There was a nice mixture of snow & dry dirt to run on as shown by my pics below. While the few lookouts over the plains were nice, I really found the most enjoyment running in the trees. Once you get the initial climb over with, there's some splendid singletrack that is nothing but rolling fun. With about 3 miles to go, I passed a guy (Todd Butler) for the second time. We stopped and talked as he asked if I was running out in Moab next month. It appears we both are, so it was nice to talk running ultras for a bit. After about 10 minutes, I started getting the chills with the wind picking up, so we parted ways and I cruised back down to the parking lot.
The wet.
The dry.
The deer.
There are some fine spots up high in that open space parcel. Great place to run. It's been a while since I"ve been there too. Just never think to go that far south...even though it's not that far! Let me know if you decide to hit Mt. Falcon one morning. It's an easy stop on my way to work.
ReplyDeleteLast time I ran there, it was with my brother-in-law who's a biker from Fruita. He was following a ways behind me uphill (on the rocky middle section) and said a mother bear and cub crossed the trail right after me! I'm glad I didn't meet up with her!
ReplyDeleteDitto for me too! I live about equal distance from both.
ReplyDeleteRight now I'm thinking of picking Tues or Weds and just being there every week at 5:30am. Probably won't start until March, but I'll certainly put the call out when I do.
ReplyDeleteMtnRnr - Yeah, I'm not sure I needed to know that! I had a similar experience at Roxborough Park in 2009. I was coming down from Carpenter Peak and someone stopped me to say I was heading right towards an area where a bear was spotted about 30 minutes prior. Never saw it though. I'm guessing this kind of thing happens much more than we know.