I started right after sunrise on Saturday 9/10/22. I parked on the west end of the "pike to bike" section and started at the jersey barriers at the top of the trail, leading to the old turnpike. It was a pleasantly cool morning. I ran through the abandoned Sideling Hill Tunnel first. It's about 1.5mi in and is the shorter of the two tunnels on this course. You can see the other end of the tunnel as soon as you enter it. I then ran down a slight valley and back up the other side to get to the Ray's Hill Tunnel. This tunnel is much longer. You need to get about a third of the way into the tunnel before you can see the other side. After the Ray's Hill Tunnel, it's a gentle down grade of about a mile to the east parking lot. I touched the jersey barriers before you get to the actual parking area, and then turned around and ran back to where I started.
There were very few people (maybe 4) on the way out, but more cyclists and walkers were present near the west end on the way back.
If you're going just to check out one of the tunnels, I would highly recommend parking on the east end and walking the 1 mile to Ray's Hill Tunnel. It's a larger tunnel and has some other infrastructure around and above it that is equally interesting to check out.
Recommended Gear:
- Headlamp
- These tunnels are extremely dark and can have quite a bit of debris in them, including large rusted pieces of metal.
- Clear Safety Glasses
- I've been here when there was wind coming through the tunnels. It can feel like you're getting sand blasted in the face when you're going against the wind. Keeping the debris out of your eyes is pretty important.
I will be submitting a youtube video in a few days, once I get it edited.
Comments
Edit:
I have the tunnels reversed in my FKT report. Rays Hill Tunnel is western most and the one I ran through first. Sideling Hill is the larger tunnel to the east.