The wildfires along the west coast have pumped enough smoke into the Lower Mainland to make our air quality some of the worst in the world. Adding to this, the massive old pier in downtown New Westminster caught fire two days ago and has been belching smoke laced with creosote since. They expect to have it put out today or maybe tomorrow (the fire continues to burn underneath the pier).
Despite having the sun blotted from the sky for days, we got a smidgen of rain yesterday and today a smidgen of blue sky and actual high cloud appeared, not just more smoke.
I decided I’d try a walk, but figured I would just walk and not run, because sucking that noxious air into my lungs is probably not a good idea.
The parking lot outside the condo complex smelled so bad I almost turned around right there, but I figured the air would be better down at the river.
And it was! It was quite warm for the time of month and the air felt thick, but the actual smoke level was a fair bit lower. I did run a bit on the way back, but more like doing intervals, always switching back to a walk before I started breathing too hard.
In the end I was glad to get out. I will be even more glad when the fires are out and the air becomes genuinely breathable again. (One of the most disconcerting parts of the current smoke is this is the third of four summers where this has happened–and the smoke has come from both the north and the south. This does not bode well for the future.)
The stats:
Walk 10 Average pace: 8:45/km Location: Brunette River trail Distance: 7.67 km Time: 1:07:10 Weather: Smoke haze Temp: 26ºC Humidity: 46% Wind: light BPM: 114 Weight: 171.2 pounds Total distance to date: 76.55 km Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 8
