The Catawba Runaround is a local favorite among backpackers and ultrarunners, but it stands resolute in its black diamond difficulty, never wavering for the undertrained or unprepared. Along the steep climbs, scrambles, and rocky descents, foot travelers are greeted with unbelievable views of gorgeous Blue Ridge beauty on all sides.
We wanted to complete the double loop during milder weather months, and April seemed perfect. We first drove drop bags and gallons of water to road crossings about 12 miles apart. To make sure no fuzzy black ex-hibernators would eat our much-needed snacks, we hoisted them up into the trees just to be sure we would get some sustenance.
Starting out in the pouring rain of an overhead thunderstorm at 9:20am on Monday was not ideal (especially from a blister prevention standpoint), but we needed to get going with our goal (and our lives).
We completed the runaround in the traditional counterclockwise direction. Ascending Dragons Tooth in the rain on fresh legs was not a bad experience at all. (Key words: fresh legs.) There was a view at the top beneath high clouds as the rain dissipated. Descending was tricky due to all the boulders, but we knew it would be. Hitting the cow pasture next was a real treat as the lower elevation fog had lifted to reveal numerous kind-hearted heifers laying down in the grass and over the middle of the trail, bless their hearts (and multiple stomachs). Weaving through them and snapping their portraits with backdrops of redbuds and baby green leaves in peak spring bloom, we headed up the rolling ridges to McAfee Knob parking.
Here, we enjoyed the new A.T. Mini Reroute and connected to the brand new footbridge over the busy mountaintop road. Resupplying with food, and linking up with our friend Jacob, we climbed the infamous McAfee Knob to be greeted by thick fog and no views at the top.
We parted ways with Jacob, and descended into the saddle between the mountains. Up on Tinker Cliffs, we had a beautiful vista waiting for us, and we could see the mountain we had just run after ascending it steadily for 9 miles. And we could see the mountain we were about to run atop for 11+ miles.
Descending and exiting the Appalachian Trail to hop onto Andy Layne Trail, we made it to another resupply of food and water at the bottom of the mountains where the trail crosses the valley road. Around 6pm, we climbed North Mountain and cruised over its hilly ridges like a running on a fine-toothed comb. The sunset made the colors grow and then dim, and we whipped out our headlamps. Our friend Sean linked up with us at the top of the long mountain, and we survived the very steep, rocky descent (-1200ft in 1.5 miles) to complete loop 1 before 10:00pm.
After burgers, Skittles, and Coke, we climbed Dragons Tooth once more in the dark. No moon. No stars. All headlamp. We knew it would be slow going, and it was. But we just had to make it through the steep, unrunnable 0.7 mile scramble both up and then down, hit the trail, and reconnect to our car with an extra road mile.
After hitting a reset button with a nap during the main three hallucination hours (we were trying to avoid those nasty ones), we packed our things and set off to complete the other 86% of the second loop.
With a road and meadow warmup, we were on our way. We grabbed our fruit and coffee at the McAfee footbridge, and ascended to be greeted by a gorgeous, spring view of the surrounding mountain layers.
Back in the saddle tottering between McAfee and Tinker, the climbing got real. Descending for a steep 3 miles after that (stairs and all) was no easy feat either. At the last restocking point, we sat down for a breather before heading up the 1200+ ft climb.
Time kept ticking on the rolling mini-summits of North Mountain. The miles slowed. There were no pacers left: just us against the course. The intention was certainly to avoid running in darkness. It definitely felt like a 100 miler at this point. With annoyingly endless climbs, we switched our minds to We Will Be Running Forever Mode, and quietly played the hand we were dealt.
By some miracle and passing of miles, we teetered on the brink of the final downhill. With over 1,000 ft to descend in 1.5 miles, it was both hard to run and hard not to run. Couple that with that fact that no one wants to fuel before a downhill, and we were certainly toying with trouble and running on empty.
After the seemingly vertical downhill pooled into more gradual switch backs, we reached the glorious roadside, crossed it, and ascended some gravel to the parking lot of victory.
This Catawba Runaround contains the Virginia Triple Crown. High-fiving our car, we found Burger King crowns appropriately gifted to us for a grand finale, making us royalty of the epic double route and ending the successful journey.