It has been a busy couple of weeks for me with the Outward Bound course and flying home. But at least I have been meeting my training needs quite well. Even in New Hampshire!
08/02/2011: Course End Run from Fulford Cave, up 418 to the Nolan Creek Trailhead and through the town of Fulford, then back down to Yeomen Park. Told the students it was 10 miles but probably less (maybe 9.5) because of how fast I ran it. The uphill was great and the nearest student came in about 10 to 15 minutes after me. 1:40 or so, 9.5 miles, 800' vert.
08/05/2011: Set out on a trip I have been looking forward to this summer: The Four Pass Loop including Buckskin, Trail Rider, Frigid Air, and West Maroon Passes. This ultra-classic trail run of the Colorado Rockies is more of a mini-Hardrock than a full long run. The physical challenge along with the views, trail quality, flora and fauna and altitude put it toward the top of my all-time favorite runs (along with the company I had!). This (as with the Grand Canyon Double Crossing) is a run I will return to many times in the future in an effort to gauge my fitness and enjoy the mountains.
The Run:
Amir, Brenden, and myself hit the trail at 6:55, heading up past other folk traveling the Maroon Lake Trail until our split off from the main thoroughfare and headed up Minehaha Basin toward our first pass, Buckskin, by way of the Maroon Snowmass Trail.
Amir ascending the last switchback to Buckskin Pass
The climb up Minehaha went well as we were still quite fresh. Brenden and Amir both had one bottle each and refilled several times. We reached the summit at 8:26 completing 2,840' of climb in 1:31 - a great pace. Temps were starting to to get into the t-shirt comfortable range as we climbed the last few switchbacks to the summit.
Brenden traversing snow and talus above Snowmass Lake
The descent was wonderful. We conversed as we descended down the switchbacks toward the treed low areas near Snowmass Lake. The steepness backed off as we hit the low point between Buckskin and Trail Rider Passes. The number of people increased as we moved through the Snowmass Lake vicinity, but we left them behind and started the ascent of our second pass, Trail Rider.
Looking South from Trail Rider Pass
Looking North to Snowmass Lake
Myself, Amir, Brenden on Trail Rider Pass
At 10:25 we arrived at the summit of Trail Rider Pass. Two passes of four down, ~4,500' of ~7,500' down, and 10-11 miles of 25.4-28 miles down. A ways to go. We descended down toward the low point along the North Fork of the Crystal River, an area familiar to Outward Bound Instructors. Aches and pains were beginning to make themselves known.
The wildflowers were just flowering!
The Cascade on the North Fork of the Crystal River
Looking Southwest toward Lead King Basin
At the low point we turned our heading toward Fravert Basin, past the cascade, and up to Frigid Air Pass. We were able to run for quite a while on the low angle trail, walking only for the short steep section of switchbacks next to the cascade. Fravert Basin was an amazingly wide and low angle alpine basin, giving a great feeling of space. The only steep areas are where the basin walls ascending to the ridges and peaks that create its defining boundaries. The ascent up the several switchback to Frigid Air revealed to us that we were slowing down.
We three on Frigid Air Pass with South Maroon Peak in the background
Looking South from Frigid Air Pass
But it was the descent from the South side of Frigid Air that wrecked Amir's extremities: left foot's arch and right knee. Our pace slowed to the "Ultra-shuffle." At this point the route that remained contained several hundred feet of downhill, 1,000' of climb and a 6.7 miles of downhill with 2,900' of elevation loss to finish off the run.
We three on West Maroon Pass, the fourth pass
Amir and Brenden descending West Maroon Pass
We ended up covering this in several hours of shuffling along. I felt we did a great job of keeping the mood light. The weather held out and Amir was able to do a little running on the long slow descent from West Maroon Pass. The trail quality remained fairly alright on the spectrum of loose talus to creamy singletrack with loose rock dotting the good singletrack base.
Hopefully, there is no permanent (or semi-permanent) injury to any of Amir's "undercarriage." 10:20, 26.65 miles, 7,415' vert.
Other Details:
Departure from Leadville at 4:00 am after deciding on staying where we knew we wouldn't be bothered instead of attempting to find someplace cheap (i.e. free) and local. Dinner was consumed locally in Aspen. We ate at the Red Onion after failing to find the Flying Dog. Dinner was about $40 for three great tasting fajitas and some spicy sweet potato fries and a Stella Artois. This is not usually what I would pay for a dinner like this but "when in Aspen..."
Weekly Summary: 36.1 miles, 8,215' vert.
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