Left the trailhead adjacent to the Festival Foods / Kwik Trip / Starbucks parking lot at 5:05 am on Friday 10/30. The weather was colder than I had planned, but hand warmers, gloves, hat, and jacket, were enough. I made stops for resupply at the BP in Mount Calvary (Hwy 23 & W), BP in Plymouth (Fairview Dr), Subway & Citgo in Sheboygan Falls (Hwy 32) on the way to Sheboygan Trailhead on Erie Avenue just east of the tunnel under I-43. On the return I stopped at Subway (again), BP in Plymouth, Trailhead in Greenbush, and the Mount Calvary BP.
The weather was clear and sunny most of the journey. Of course, I started in the dark (5:05 am) and finished well after sunset (8:47 pm). There were only two real (minor) obstacles to overcome that I did not have a plan for. The first was the Subway stop the first time (around noon) took 10 minutes and I was unable to purchase anything. Apparently, they were both short-staffed and under-supplied. I could not get anyone to let me pay for a drink and some cookies. So, I went to the gas station a couple hundred yards away to get reprovisioned. The second inconvenience was the headlights from passing cars. The trail parallels Hwy 23 and for much of the journey West (returning after dark), I was on the south side of the road running toward oncoming traffic. This meant that I had to be careful to look down or away to avoid being light-blinded.
The trail itself is paved and smooth. The road crossings were well marked. The long gap (appx. 18 miles) between the two BP gas stations was manageable. I simply packed more fluids, etc. before attempting that leg both out and back. The stores were sufficient for restocking. I particularly liked the drinking fountain about a mile from the East end of the trail (at Highland Dr).
I expect some enterprising individual could do this much faster. I am still 10 months post-op from a rather major knee surgery and utilized a run/walk strategy to stay just under my goal of 15 minutes per mile. I successfully negative split and finished the return trip faster than the first half. My fastest mile was my last. Note that this route does have a number of rolling hills. The biggest climb is immediately as you leave Fond du Lac heading east from the Trailhead there. Also beware that this is a very exposed route. On a very windy or sunny day, you will feel it.
In the end I tallied 71.05 miles in 15 hours and 42 minutes elapsed time for an average pace of 13:16 per mile, far better than my 15:00 per mile goal.
I did this Out and Back / Self-Supported.