Location: Willow Springs, in the Forest Preserve District of Cook County (map)
Date: May 30, 2009. 7:45AM
Time: 2:16:19
Distance: 16 miles, give or take
Number of other people seen: 15 (2 runners, 8 hikers, 5 dog-walkers)
Number of deer: 4
Height of mud splatters: Up to the knee
Number of times “I’m completely f*&$^& lost” went through brain: 2
Number of scenic pictures taken of the incredibly beautiful scenery, with its forests, its wide open grassy spaces, ponds, deer, and birds: None, because I was RUNNING.