This week I ran Lewis peak with Fast, Frolicking, Fartlekin, First-Time Phil. He's never done a trail run with any kind of significant vertical, but he's a pretty tough guy, and just ran his first half marathon 4 days prior, so I figured he'd do well. He didn't dissapoint. Dude kept up the entire time and even pushed me to run faster a few times.
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To get there from the North Ogden Divide , you pass over (or slightly around) Eyrie Peak. Eyrie Peak is actually a little taller than Lewis, but Lewis just has a more prominent view of the Ogden Valley. So this means that after the initial 2.5 miles to Eyrie, the trail turns into a quarter mile running down, then quarter mile running up, then quarter mile running down... for the next 3 miles. The total is about a net gain of 2,000' vertical, but almost 3,000' gross vertical
We started right at dawn (5:40ish) so we wouldn't need headlamps. On that note... This is the best time of the year to run. Early sunrise. Cool morning air. Everything is still green. Wildflowers are everywhere. We had to powerhike up most of the initial 2.5 miles, but after Eyric peak, it was nearly unbroken running to the summit and down. We made pretty good time too. For the last mile coming down, I let off the brake and just let my legs roll. I'm usually not too fast running down hill. I've been working on that while I've been doing my weekly run of Adams Canyon, and it has helped a lot with my downhill speed. I ran that last mile sub 7 minutes and felt great.
The final words of the run came out of Phil's mouth as he got back to the trailhead. "That was the hardest 10 miles I've ever run." But one day later he says he's ready to go do it again... and faster.
On a final note: The trail conditions were perfect. We passed a few patches of snow, but none of it was on the trail. Nice and dry the whole way.
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| Lewis Peak map and statistics from North Ogden Divide Trailhead |
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| Phil running the last quarter mile. |
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| Phil playing Summit Rock Band |
Did you find our last monkey left there?
ReplyDeleteIs that a handheld water bottle I see?
DeleteIndeed it was. It was your standard 17 oz plastic bottle. It wasnt entirely pleasant, but for a ten miler, more pleasant than a camelbak.
ReplyDeleteIndeed it was. It was your standard 17 oz plastic bottle. It wasnt entirely pleasant, but for a ten miler, more pleasant than a camelbak.
ReplyDelete