Labor Day weekend has become a tradition for my running partner Lisa Gorman and me as we head to the Whites on the Maine-New Hampshire border and chase an FKT. This year we hoped for our 6th FKT on the Caribou-Speckled Standard Course, the variant we’d left on the table after tackling the Long Course in 2024. Then, 3 days out, Lisa came down with Covid. But after a long summer of training and a week of tapering, there was really no choice: I was going solo.
Water - or the absence of it
When I submitted this course writeup in ’24, I led with the water:
- “If you love running to the sound of moving water, this loop is for you. Virtually the entire Caribou Mountain loop, as well as segments of the Haystack Notch, Miles Knob, and Great Brook trails, are near moving water. There are multiple brook crossings and, while generally benign, several could be sketchy (especially on the Haystack Notch Trail) in high water conditions, so be prepared.”
Things could not have been more different this year. The drought this summer left virtually every brook on Caribou bone dry - not low, not trickling, dry. The only good water sources on the entire loop were the West Branch of the Pleasant River on Haystack Notch and Miles Brook on the Miles Notch Trail.
That’s the kind of thing that ends a day if you find it out at mile fourteen. But I’d done a lot of running here all summer, seen that many “reliable” water sources were dry, and knew to scout out exactly where I could refill. Anyone attempting this in a dry year should take this into account or carry accordingly.
The Course
My least favorite part of the Caribou-Speckled loop is the 3.5-mile section of paved road from Evans Notch down to the Caribou trailhead. With a belly full of coffee, I set out at 5:00 am under headlamp to get a jump on the day. The decline is reminiscent of the start of the Boston Marathon - not so steep that you notice but enough that your pace is way faster than you planned. After about 15 minutes, I could feel my quads getting a workout and forced myself to slow down. The good news is that you get to the Caribou trailhead, warmed up to tackle the 2,000’ climb.
My favorite part of this loop is the geometry of it. From Caribou you look down on your traverse through Haystack Notch and across at your path along the Red Rock Ridge leading to Speckled Mountain. Then, hours later, you can look back at Caribou to savor the distance and the terrain you’ve covered.
And if you like “me time,” this route delivers. Caribou draws a fair share of day hikers when the weather’s good, but Haystack Notch and all trails east of the Speckled summit are virtually deserted. On this Labor Day weekend, I saw two groups all day. Three people, total.
In planning this run, my most anticipated section was the Red Rock Trail between the Miles Knob and Great Brook trails. I’ve run it dozens of times and love it enough that I’ve spent whole days along the trail clearing blowdowns and doing other trail maintenance. But I’d always come up from Hut Road and run this section on fresh legs.
At mile eighteen, in the rain, this section was defiantly NOT the "fun run" I'd remembered as the Red Rock Trail lived up to its reputation as an upside-down serrated knife. Over the first three miles (before the final Speckled push), it packs 1,000 feet of climbing and nearly as much descent - all of it in short, sharp, repeating bites. Between my tired legs and 2 hours of steady rain, I hit the wall and was forced to slow down. But this only made matters worse as I got cold from the lack of exertion despite putting on a jacket, hat and gloves.
This was the only section where I fell behind my projected time, but I kept packing in the nutrition and water as I slowly pushed on. I was happy to reach the junction with the Great Brook trail as I knew that, while the final two miles to the Speckled summit had 1,000’ of climb, at least it was ALL uphill.
Weather
The day opened overcast and stayed that way through the Caribou climb, then cleared just in time as I topped out on the summit yielding a spectacular view across to Speckled - exactly the payoff you hope for and rarely get on schedule. The clouds closed back in on the descent and a light rain started several hours later as I began up the Miles Notch Trail. By the time I hit the Red Rock trail the rain was steady with a fairly strong breeze at elevation. The tops of Red Rock Mt. and Butters Mt. were completely socked in.
But, like my arrival on the Caribou summit at the day’s beginning, the clouds lifted enough on my push up to the Speckled summit that I was greeted with a great view across the valley to Caribou.
The Final Descent
Once I reached the Speckled summit, I knew what was left: 3 miles of trail and 1,600 feet of descent, but smooth and steady the whole way - no more serrated knife. As I left the summit, the clouds disappeared and revealed a brilliant blue sky. This horse could smell the barn and, with the best weather of the day overhead, I packed away my jacket, hat, and gloves before heading down and reaching Evans Notch in great time.
I’m happy to get this one in the books solo, and hopeful that next year Lisa and I can come back and add the Standard Course FKT to our Mixed-Gender Team FKT on the Long Course!