Weather:  High 20’s, snowing.

Present:  Dry Foot Fairy, Dr WHO, Oozing SD, SESYB, Beyond Hope, Fergie, Ben, Jake, Seamus.

Not Present (week 6): Just Ariana.

The Run:

The group gathered at Bondo’s garage hopefully. Until Beyond Hope showed up. Until the mystery hare showed up. Until they realized the mystery hare was Basket. Until they realized that the mystery hare had been assisted by Bondo. Until they realized that the hare had marked trail with red chalk valentines hearts. Until they realized that the light snow was going to cover all the hare’s marks. They should have just packed it in. But the hare promised virgin territory. [In Woonsocket, that’s about as likely as seeing a Pterodactyl and a Woolly Mammoth dining on Passenger Pigeons. In tuxedos. But I digress.]

Trail started towards Cold Spring Park. It entered the park. They turned south on the steep riverbanks through old snow with a light covering of the new stuff making it just slippery enough to be interesting. Coming out on River Street, they continued straight to a check by the railroad tracks. It took the hare to find marks at this point, so they simply waited after a few half-hearted attempts to find trail. He finally indicated trail crossing the river on Fairmount Street. Trail continued on streets, up hill to Third St, right and left to Chestnut St, where a dead end led into the woods finally.

The woods were sheltered enough that a few marks were actually found. This spread the group out a bit as they followed a generally uphill counterclockwise loop. It came back out however. On Chestnut Street. But not the same one. After some confusion, the trail was resumed, and soon came to the end of another cul-de-sac; the ubiquitous Chestnut Street again! Apparently, the Woonsocket town planners had a thing for Chestnuts. Or they were too lazy to connect the numerous branches of this street. At any rate, the trail was discernable in the woods, and Oozing and Hopeless led. A light was seen atop a rock in the distance. Bondo had short-cutted to the BC and was beckoning. The group gathered on what was reputedly the largest rock in Rhode Island. [It’s a pretty big rock. One could be proud of it, even in a bigger state. Like Delaware, or something. I wonder if they give tours during the daytime. They could sell popcorn and sodas at the base, on nice days. On Chestnut St. But I digress.]

The hare was pretty put out by the co-hare’s short-cutting ways, so one of the classic Basket-Bondo scenes took place, as they argued, spewed invective and generally whined so much that eventually Bondo left, dragging Fergie with him, to short-cut back home. The rest finally had some peace to enjoy their beer, and the view, which encompassed a large vista of the night lights of northern RI (not to mention the headlights of a police cruiser called to investigate the commotion at the foot of the trail.) But the Woonsocket Police Department has new policies in place about investigating strange groups in the woods on Monday nights, and by the time back-up arrived, the group was long gone.

Trail back was pretty much a reversal of the trail in. The woods were traversed eastward, and they came out onto the roads, turned downhill to cross back over the Fairmount Bridge. They made their way back to Meadow by following Bondo’s footprints, as they weaved back and forth across the roads. The circle was formed in the garage.  Ratings for the run: Two bimbo’s, no marks, fine weather, and unbelievably, VIRGIN territory in Woonsocket. These factors outweighed the extensive asphalt, the bickering at the BC, the lack of losses or arrests, to give a total of +6.9! Hashit: WHO could not care less. It’s a long time ago. Let’s just give it to Basket, as always. They moved upstairs for another Bondo meal and more Bondo brew. Another Monday evening, closer to death.

On On