I started at the Orme Road lot at about 0605 the first 15 miles to Big Bug TH were fun and not terribly hot. I took it easy and settled in. My husband--and crew for the day--met me at Big Bug with re-supply and plenty of ice for my bladder, hat and ice bandana. I had re-supply every 6-8 miles from that point which was just about perfect for the temps--which reached 99 degrees. Unfortunately the heat slowed me down during the nice runnable stuff between Big Bug and Bumblebee, and then darkness slowed me from Soap Creek on.
I underestimated the difficulty of finding the trail in the dark alone, and spent a lot of time back-tracking and/or route finding--especially at creek and river crossings, and the last 6 miles south of Emery Henderson where the trail is not really defined. Had some cool wildlife encounters, including a good-sized rattlesnake that was pretty determined not to let me pass for about 15 minutes and a rare gila monster sighting. I did not encounter a single other human trail user all day.
Overall, a lot slower than I'd hoped, but a great day out on one of my favorite trails!