Last week I was on vacation with my family on the Northern California coast and experienced the Greatest Trail Run of my life. Camping in Humbolt Redwoods State Park, our campsite was just 1 mile from the Rockefeller Grove that includes 2 of the largest living trees in the world: Tall Tree and Giant Tree. It is hard for me to even describe what a 650 foot tree that is 45 feet around looks like…they’ve been there for nearly 2,000 years! Not only was it amazing to run in the midst of these giant trees, but the trails were immaculately maintained and provided a lot of variety of terrain and elevation.

I haven’t run much on the trails in the last year as I was on the second half of training for my first marathon last summer and fall, but it felt great to be out in the woods again and reminded me of why I started to enjoy running in the first place on the trails. I’m grateful to those who take their time to maintain trails, those who provide the resources to preserve forests and other natural wonders such as the Redwoods, and thankful for a wife and family who enjoy being outdoors as much as I do so that we can share it as a family.