
to fall in love with a place? Running
through upper park early this morning, I was struck by the simple beauty
surrounding me. From the subtle green of the springtime grass dotted with blue
and yellow wildflowers to …

Friday was one of those
“only-in-Bidwell Park” kind of days. 
Putting in a late afternoon bike-ride stretching from Horseshoe Lake
down past Annie’s Glen and back,  I encountered five peacocks promenading across Centennial Avenue, a group of baby quails
being watched over by a pair of chickens – a red-combed rooster and a brown
feathered …

Every Thursday afternoon I run a seven-mile
loop from Bruce Road up to the top of Humboldt Road to where it connects with
Highway 32 and then back down. This is one of my favorite “courses”
to run because I’m able to watch the seasons of nature unfold across the valley
floor over the …

  The weather
in Chico this past week has been a blessing to runners. Crisp mornings and cool
evenings have made for some enjoyable runs. On Sunday while running in Upper
Park I had one of those unexpected epiphanies – on my birthday next week, I will
have lived about two-thirds of my expected …

  The Casey Anthony jury verdict of not-guilty has been weighing on my mind the past week or so. Even taking to the trails of Bidwell Park and watching white-spotted fawns and thumb-sized quail scatter in the underbrush as I pass by has failed to dissipate the feeling of disbelief.  …

  There is nothing like a “Junuary” storm to clear the air and wash away the dust and grime of summer. Running through lower Bidwell Park Wednesday afternoon I couldn’t help but think how beautiful the park looked after Tuesday’s storm.  
  The canopy of trees stretching overhead seemed to sparkle with an emerald-like …

  With afternoon temperatures reaching 100-plus degrees today, I decided to avoid the “special bonus” of all that trapped heat radiating off the paved trails of Bidwell Park on my afternoon run and instead headed for the shade and dirt trails of upper park. Big mistake!
  In the three …