I arrived at Prediger rd. around 3:20am. I didn’t sleep at all the night before so I took a quick nap in the car. I woke up around 4:30am and started taping my ankle and knee. I started on the trailhead at 4:56am.
The goal was sub 10 hours and I was ahead of that most of the day. The first half went smooth to Devils Tombstone. I opted not to fill up at the lake because it looked stagnant. I hoped there was a few springs at the top before the Hunter peak climb, and I was right. Refilled there and added skratch and electrolytes.
Heading up Hunter Peak and SW Hunter, I widened the gap to Sub 10. I was about 15 minutes ahead descending towards Diamond Notch. It was around this time my back was more wet than usual. My bladder was leaking. I decided to let it continue, and if worse comes to worse, I had salt tabs and my katadahn .6 liter with its filter. This decision would later come back to haunt me.
By the time I made it to North Dome I had no more water in my Bladder or my soft flask. I was under the impression that the creek would be flowing, wrong. I was still around 15 minutes ahead, but the North Dome bushwhack broke me. The stinging nettles and 40% grade were relentless. It took 45 minutes to get to the herd path alone. I still had to ascend the peak of North Dome. From here on out I couldn’t really run. I flipped off the canister and continued to Sherrill. I still haven’t had any water and I was feeling it.
Climbing Sherrill was a slog and it felt like it took forever. I finally find the canister and start the descent. It is at this point I also find a spring. It felt like a gift from above. Unfortunately, I kept losing the herd path down Sherrill. It made the last two miles drag on. I made it down to the road in 10h 37m and 44s.
This route has a lot that can be approved on. In my opinion, it can get down to the 8ish hour range. I hope more people find this route and attempt it. It’s a really fun time.
Side note: Brian’s YouTube video was so vital for this attempt. He details every climb and descent in the video. He made it feel as if I was on the trail with him and Jason. I knew what I was in for without ever stepping foot on the Devils path. I truly appreciate his video.