I’ve posted before about my trail biking experience and how tough it was for me.

Well, this morning I got out of the house by 7 AM to hit the trails!! I apologized to my road bike and road off into the canyon.

Now, I have a dilemma. Long time readers may recall that I had thyroid cancer last year and no longer have a thyroid. This means I take thyroid meds, and I can’t eat for an hour after I take them, which is first thing after I wake up. So I hit the trails on an empty stomach and BONKED!! So I’ll have to figure that out.

Also, I got downright FILTHY. No idea why – it wasn’t muddy, but me and the bike were caked in mud. I had to keep wiping off my water bottle (see pic below) and ewww grit in teeth ewww.

Grubby water bottle, stupid finger in photo

As the trail was mostly a single track trail, I was battered by the overgrowing plants (most of which are California mustard plants, so I was turning a nice shade of yellow).
BUT! Even though I have hiked this trail also several times, I never noticed all the THISTLE plants. If you are unaware of what a thistle plant is, it’s a spiky stabby plant with a pretty purple flower. See image below. You do not want this plant brushing up against you while biking an overgrown bike trail.

I STAB YOUUU

I didn’t complete the entire canyon (having done about 7 miles in an HOUR, ugh) but the goal today was get out of bed and bike. And I did just that!!! So now I shall conclude with some lovely vista shots and a gratuitous kitty picture. Just because I can. ^_^ /

I stared at the hill and turned back.

Santa Monica Mountains and seas of mustard plants

I AM GETTING SNUGGLES FROM A KITTY YAY