Well, it’s officially ONE MONTH until the marathon!  Although I have been operating my training without much of a plan, I have a sort of plan for the last couple of weeks:  a 23 miler March 16 (this post), a 17 miler March 22, a 20 miler March 29, and then the blessed TAPER to the marathon!  (A quick congratulations to my running buddy Mark, who just ran a 3:09 at the Virginia Beach Marathon!  awesome.)

So, last Saturday I did a phenomenal 23 mile run which traversed the Emerald Necklace, designed by Frederick Law Olmstead, and then to finish the loop, the second half was on the beautiful South Boston shoreline, the North End and Charlestown.  A veritable tour of Boston.

Click on the image for a live map.

My goal for this run was simply to run it.  To get in the miles, with no preconceptions about time or pace.  No pressure.

I left Cambridge and started on the familiar run across the Charles south towards the Fenway.

(left) Fenway Landmark Center and the dumb Snickers billboards. Have I just proven it's effective? (right) On the Mass Ave. bridge looking towards MIT. At 163 Smoots - it says "Halfway to Hell" in case you can't make it out. love it.

It was warmer this day than on any other run, so I had the luxury of wearing a baseball hat!  A mile or so into it, I decided that I’d have a little game with the baseball hat.  For the first quarter of the run, it would be worn normally to the front, to get down to business.  Then, during the second quarter of the run, I’d move it to the right.  The third quarter to the left, and for the final quarter, the rally cap backwards.  I may do this for the marathon.

At Jamaica Pond - hat to my right. 2nd quarter.

After Fenway and Jamaica Pond, I ran past the crazy house just south of Jamaica Pond that has 100,000 Christmas lights on in the winter.

The crazy Christmas light house. They put a crown on top of it this year. It's for sale. Boo.

Then, I went in the gorgeous Arnold Arboretum.

The Arnold Arboretum. Not quite in bloom yet, but there's nothing like it in the spring.

And then, one of the most unheralded beautiful parks in the Boston area – Franklin Park.  It has a gorgeous golf course and a great community, used to be part of my daily morning run ritual when I lived in South Boston.  I stopped here to take my first Gu, at about mile 8.

(left) The tennis court in Franklin Park - immaculately kept, the only time I've ever seen it empty. (middle) The golf course. (right) hat still to right - 2nd quarter.

Then the Emerald Necklace ends.  But you can hook up with beautiful shorelines paths in South Boston.  I cut across Roxbury on Columbia Road.

A soccer game on Columbia Road and Upham's Corner.

And then to the ocean!  South Boston, land of Whitey Bulger, Good Will Hunting and about 40 cousins of mine.  And incredibly beautiful.

Clockwise, from upper left: The famous Sully's on Castle Island, the day before St. Patty's day; Recognize the 'eggs' in the distance from Deer Island? View from Castle Island; The blue house is where my mom grew up in the 1930's and 40's; hat to the left - 3rd quarter.

I then cut up to and around the North End and to Charlestown Navy Yard, which was about mile 20.5 in the run.  This is, I think, my favorite view of boston.  It’s where I often come on runs from my house, and I wanted to take you here for a video.

Click for the 1:30 video. Note the backwards rally cap. 4th quarter. sweet.

What was so cool about this run is that I realized of the 23.5 miles, there was only about 200 yards that I had never run before.  Otherwise, the land was intimately familiar to me, most of it a part of my regular runs at some point or another.  Hmmm, that’s a lot of hundreds or thousands of miles.  Hard to imagine.

I finished the run at the Starbucks in Kendall Square, a very happy and not even too tired camper.  Although not particularly hilly, this distance is great prep for the marathon.  I’m getting excited for it!