Sunrise Run

 

14 September 2025

I made it!

Finally got to do this: woke up at around 5am and got out of the house around 6am. It was a Sunday and the usual Bukit Timah Hill climb with the Hub was off.  I decided to TRY to catch the infamous misty dawny rays at the Ulu Sembawang Park Connector, hyped much about some time back.

I estimated that I would need about half an hour to reach the sunrise view point. My aim was to reach the spot at around 6.30am or so.

Forwent my usual longer morning routine and because I am someone who can't run empty-stomach, I made 3/4 mug of Coffee-Lo (Instant coffee with Milo), with a slice of plain wholemeal bread and 2 mini Marie biscuits. Grabbed a sweet and a snack as well and off I went. As I was afraid of not making it in time, I did a much scaled-down warm up and stretching in less than 5 minutes.

And boy I ran - at tempo pace - I seldom, or in fact, never started a run with such speed. But it was a good training nevertheless.

I did not expect that waiting for the traffic lights to change colours could be so long in the early morning. Our city was already well-lit with moderate activity ongoing along the roads - walkers, work-goers, and many buses were already full-engined. It was no quiet run.

I read that the Park Connector is not lit 24 hours and hence it would be dark. No problem! The MRT Depot next to the entrance was well-lit up with rows of lamp-posts providing ample lighting. The morning sky was already brightening - I thought to myself if I would really catch the 1st rays through the forest? The time now was 6.24am.

Switching out of such gloomy thoughts, I congratulated myself for having climbed out of bed on a Sunday morning at 5am, and made it in an hour to leave the house. Sunrise or nor it didn't matter anymore - I had gained a new experience and a personal milestone!

Unexpectedly,  I was the sole intruder into the park connector. 

And before long, it was well, darkness. The Depot left behind, this stretch of the road was dark. No lights. I heard only sounds - of wildlife. 

Feeling rather nervous, I turned on the torch function of my cell-phone - but it was still very dim. I could barely see the front. It didn't help that I did not carry my glassess along with me on long runs...

Finally as I emerged from the thicket of trees and vegetation into the open field on my left, morning rays had seeped through the greenery in the distance. It was around 6.40am when I reached the sunrise spot.

There were no dramatic hues of the morning rays promised in the pictures, online. I was disappointed.

I climbed up the slope to have a better view, and yes it was misty, but not that mysterious...

I felt some slight drizzles and I thought this must be the reason for the dismal sight.

What I saw vs.... what was seen in the picture online below:

https://mothership.sg/2021/06/cyclist-sunrise-ulu-sembawang/

I tried to capture the "best" views on my phone camera. I lingered for a while and was careful to climb down from the pretty steep though low slope - it was still rather dark after all. I took another few more pictures to remember this moment and day. 😝 

Mist could be seen

Still dark...

This one turned out not too bad after I applied filter 😝

More filtered photos...

Then I continued running down the connector, hearing the chipping of wood by the woodpecker, which I never manage to spot on this route. I see a second human on this stretch of the connector when a cyclist zoomed past me as we exchanged morning greetings. The sky seemed to be giving way to dark clouds looming and grey weather seemed eminent ahead. A few more early bikers appeared and I decided to explore the side of the Mandai Park Connector leading to the Zoo, which I never had ventured onto. At this time groups of road cyclists have started their weekend hobby as well.

This one has no filter... I continued running on the connector to Mandai.

Did I miss the hues after I left and ran on Mandai Park Connector next?

Mandai Lake. The Rainforest Resort in the distance.

Gateway to the Mandai Wildlife Parks

After slightly more than a kilometre and my curiosity satisfied, I turned around and ran back to where I came from. By now the sun is up. No rain. As I entered Ulu Sembawang Park Connector again, more cyclists appeared, so did runners and walkers. Upon reaching the Sunrise view point,  I took a closer look at the Bidens Pilosa flowers, admiring their beauties in the morning light and freshness. And I spotted something extra amongst them!

A Mantis Nymph on the Bidens pilosa flower

 A Katydid Nymph?  

Spot Me!

That's when my run became a hike and nature walk plus macro-photography time! I discovered more and more little critters in the macro world as I trained my phone lens on the grounds and shrubs.

An uncle cyclist greeted me and requested that I help him take a photo. He started to chit chat with me about exercise, food places etc that took about 10 minutes. He explained that the sunrise here appears only at around 7.30am! The misty condition is weather dependent. It was almost 7.30am and I really wanted to see the effect but he was so excitedly talking that I found it impolite to just turn around to look for the sunrise instead. Finally, I managed to cue him that I wanted to move off and we parted.

By the time I went hunting for any sign of the renowned sunrise rays, the sun was fully up and about and I only managed to see some small patches of orange hue shadowed by the trees. Nevertheless, the uncle gave me some tips that I told myself I would make another or more trips for this experience.

This was taken after 7.30am.

The moon still visible...

Since I had rested so long, I decided to walk and admire the nature instead. I could hear a woodpecker nearby and I finally caught glimpse of it "climbing" on a  single bamboo stalk that shot high into the air. It was too distant for me to discern what woodpecker it was.

Woodpecker

The more I looked, the more critters and unique nature I spotted. It made me very happy too, that many fellow walkers, runners, cyclists were high-vibed and chirpily greeting "Good Morning!" 😀

A Hover Fly

A Cricket

Woodlouse or Pillbug

A Cereal Leaf Beetle

Snail

Black-and-Yellow Millipede

Mushroom

Morning dews

By the time I resumed running it was already 2.5hours past since I started running from home.

I slowly regained pace to run back to my neighbourhood but happy that I had discovered so much more in our world of nature, and also about extending and renewal of the current version of myself!

Run Flexi!

10 September 2025

What was intended as a 20+ km of run at earlier hours covering 5 locations, became shortened and restricted to within my neighbourhood.

I woke up an hour later than planned and by the time I could get out the door, it was past 9am with the sun shining happily bright. My plan was dented and I had to quickly reshuffle training plans for the week.

It was of no choice but to cover shorter distance today and preferably more shaded. 

I quickly decided to split the my runs for the week into 2 shorter long runs over two separate days, instead of the usual routine of 1 long run day and another for speed and intensity. And a cheerful thought pepped me up - I could do a sunrise run on Sunday as the usual running schedule may be tweaked - and I could get another solo running day - I will do that!

So I covered 16km today by running in my neighbourhood, from home to the Sports School and returned to run in the Nature Park that I usually do Intervals. I tried to rein myself in and refrained from spotting nature and photo- taking but ... well I guess I spent shorter time looking and taking pictures than I usually would :P

The only real personal slow-down was to go investigate how the Mangrove came to be now as I haven't gone in to that part of the park for a very long while.

Dismally, some large trees had been cut, and polluted the swamp area was - littered with plastics and cans. I did not see much wildlife except some mangrove crabs and shells.

Spot the Crabs in the Mud!

Well, if not for the change of plans, I would have not gotten the opportunity to visit this area of the Park again, and to plan for the sunrise run on the coming weekend!

Sometimes sudden and unforeseen changes can be a boost in life, and we need to make effort to realize that. 😊

Wildlife On The Run

My runs often got interrupted whenever I needed to investigate some nature of interest.

In fact, it has become such a norm, unless I was bent on focusing on a harder workout for that particular day. This habit derails my plan to improve on speed, form and breath... especially on my longer run days. 

Very often I run at parks or connecting pathways. There are often patches of green and bodies of water here and there (even along roads). I would have my eyes peeled for birds, insects or other wildlife, if not some interesting looking, or beautiful plants. I have turned my runs into nature watches like what I would do on hikes!

And so, my pace and timing get compromised quite a bit! 😅 However I am not complaining. In fact I am thankful for the many "harvests" I have accumulated thus far... 🙏

Is this a bee?

A katydid nymph?

Smooth-Coated Otter family

Black Spitting Cobra

Striated Heron

Sometimes my runs slowed down to a walk --- and became an actual hiking activity instead! 

In fact sometimes I spent so much time searching for a sound of an animal and bird or that I would spend a great deal of time and tries just to get a better shot of the nature I spotted. Before I knew it, a good 20-30 minutes had passed and my heart rate had gotten to almost resting pace. To get back the momentum and rhythm to catch up on my distance and journey, I needed to restart and regear the body engine.

Not all such ventures (adventures or mis-adventures?) end with "a catch". Sometimes the long time spent may be in vain. Nature after all could be elusive. And I have also learnt that the more you pursued, the more they fled. And the mindset and attitude has to be fine-tuned  - to let nature take its own course. To acknowledge and embrace the fact that sometimes we cross paths to say hello, sometimes we are on our own ways - and that is ok. 

And we should apply this to our life pursuits as well, and I am still learning... 😊

Side -Tracked

 20 August 2025

So today I got "way-laid" again.

After I ran past the 10.5k distance, I slowed down to a jog to enjoy the nature at the quieter side of the Reservoir Park (as usual whenever I was on this route), and to possibly spot any wildlife if I were lucky.

Wildlife I spotted not, but a hidden trail off the steps of apavement I discovered. 

Why hadn't I seen this before?

I decided to explore more. 

The path's made up of loose stones and pebbles and just two short, small loops. However the paths looked untouched and desolated. So there must be much things to see when nature gets hidden from the main public view I guessed.

The flora was rather thick and has grown over the paths. With only shorts on, I carefully treaded on step by step - in case a snake was lurking nearby 😛

I saw some brief darting movements as I stepped gingerly onto the path as I didn't want to make a big disturbance to the living beings there. The first loop did not yield much to satisfy my curiousity, so I walked over to the next loop. It was here that I spent a good 20 minutes I believe, having found so many little critters around me!

The Path

Butterflies, insects, a skink, spiders, less commonly seen plants... I was thrilled. My phone camera, drenched from my running perspiration was summoned to work. But it had to fail at capturing a tiny insect beneath a leaf that I needed to spend a good amount of time "coaxing" it to do its job! 😅

Common Four-Ring Butterfly

Leaf Beetle

A zoomed in view

Sun Skink

Jumping Spider

Necklace Pod ( Sophora Tomentosa) Flowers

This was the insect that I took too long to photograph and held me up - A Crane Fly?

The Seed Pods of the Necklace Pod.

The sun was shining through the clouds again. And it reminded me of another 5-6 more kilometres I aimed to complete. It isn't good when you stop running for too long before resuming - the body needs to pick up the momentum again and it is not easy - at least not for me.

So I slowly geared up and jogged off to resume my journey.

A toast ☕ to myself for a Happy Nature Harvesting running day! 😊

Long Runs

How long should a long run be?

For some runners, it might be based on the distance or miles logged.

For others it might have been more about the duration.

Experts have concluded that the hours logged are more important than the distance covered. and usually the advice is to go slow to train for endurance and sustenance.

For me, long runs have become a treat. A date out with myself and a journey of excursions of sort with myself. I am free to run for how long I wish - both distance and time (and of course could endure) - though I generally have a plan on the route/area to cover. Moreover, long runs can become a discovery to new places I'd never been nor ventured to, on a typical day.

A long run of mine could range from an 8k to more than 18k distance covered. The duration could range from an hour plus to over three hours. The pace? Haha .... sometimes as slow as a walk, and stop, to observe and take the "perfect" photo of a wildlife. I am often detoured and slowed down by new places I wanna discover, and wild animals and plants to appreciate! Not to mention too, the traffic junctions I have to encounter and pause at so many times living, and running, in a City State.

A long run for me is also an opportunity to unwind and find back the magical moments of meditative sensation that I had felt years ago, but now seldom.

A long run is a precious solo time with myself, away from other people, normal routines and duties, though I am also mindful of time - as I am still bounded by commitments - family, chores, work later in the day. My internal grouse is that I never wake up early enough to enjoy more this time freely.

My long runs sometimes become even longer than I would forsee or plan for the follwing reasons:

1. Seek shelter and protection from bad weather.

It poured so heavily on this occasion that I gotta seek shelter under a flyover while shivering in the cold.

Plus: This traffic crossing can take very long to clear, and sometimes despite it's the green man on, the vehicles would still dash for their chances.

2. Observe and pursue wild animal enounters.

A little Striated Heron searching for food along a river canal.

It's not always so lucky to spot a family of otters enjoying their rollin-good-time in the sand! 😀

3. Try a new route that I have never taken before. And sometimes I just want to push myself a little further beyond what I have planned for. Another possibilty: I just needed to push further for a better end point to to seek food or transport back home! 😋

My long runs have different possibilites, and that is why I always look forward to doing them. I can go really slow and enjoy the journey all with and by myself. I find loads of discovery both internally and externally, and because they always add variety, learning and new ventures in my life! 

Toast to another Long Run! 🍹

Tired / Lazy Days

What do you do when you have planned for a run and just before it, feel tired and / or lazy? And especially when the days are extremely hot and humid, or that the skies have turned all dark and gloomy?

Just lace up and run!

The past year or so, I have decided to not let the above factors deter me from running as planned. If it really were an exhausting state, I would project an easier run, shorter route and the aim to just complete the workout. Never mind it is not going to be a long run nor tempo nor fartlek speed workout. As long as I could complete the session, I am happy and grateful. And usually, I would outdo the previous condition during the run. So if I'd just think to myself: "Ok it's a weary day, let's just do a 5-6k today", I'd usually get more than 5-6k mileage completed, and sometimes with sections of speedwork included. The aim is to condition the body to just go through the routine and move, and I believe this contributes a lot to the overall body fitness, consistency, as well as tuning the mind to accomplish tasks beyond the state of torpor.

And I am also grateful that in the country where I live, we have good infrastructure in the forms of sheltered walkways, park connectors, not to mention void decks of HDB* blocks of flats. So even in inclement weather - hot or cold; dry or wet - I have no excuses. I always joked to a friend whenever I run in the brutally hot and humid weather of late mornings that we've got to make good use of these facilities we taxpayers contributed to! So these public features are really useful. Though I must say that I would appreciate a lot more if there could be more public water fountains available.

Running under such covers also allows me to uncover and discover some new routes, places, nooks and crannies of green spaces, eateries and not to mention the different types of flat units in various HDB estates. This has made my runs more varied and interesting especially on unmotivated days. From these new discoveries, I would go on to plan and chart future runs and think about where I could give myself a treat after working hard, which then becomes another source of motivation.

So the next time the feeling of inertia kicks in, tell the mind to "Just Do it!" and you'll be glad you did. 😊

HDB* - Stands for Housing Development Board. It is the authority in charge of public housing in Singapore. HDB flats or apartments are the type of residential units that majority of Singaporeans live in. 

Bad Runs

Saw this the day before:

Source: The Running Week on Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/TheRunningWeek

Man, how powerful this quote is.

I remember there was a time many years back, having a similar sentiment as I huffed and puffed through a difficult bad run  - how bad could it be? - at the Stadium tracks.

"Not everyone is as fortunate as me to have these limbs to run."

"Not everyone has the ability like me here, to be able to even experience this suffering if they do not have such an intact healthy body."

And that was how I got myself through. 

It was nearing a trip to Japan with my family, and after that humbling running insight, I reminded myself how so, so lucky to have so many things in my life that I have not appreciated. To be able to suffer in a choice that I have made myself is in itself, a blessing. What's more I was soon to be enjoying an overseas trip! How many people could do the things I have planned to do?

Fast forward more than a decade later, I was met with this quote as a distant reminder.

Bad Runs, they still appear.

In between those years, I probably had forgotten to remind myself of such a blessing this suffering is.

In fact over these years, I have been lamenting the lack-ofs, unaccomplishments, not-yet-haves, why-me-nots, etc. 

Had I been more mindful of appreciating such little sufferings as blessings, my life would perhaps be totally different. It might be teemed with much more true abundance, more satisfaction, more wholesomeness and happiness, if not, a more grateful, loving and compassionate being in motion.

After all, bad runs are here to inform us what are the good ones!

Every run, good or nay is part of the collection that propels us forward in reaching our goal in steps.

And a bad run is a blessing.

It is never too little.

Never too late.

Gratitude.

NOW.