Decided to follow Alex/Buck’s route as it seemed to be the shortest and most efficient, so I started the run at around 5:30 am on Sunday, October 26th at the Kendrick Mtn trailhead. I got to see the most beautiful sunrise from the lookout of Kendrick as well as lots of deer on the way up. Lots of forest service road and some (rough) trail running to get to Aspen Corner before heading up Humphreys. Regretfully, I had never submitted Humphreys until this route and was underprepared for the wind chill (that sucked big time). Was quite chilled the entire time getting to Schultz tank but luckily the afternoon sun and getting to see my husband and dog at the Schultz tank “aid” station boosted my motivation. Heading up towards Elden, I took my first wrong turn and had to back track which was understandably quite frustrating. Made it to the top of Elden feeling happy (despite more heinous wind) and was excited to see O’Leary in the distance. Made my way down the heart trail and took my second wrong turn. By the time I reached Elden Springs, it was already dark so instead of taking the Deer Hill trail, I opted to run on the highway to O’Leary. About 10 grueling, boring highway miles later (although I was wrapped in Christmas lights which helped the experience feel more *festive*) I reached O’Leary campground and slogged my way up the last five miles (this section seemed to last forever) and reached the end of the Fearsome 4 at around 11:25 PM. This was probably the best experience of my life getting to see so much of the Flagstaff area in a single day. I am super inspired by and thankful for Marcy, Deron, Alex, Buck and especially Helen for helping pioneer this route/concept and indirectly letting me learn from their experiences and routes. My husband made this entire effort possible for me and helped me keep my head right when it started to get hard after the highway running ( and an obligatory thank you to my dog for being cute and enthusiastic no matter what’s going on). I am excited to hear about the future runners that decide to partake in this amazing experience. Woohoo!
Comments
That's awesome, Ana! You were moving well, especially with the bonus distance. Any chance we can get a link to your track? The Strava link doesn't go anywhere for me. Thank you!
Thanks, Marcy! Does this work? https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/20808902950
That works, and it was fun to revisit this route virtually, thank you!