A marvelous day! I got lucky with perfect weather, in between the last of the snow melting and the start of summer temperatures. Trails are in great condition.
I arrived at 8 am to get on the shuttle list at 8:30, then parked at Faraway Ranch for 9 am pickup. The driver was happy to drop me off at the Sugarloaf trailhead, which was a nice surprise. I was expecting freezing temperatures up there, but with the sunshine and lack of wind it was actually really pleasant and I could have gotten away with slightly fewer layers.
Sugarloaf was an easy up and down, then a quick jog over to the Massai area. I made a minor error in the first climb up to the parking lot, taking a use trail instead of the stairs. Luckily it was an out-and-back, so I fixed it on the way down. Most trails in the park (except for Heart of Rocks) are very obvious.
Short little segments to clear all the trails there, then a nice run down Ed Riggs. I started seeing other shuttle passengers, some of them multiple times. I may have confused a couple of them. Coming up Echo Canyon, I stopped when I came across a herd of horses, and the riders were friendly as they made a way for me to go around.
Back down Ed Riggs, then up Mushroom Rock trail and over to Inspiration Point. I thought there was a metal box there, but didn't find it this time (perhaps it was next to the couple sitting on one of the big rocks and I didn't want to bother them). Then on to my favorite - Heart of Rocks! It's a slow loop with a touch of scrambling, plus I couldn't help gawking at the natural sculptures and fun features.
I ran down the canyon to the Upper Rhyolite trail, which literally "rocks the Rhyolite" with plenty of loose stuff to work around. My legs were climbing fine and handling all the downhill OK too, nothing fast, just a steady pace. Down to the Visitor Center where I made use of the water fountain and shed the last of my extra clothes.
Over to the campground, which also has water spigots (could be handy on a hot day) and out to the road. It would be nice if someday they built a trail connector from the campground to the Natural Bridge trailhead. The road run wasn't long and traffic was low, easy peasy.
I made another tiny error from the trailhead parking lot, dropping early to the creek, then figuring out that again there is a wide stairway. It's a rather long climb (relatively speaking) to the saddle and then a drop to the next valley. I enjoyed the easy trail over to Natural Bridge and the last turnaround of the day.
One more climb back to the saddle, one last view of Sugarloaf (visible from many places during the run), and the start of the final downhill. Back through the campground, where a guy recognized me and asked "Are you STILL running?" Yep, almost done.
Down the final trail and past my truck. A couple walking toward me told me I would see coatimundis in the next 1/4 mile - what?! We've been looking for them with no luck (except for the one we finally got a chance to see at the Desert Museum in Tucson). I slowed to a fast walk in the hopes they would still be there and not get scared away.
No chance of that! I came around a corner and jumped when I found a whole band of them foraging in the ground on either side of the trail. If I hadn't known they were there, they would have scared the crap out of me. They tsk-tsk'ed at me and continued what they were doing, while I walked slowly past and snapped pictures. So cool!
That was a fantastic way to finish. I totally enjoyed exploring the whole park in one day, thank you Chiricahua!