Joined by ultra-runner Steve Korchinos from Okanagan Falls, who had also been wanting to check this one off his bucket list, we did a cardrop at the north end at Cosen's Bay OHRT trailhead early in the morning, and drove down to Philpott Rd/Hwy 33 to leave the second vehicle. From here, we ran a short distance to Mission Creek which is KM O to begin our run northbound. We started our watches at 9:44 am... finishing up at Cosens Bay Rd's OHRT trailhead 10 hrs and 17 mins later.
The HRT is a beautiful, well-marked trail with lots of different terrain. The trail consists of excellent terrain with lots of variation. It's very interesting traversing through the different biomes, with Ponderosa Pine morphing into Cedar and then into Douglas Fir. The sweet smell of pine is so invigorating! There are several spectacular lookouts with great views throughout the trail.
We both agreed, running at higher altitude on a hot day added to the challenge. It was a big day and a big run on the hottest day of the year to date. So hot in fact, I had to sit in a creek temporarily as we both were suffering from heat exhaustion. Creeks and shade eventually became our lifeline in the heat of the day. :)
Initially, I was hoping this would be the recon and to come back at a later date to attempt a stronger time, but soon after completing this I decided I was happy to settle this run for the actual 'female supported' FKT.
(There's no previous female record on the FKT website. Although we were both fully self-supported for the entire run, Steve is classified as a support.)
We each carried our own gear, our own food, and collected water from creeks along the way at kms 19.6, 27, 32, and approx 38. The High Rim Trail Association is a group who does a fantastic job maintaining this trail. Their website states the various water sources enroute. However, by end of May many creeks were either tea-colored, or dried up, and only a couple were excellent sources. As well, some were not accurately stated distance-wise which added to the challenge on an already very hot day. I'm grateful to have completed this with my very strong, badass friend Steve. Who knows, maybe one day, I'll come back to tackle a better time on a cooler day. We'll see! :)