With the change in seasons upon us, and as my summer work begins to come to a close, I find it appropriate to do a little more self-reflection (than usual). So, although I’ve mostly just continued to focus on work and trail running, I’ve also been sorting through some personal stuff.

I know of two friends who’ve recently shared the fact that they’ve been diagnosed with tumors. One is a thirty-something woman who had a brain tumor. Fortunately, it was successfully removed. The other is a seventy-something man with a cancerous tumor in his neck. At this point, he’s unsure of his treatment options due to the tumor’s sensitive location and the possibility that it’s been metastasizing for the past couple of years.

Admittedly, those two scenarios aren’t the impetus for my personal reflection. However, they illustrate the fact that we just can’t know what’s in store for us. There are simply no guarantees in life, so I see very little benefit in leaving words unspoken and actions undone.

So don’t hold back. Be passionate about who and what you love regardless of expectations and consequences.

In the meantime, I did actually finish writing the second part of my pacing article! So follow the link below to read about the experience. Dave appreciated the write-up, and said that it was interesting re-living it again! Haha 🙂

I’ll be guiding the Mount Judah/Roller Pass hike again this year for the Donner Summit Historical Society’s annual fundraising weekend. That takes place on September 19th, and it should be another fun experience sharing my love of local history and being in nature.

Then, sometime in the middle of October, I’m planning to “run my age.” Since I’m turning 52 years old (tomorrow!), it should be an adventure! My buddy Dave is totally onboard for joining me. I don’t have a specific date or route planned yet. However, it’ll most likely be along the Tahoe Rim Trail and through the night. We would start in the afternoon/evening and finish the following morning. I initially considered running it closer to my actual birthday, but I decided it would be best to wait until I’m finished with work for the season.

Here’s my most recent Tahoe Trail Guide article. This is the second part of my essay

My First Experience as an Endurance Run Pacer (Part 2): The Last 29 Miles of the 2026 TRTER 100

By the time I reached the Diamond Peak Ski Resort aid station, it was about 10pm. Had things been going as Dave originally planned, I would’ve only had to wait an hour or two for him…

Again, I haven’t been doing much birding or other wildlife photography with all of the trail running that I’ve been doing. However, I’m still carrying my camera to and from work a couple of times each week. I am excited about fall migration, so I plan to get out more once work comes to an end.

All of that said, it appears that there’s going to be another rally of Lewis’s Woodpeckers at the resort. Last fall was the first I had seen of that type of migratory event occurring at the summer resort involving the Lewis’s Woodpeckers. Follow this link if you want to read my iNaturalist journal entry from last year about the event. Those woodpeckers are consistent but somewhat uncommon around Lake Tahoe. They mostly stick to the southwest corner of the basin, specifically around Gardner Mountain and Tahoe Mountain (i.e. my neighborhood). I’ve also seen them in the broader Angora Burn area. But it’s usually a couple of individuals at most. Last fall, however, there were dozens of them gathering at the resort for a couple of weeks. And it appears that they’ve begun to rally again around the resort as of this week. Very exciting, and I’m sure I’ll get lots more photos of them.

In the meantime, here are just a few pics from last month. Again, I’m just not getting out to bird like I used to so I don’t have much to share at this point.