Allegany State Park North Country Trail Out and Back
I woke up on the morning of September 2nd, 2018 with more than 6 months and a broken foot since my last ultra marathon, and I was ready to get back on the horse. It was my birthday anniversary, and this was the only present I wanted. I hit the trail at 6 AM sharp starting from the parking lot just outside the Red House toll booth. The plan was to run south on the North Country Trail through Allegany State Park until I hit the Allegheny National Forest in Pennsylvania, then turn around and get myself back to that parking lot.
It was warmer than I had anticipated, but the first 5 miles ticked by pretty smoothly anyways. Somewhere around mile 7 I stepped on a chipmunk. He had the great fortune of just catching my toes and he squeaked obscenities at me as he continued his path across the trail. 10 miles still felt pretty good, and I took a short break to drink from the natural spring by bent rail. At the half marathon mark I passed the first hikers of the day, a quick conversation and on ward I went. I hit the PA line at 10:05 in the morning at just about exactly 20 miles. I ate a bag of trail mix and it was time to start the trek back. Shortly after turning around I ran into a familiar face and got my first 'happy birthday' of the day. It was right around this time I ran out of water in my hydration pack, but I had brought my Life Straw so I just needed to find a stream. Mother nature had a different solution for the issue though as I got hit with a torrent of rain that did not want to quit until it had quenched my thirst. Slightly demoralized by the turn in weather, and possibly the dehydration, I decided to power hike for a couple miles. Once I climbed up towards Mount Tuscarora and began the descent to Coon Run Rd. I was able to get my running legs back beneath me though. I crossed Coon Run, hit the bent rail natural spring to refill my hydration pack and it was time to get back to business. The rain had slowed to just a periodic sprinkle and I was 3/4 of the way done. I've got this! I climbed Mount Oneida on my way to crossing ASP 1, then made a wrong turn and ended up at the Eastwood meadows Trail head. After cruising down that mountain with only one more mountain in my way I could tell my water supply was starting to get low again and my watch gave me a warning that its battery was getting low as well. The water was a little concerning but with 2 1/2 miles to go I knew I could suffer it out, but the battery dying really lit a fire under my you know what as I could lose the GPS, pace, and heart rate data for the entire run if that were to happen. I cruised past some day hikers and the backpackers I had seen at the half marathon mark as I neared the final summit. Seeing people out on the trails is always uplifting and helps push me forward. As I crested the final mountain and the run became all downhill I could start to hear the traffic on 86. I hit the trail head and only had a half mile of road before completing the run. I don't know if it was a testament to how good I still felt at mile 40 or it really shows how scared I was of my watch dying, but I was cruising through the road section at a sub 8 minute mile pace. It was just after 2:30 PM, and I had finally concluded my adventure.
It had been 40.35 miles and 8 hours 32 minutes and 57 seconds since I left my vehicle that morning. I plugged my watch in to find I had completed the run with 1% of battery life left. There were some low points, but there were just as many highs too. It was a great day to be out on the trail and the birthday present I had been hoping for. I was exhausted, but felt revitalized as well. Having spent the last year and a half as a volunteer trail steward at ASP, I have met some amazing people and have had great experiences giving back to the trails I grew up on. That gave this run an almost victory lap feel.