Wow! That was one tough 76 km route!
On Sept 28th, 2020, I ran the 'Standard (east to west) Hudson Bay Company Trail Route' from Tulameen to Peers Creek, in Hope.
The history of this 1849 HBC trail has been brought back to life only the last 12-15 years, and only recently has it been opened up from end to end. It was used during the brigade days where First Nations used trails over the Cascade Mountain passes for trading purposes. They travelled by horse to trek across this route for trading of furs, salmon, shells, valuable plants, tobacco, sage, etc. Many horses died enroute through Manson's steep ridge. Along the way, you can find many history boards depicting details and the meanings of the particular campsites along the way as well as log books to sign, clean outhouses, and bear cache's. There are several camps you may stop at for a rest or an overnight stay, most with a view! Today, we are very lucky to be able to hike or run these trails that were once used in a completely different manner. I don't think the brigade days back then saw trail runners run the entire distance in a day, that's for sure!
Due to its remoteness and for my own safety, I had three strong, male trail running friends run along with me for the entire duration of my attempt: James Galipeau, Erik Bird, and Ryan Shephard.
Three kilometers into our run we had to cross the Tulameen River to begin the climb and from here on our feet were wet all.day.long. Fortunately, the day was beautiful and sunny with temperatures hovering around 15 degrees Celsius for the duration of the afternoon. As night fell and we began nearing the final 25 km's of the Fraser Valley's climate end of the route, the trail only became more saturated, mucky, and greasy due to recent rainfall after a dry summer. From Colville Camp to the top of Manson's Ridge it was super technical and steep. The challenges and struggles became real but I knew I had to work hard if wanted this done successfully! With one more final steep downhill we put the pedal to the metal, busted out the fried quad muscles, and finished with 6 minutes to spare. I finished at 12 hours, 44 minutes, and 17 seconds.
My goal was to try improve the only-known previously-set female record of 12:50:05 which took place during the Mountain Madness race series "Hope Brigade 50 Mile trail race" in 2017 where all racers were fully supported with aid/food/water stations along the race route.
For the entire duration of my personal attempt, we all four carried our own packs, food, water, and extra layers as we knew we'd be up around 1800 m elevation for most of the approximate 12-hr duration. We used three solid-running creeks for our water sources along the way. We did not have the luxury of any resupply of food from outside sources along the way due to its remoteness. Although I chose to do this attempt as unsupported, I understand and accept it's classified as 'Female Supported' as I had three partners with me. I appreciate the opportunity to challenge myself with my friends' support as well as the opportunity to submit this FKT to your website. It was a super fun attempt.
And lastly, I challenge anyone who loves steep climbs and super steep downhills to get out there and challenge my time! You will not be disappointed if vert's your game! :)