I went on a 4 mile trail run today, my first time running in the woods. I loved it, but I was very cautious about where I was planting my feet, so my time was much slower than my usual slow! I went to Estabrook Woods, which is a privately owned set of trails, about 3 miles from my house. Much of it is owned by Harvard and there's all kinds of ecological zones in there, birds, and just plain beautiful scenery. The main trail is the only trail I really feel comfortable mountain biking on, so that's where I ran. It's an out and back trail, with trail heads at both ends.
The way out is a minimal 1-2% grade most of the way. Mostly it's flat, but there are rock gardens and a stream crossing. And there is a new log down across the first mile of the trail. I did walk in a few spots where I thought I might lose my footing, but next time I will be able to pick up the pace. I did stop and rest for a minute at the turn around point.
As I got back, I was at 3.8 miles, so I decided to run past my car, along the grassy edge of the street. There was an older couple (70s-80s?) coming up a little hill on their bikes. They were riding old Raleighs and he was wearing a button down shirt and Dockers! He had to get off and walk. When I turned around, they were near my car and they asked me if I was going to run to Boston, since I was running faster than they were riding . I laughed my head off, since these are probably the only people who would say this to me.
I will definitely be doing this again. No blisters in my trail runners, which I have had for many years, but usually use them for local hiking.