My backyard...

Two years ago, I visited my grandparents in Southern Ontario. They live by a river and are surrounded by lush greenery and beautiful flowers. When I came home, it was with dissatisfaction with my current home in the northeast suburbs of Calgary. The only place to walk was sidewalks in front of houses. The parks frequently had garbage and occasionally broken glass, and while we lived near the edge of the city, that end of the city only gave us flat farmer's fields to see. We had to drive for an hour through the city before hitting the highways that would eventually lead to the mountains.

Shortly after, I started sending half joking real estate listings to my husband. These were 10-20 million dollar listings by the ocean, so a little out of our price range. He responded with single digit million dollar in the mountains. Gradually we got more and more realistic, until our "jokes" were realistic family houses in the town of Cochrane.

Within 3 months of my return, we had sold our old house, bought a new one and moved to a town with mountain views, phenomenal pathways, and a community feel. It is this town that has nurtured my triathlon ambitions. From my sunrise runs to my country rides.

This time, when we visited my grandparents' home in Southern Ontario, I still appreciated the beauty, but it was without the longing. After 3 weeks of traveling, I was starting to feel a little homesick for my hills and mountains. Yesterday, I went for a ride and got a couple of pictures of my "backyard". I don't have to drive anywhere to get to this place. I simply hop on my bike, ride for about 3 minutes to get out of town, and hit the countryside.

I'd hoped to showcase the mountains in this picture, but you can only just see them below the clouds, and only if you know what you're looking at. Next time I'll get a better shot.