The Wilds of Middleton, Wisconsin: Pheasant Branch Conservancy

As so many business travelers know, exercise is critical to maintaining your sanity on the road. Most of the time, for me anyway, that means a quick treadmill run as I listen to a podcast or Pandora.

But every now and then, I get lucky. And I got lucky today.

I pulled into the hotel parking lot too late last night to notice much about the surrounding area, but from a brief glance in the dark, the area exemplified the "Contemporary Suburban Office Park Hell" school of architecture. Thank goodness I checked my location on Google Maps before heading to the dreary basement hotel gym!

It turned out that my hotel was just a couple blocks from a beautiful, forested trail that wound its way into the Pheasant Branch Conservancy, a 160-acre tract of protected land, whose waters flow into Lake Mendota. So I got an early start and had an awesome run!

Gorgeous trees along this forested trail.

"No motor vehicles." One of my favorite phrases.

Heavy rain last night seems to have really swelled the creek!

This Colorado girl is perpetually stunned by dense, wet forests like this one.

I didn't have a lot of time this morning, but as you can tell, the trail network is much bigger than I was able to experience today! Further info at the page for Middleton's Conservancy Lands and Trails.

Happy travels to all. Signing off from Middleton, Wisconsin... see you on the trail!