Route: Bolinas or Bust (CA)

Running this on Saturday, Dec. 13 with a group of ~4-5 badass ladies!!!! Any route beta appreciated.

long, overdue comment. Total time 08:38:06 for what should have been the womens FKT! ran with my ladies: Shaheen Essabhoy, MJ Engel Wong and Sarah O'Brien.

Disclaimer: we made a mistake which added about 2 miles to the route, and brought us along a very unpleasant portion of Sir Francis Drake Road. Do NOT download this GPX file unless you, too, want to be honked at by old men for simply sharing the road, then hike up through the neighborhoods of Point Reyes, braving the slippery pine needles of the local trails. (Though it is very quaint and cute! But perhaps save it for a day hike.)

A fantastic day out. We started just before 7 AM and jogged out to Tomales Point. We experienced the sublime as the sun rose, turning the clouds into a pink backdrop for the majestic elk.

An Ode to Elks

Dearest of elks

Our greatest dream was you

As we set off in the morning

Amidst the foggy dew

Your antlers proud in the rising sun

Shadows stretching as we began to run

From Tomales Bay down to Bolinas beach

We came to learn, you came to teach

We started our run at approximately 8AM, heading back to the car where we dropped our starting layer and refilled on water. Next comes the main road portion, long and arduous. If you have full support, a shoe change could be helpful. Somewhere along the way we made our critical error by failing to turn right on Gunn road, do NOT miss this. After realizing our mistake, we found an alternative way up through the neighborhoods and local trails to re-meet the original route about 1 mile from the start of the next trail portion. We had the most delightful trail angel imaginable for aid at the top of Mount Vision, which is an awesome spot for aid. 

The next many miles were on trail. A few ups and downs until you arrive at Sky Camp, where there are toilets and water. This is the only water on the trail, and it arrives about 22 miles in (if you stick to the route). Highly highly recommend either self-support or the support of friends to do this route, as the amount of water you would need to pack otherwise is frankly unreasonable. 

After Sky Camp, you run on some groovy California carpet as you make your way to the steepest downhill and subsequent climb. The downhill is a bit narrow, watch out for some pokies in the brush. The uphill looks worse on the elevation profile than it actually feels, but it’s also late in the route so be easy on yourself!

After you finish this trail section, you will drop down to your final ROAD! This is another fantastic spot for friendly aid, which we were very grateful to receive from a good friend. Your last 4ish miles are quintessential rolling California country roads, and when you have about a mile ish left you get a trail on the side of that road! 

You finish running through the town of Bolinas to the water on the beach. If you time it right, you’ll see sunrise from the beach – which we were lucky to do. 

This run is gorgeous and full of diverse ecosystems and modes of running. Highly recommend! Just remember: if you’ve been on Sir Francis Drake for more than five minutes, turn back!!

This unpublished FKT should have the route/our Garmin connect:https://fastestknowntime.com/node/58246