Dosewallips River Trail

Last weekend my buddy Jens and I ran 20 miles on the Dosewallips River Trail. Great run for sure, enjoyed the 60 minutes driving there and back just as much. Nice to catch up with Jens...needed some laugh time and Jens is ALWAYS good for that.

The Dosewallips River Trail is located in the Olympic National Park. It is one of many trails in a mountain system filled with trail running possibilities. The downside of the Dosewallips River Trail  is that the road is washed out 5.5 miles from the Dose Ranger Station. We parked about 6 miles from the ranger station and ran along the forest service road the first part of our run.

The run to the ranger station is beautiful with many reminders of the stark ruggedness of the Olympic National Forest. At one point we ran through the remnants of the Lake Constance fire that was started by a lightning strike last July. As we neared the ranger station we started to run through a bit of snow, this was a harbinger of things to come.

Once we hit the main trailhead, we stayed on the main fork toward Gray Wolf Pass. We ran as far as we could until the snow was so deep that we couldn't call it trail running anymore. At that point we turned around, ran back to the fork, and checked out the west fork trail.

All in all we were on our feet about 4.5 hours or so. This was our last long run before the 50 mile trail race we are running together a week from now. I am fortunate I am running with Jens, as he has many ultra type endurance events under his belt.

CHECK OUT THIS MAP: Olympic Mountain Trail Map This will give you a great overview of the trails in Olympic National Park. I plan on checking them off one by one!

How to get to Dosewallips River Trail: Take Highway 101 South to Brinnon, WA.  Take a right at milepost 306 and follow the road.

PICTURES POSTED ASAP...

Mix it Up

After a few months of only running on the trails at a pedestrian pace, I ran out my front door today and hit the road. I only had about 30 minutes this morning so I figured I could get a steady 4 miles in or so.

Our home is situated at about 500 ft. with a beautiful view of the Olympic Mountains. The run down to the main road is about a mile with the first half mile down a steep hill. Once I hit the main road this morning, I headed back up another mile long hill before I turned around for home.So basically, I ran a mile down, then a mile up, then a mile down, then a mile back up. I focussed on a healthy leg turnover rate and a steady pace. I have to admit, it felt good to mix it up today. It was a great reminder of the need to keep things varied in training.

One thing was apparent today on the road. The gait pattern of road running is certainly different than the trails. I usually run trails that have lots of twists and turns. I am used to subtly shifting my weight and changing directions. This engages different muscles in my core, legs, and feet. Road running engages the larger, primary muscles. While I believe a balanced approach to training is good, I am still a big believer that trail running will be healthier for my body and spirit in the long run.

Looking forward to a mountain run tomorrow with my friend Jens. We plan on hitting 20 miles or so in the Olympic Mountains. Back to the trails!

View of Olympic Mountains from our driveway:

White Tank Mountain Regional Park

I’m back! Our family spent a week driving 3300 miles through Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona, Nevada, and Idaho. A great time had by all and one of the highlights was trail running in sunny Arizona. I spent two mornings running at White Tank Mountain Regional Park.


White Tank Mountain Regional Park as described by the Maricopa County Parks Department: Nearly 30,000 acres makes this the largest regional park in Maricopa County. Most of the park is made up of the rugged and beautiful White Tank Mountains on the Valleys west side. The range, deeply serrated with ridges and canyons, rises sharply from its base to peak at over 4,000 feet. Infrequent heavy rains cause flash floodwaters to plunge through the canyons and pour onto the plain. These torrential flows, pouring down chutes and dropping off ledges, have scoured out a series of depressions, or tanks, in the white granite rock below, thus giving the mountains their name.

The first day at the park I ran on the Sonoran Loop Competitive Track. While my wife was out cycling, my sister-in-law Susan and I headed for the trails. The loop was mostly flat with a steep rise after about three miles. At that point there is a climb up and around a ridge and a drop into a small canyon. After climbing out of the canyon it is easy sailing back to the trail head. The run was approximately 7 miles with gorgeous spring desert views. It was a certainly a unique feeling running near cactus instead of towering pine, hemlock, fir and cedar trees. I think I could get used to running in the desert. However, I was thankful the temperatures were on the cool side for Arizona. It was fun catching up with Susan for sure. We were lost in conversation so the ride back to Sun City West took an extra 30 minutes due to the fact I missed the turn not once, but twice.

Day 2 Michelle and I ran down into Ford Canyon, which is also part of White Tank Mountain Regional Park. The run was approximately 9 miles. This trail has more elevation gain and loss than the Sonoran Loop. The path is really well developed and easier at the beginning, but becomes quite a scramble once you actually get into the canyon area. The canyon itself is filled with boulders, sand, and pools of water. At about three miles there is an old stone masonry dam, well worth the run just checking that out. The trail gets a bit murky as far as where to go at that point, but we just kept following the footprints and signs when we could. At one point we almost climbed down a treacherous segment thinking it was the trail. Thankfully I worked my way back up and found a more established path. We would probably still be working our way out of there had we not switched back! There are some spectacular views of the Phoenix Valley, the Superstition Mountains, and Four Peaks Mountain at several points on the trail.

If you are ever in the Phoenix area, I would highly recommend this park for some sweet desert trail running!


How to get to White Tank Mountains Regional Park: From central Phoenix, take I -10 west 18 miles to Hwy 303. North on Hwy 303 to Olive. West 4 miles on Olive to the White Tank Mountain Regional Park entrance.

Port Gamble Snot Rockets

After years of outdoor sports activities, I still haven't perfected the snot-rocket (called a "farmer's snort" in the mid-west). Inevitably, I end up with snot on my face. Ideally, a good rocket will send a snot projectile 3 feet or so. How do I know this? My wife Michelle, in all her grace and beauty, has perfected this essential trail-running task. Click here for excellent snot-rocket instructions.

Due to a lingering cold, the snot-rockets were flying on Saturday. I ran the Port Gamble Trails for 2.5 hours and around 15 miles. I am constantly finding single track that is not listed on the map. The single-track is one of the reasons I am so fond of running this area. There is always a surprise around the corner. Make sure you bring the map I referenced in the above link if you plan on running the trails for the first time. I still use a map after running the area for over a year!

I used Drymax Trail Running Socks for the first time Saturday. I must admit, I haven't given socks much thought before now. I do know that I usually get a few blisters if I run more than 8-9 miles on the trails at a time. Well, I was blister free after my run on Saturday! Not only that, I was really impressed with how comfortable the socks were...I hated to take them off after my run. I plan on wearing a pair of Drymax in a 50 mile trail race in April as well. That will be the true test.

I was planning on doing a long run this morning, but the knee pain that has been plaguing me for the last few weeks finally slowed me down. I plan on doing lots of icing over the next few days. I will try again on Wednesday.

Green Mountain, Via Wildcat Lake Trailhead

I decided to run the same trail on both Saturday and Sunday this weekend. I ran Green Mountain in Bremerton, WA. Click here for a map of the area.

If you take the Wildcat Trail from the parking area all the way to the summit and back, you will have run a solid 9.5 miles. The summit is approximately 1600 feet. The climb is gradual, but still a bit of a quad burner toward the top. This run is incredible on a clear day. Beautiful views of Seattle, Mt. Baker, and the majestic Olympic Mountain range. Plan on doing the run early though. Off road vehicles are allowed on the trail unfortunately.

I ran the route early on Saturday and Sunday and only ran into a couple of mountain bikers. At one point in the run this morning, I heard some crashing through the woods to the east. I stopped, listened and couldn't hear anything. Right when I began running again, a deer jumped out onto the trail. I am quite sure we both screamed. Other than that, the run was uneventful.

After about an hour today I tried something other than Cliff Shots. I tried Peanut M & M's. I must admit they really hit the spot. I will try these on my 20 mile trail run on Tuesday.

I am starting to get really nervous for the 50 mile trail race I am doing in April! I need to get a long run in of around 30 miles or so before then. I am hoping to find a trail race of about that length within the next few weeks....

I am not feeling so motivated to blog right now. Off to research trail races!

Mt. Walker - 2000 Vertical Ft in 2 miles

I awoke this morning with a slightly sore right knee from my run yesterday on the Duckabush River Trail. I threw caution to the wind and decided to run up Mt. Walker for the first time. Mt. Walker is 2800 feet at the summit and it is densely covered with beautiful 100 year old Douglas Firs. Click here for more information from the Washington Trails Association about Mt. Walker, directions, etc.

My goal this morning was to run the entire 2 miles up the mountain. I knew it would be a great fitness test and I haven't run up something this steep since Blanchard Mountain during our time in Burlington, WA.

I knew that I was in for a tough run when after the first 500 feet of climbing, I could hear my heart pounding in my head. You many not know what I am talking about, if not, try mountain running. I guarantee you will experience this sensation. I decided to push forward, knowing that in theory this would make me stronger. After the next 500 feet of climbing, my eyes were slits, and my breathing was labored. Only 1000 feet of climbing to go! I spent the last 1000 feet with my head down and my eyes half closed. I was thankful when I finally hit the top in around 43 minutes. I took in the view and ran another half mile to the South Viewpoint.

The view is phenomenal from the top. I experienced panoramic views of the Olympic Mountains, Puget Sound, the Hood Canal, and Seattle. On a clear day you can see the majestic Mt. Rainer from the South Viewpoint.

The way down is a QUAD BURNER! I had a blast flying the 2 miles back to the car in around 19 minutes or so. Now that I have a baseline, I will be back in a few weeks to test my fitness level again. I plan on running it in 38 minutes next time...we shall see!

View of Mt. Constance from the summit of Mt. Walker:

Duckabush River Trail

I woke up this morning at 5:00 ready to make the drive across the Hood Canal Bridge and South to the tiny town of Brinnon. Little did I know that what should have been a 70 minute drive to the Duckabush Rive Trail would turn into a 2.5 hour drive!I became a little turned around because the directions I brought with me were lacking in the information department. Check out the directions at the bottom of this post. These will help you find your way in record time.

I was happy that my wife Michelle decided to run with me on this gloriously sunny March day. She is always up for any kind of adventure I suggest. I enjoy the woods even better when I have someone like Michelle with me who really appreciates nature's wonders as I do. Not to mention when I was struggling running up the switchbacks, it was nice chasing a beautiful woman up the trail!

I highly recommend running the Duckabush River Trail. The first mile or so climbs gently past the Brothers Wilderness boundary. Then it makes it way down to the roaring Duckabush River. After a short stretch along the river, we made our way towards Big Hump. The high point of Big Hump is at about 1700 feet. This is the steepest part of the run. Beyond Big Hump we followed the meandering trail through pristine virgin forest. This section of the trail is gently rolling and it gradually makes its way down to 5-mile campground. 5-mile campground sits along the impressive rapids of the Duckabush. We snapped some photos and decided it was time to start our reverse run back to Big Hump and down to the trail head. (Special note for motivated mountain runners: You can continue past 5-mile campground for 17 more miles all the way to O'Neil Pass, elevation 4950 feet.)

The picture below is of Michelle and I at the top of Big Hump.



I am looking forward to another 10 miles or so tomorrow. It will be tough to top today for sure.

Getting there -- On U.S. Route 101, about 15 miles south of Quilcene or 37 miles north of Shelton, turn at milepost 310 onto Duckabush River Road (Road 2510), signed Duckabush Recreation Area. Continue 6 miles (the first 3.5 miles are paved). Pass Collins Campground at 5 miles, pass a horse unloading area and then turn right on Road 2510-060 (This is a small sign on your right) to the trailhead and facilities, elevation about 440 feet.

Random pictures from Duckabush River Trail...this is why I love trail running!