Running the White Rim-Day 4...Airport to Shafer Trail and Done!

Day 4 started earlier than any other day, seeing us up and out of camp by 7am. We had a wonderful crew to send us off!

The wonderful Marc and Judi!

Mom and Dad!

After three full days of running side by side, Hal and I took a bit of a break, while he ran ahead just enough to create some space. This meant that we played the 'Quiet Game' for almost an hour, which is almost impossible for me, as anyone who's ever been around me for even a little bit knows ;)

 

Solitude (or the illusion of it!)



 A few hours into our run, Marc and Judi passed us in the Jeep, prompting us to make a last minute food stop before the final push up Shafer Trail.

Too much food...ugh!

Turns out our eyes were bigger than our stomachs, leaving us with bellyaches as we trudged back to the trail!
Since it was the final day of our big run, we chose to implement a system that had previously worked well for Hal on the Kokopelli Trail-run a set distance, then take a short break and bend down to stretch or walk for a set distance. We decided on running 2.5 miles and walking 0.5 miles, giving us 3 mile segments. Before we knew it, we were looking up at the ascent up Shafer Trail!
 

Marc's shot looking down Shafer-we ran/hiked up this!



Breaking our day into smaller, bite sized chunks was mentally refreshing and much less monotonous than trying to think about the whole 16 miles in one piece. By the time we were ascending our final climb, we had a renewed spring in our step and were feeling almost as good as Day 1.

It's amazing to experience the ups and downs, highs and lows, as you put your body through something like this. Sometimes it varies day by day, other times my mood would swing minute by minute. Quite the roller-coaster! I'm told by those more experienced (mainly Hal) that it gets easier the more we do. Goodie... :)

Crazy viewpoint of Shafer Trail!

Marc and Judi were cheering for us the entire way up Shafer, making it that much more fun and exciting! It also renewed my theory that having people there to support and cheer you on makes anything easier, whether it's your own crazy run or a race.

Final seconds of running-note that Hal is already unbuckling his pack!

We completed our final stretch of the White Rim Trail in four hours, covering 16.5 miles and 2,857 feet of climbing.
Of course, any good Moab adventure must end at Milt's Diner, where Marc and Judi graciously treated us to burgers and root beer floats-yum yum!

It was a wonderful adventure, thanks to all who helped us out there, we could not have done it without your support-Mom and Dad and Marc and Judi!

And thanks for reading, it was fun to re-live it in the comfort of our home :)
Our next epic escapade will be thru-hiking the Colorado Trail sometime late summer.
Let us know if you're in the area for some fun between now and then!


Running the White Rim-Day 3...Murphy's Hogback to Airport...

Day 3 was a personal best for me. Believe it or not, I had never before run 26 miles. I hiked with Hal for 40 miles on the Kokopelli Trail last year, but this day was my first time running the full marathon distance, after two back-to-back 20 mile days! And we wonder why people call us crazy!?
26.4 miles, and six hours after we left Murphy's Hogback, we arrived at our Airport campsite.


The start of the day...

Fortunately the terrain was mostly flat and rolling, only gaining 1,600 feet of elevation over 26 miles. Miraculously our legs felt better, and descending and squatting down weren't as painful.
All was well as we ran along for the first half of the day. We even passed by numerous of my new favorite flowers, sego lilies.


Sego lilies... The Utah State Flower!

As the clouds melted away and the sun came out, my high spirits began to evaporate. Negative little demon thoughts began infiltrating my previously positive outlook.
"My legs ache, it's so hot out here, my hydration pack is heavy and hurting my shoulders, my feet are sore, the desert looks the same, I'm hungry..." and on and on.
Hal tried to lighten my mood by pointing out that we could be inside a cubicle, behind a desk, but that sounded better than running. Actually, anything sounded better than running!

I sometimes wonder if people assume that these adventures of ours are easy for us, because we do them so often. Well, this one sure pushed my limits. At the time, when it's happening, it's uncomfortable and seems as if the pain will never end. But now, I'm so glad we did it. I guess that's why we keep doing it, because the sense of accomplishment when we're back on the other side is so gratifying. But this run put me on my knees.

When we rolled into camp that night, I had to excuse my cranky self from setting up tents and go and sulk in Judi's Jeep while the wind roared outside. Emerging almost two hours later, I felt rested enough to be civil. Thanks to everyone at camp for letting me be and not hassling me!
And thanks to Hal for being the super trooper by running with me the whole way, smiling the entire time, and then helping everyone else set up camp when we finished the 26 miles!!!

After our cold solar shower, I pulled off my socks to find these beauties...

Note the big blister forming on the right side of my big toe!

The 'pearl onion' looking blister on my middle toe!

Funny thing was, I didn't even know I had blisters at all until I took my socks off! Ignorance is bliss...Of course, once I was barefoot, all I could do was think about how uncomfortable the blisters made me-ha!

Once again, the wind died down around 8pm and we were able to have dessert and watch the stars come out. Sleep was fast coming as we lay down in the tent, only one day away from the finish...

Running the White Rim-Day 2...Potato Bottom to Murphy's Hogback...

Day 2...
I don't think my liver could have taken any more Advil, and yet I still could not bear to squat down on the ground to get in and out of the tent, much less to go the bathroom...
All the fun and easy running of Day 1 were long behind us. My fresh mental state had fogged as I forced myself out of the tent on Day 2. Today's run would total 21.3 miles and take us from Potato Bottom to our campsite at the top of Murphy's Hogback. 2,098 ft. total elevation gain for the day, which meant that we walked uphill a lot!  Since my mood was less than positive as we struck out from camp, Hal kept reminding me to look around at the amazing view, and what great scenery we had!

 

Another fun break in the monotony of running was our lunch break at the Holeman Slot canyon. Mom ventured into the canyon with us, trusting that her son-in-law Hal wouldn't leave her stuck down there, having to pull an Aron Ralston and cut off her arm to get out! The canyon got pretty narrow, but was beautiful and a great distraction.

 

Note the camo piece of webbing in Hal's hand for emergency use...!





The great thing about running the White Rim as opposed to riding it in one day is that we got to see all these amazing sites that we had previously pedaled right on by.
Marc was the master tour guide and facilitated all of our non-running day events!

Mom and Daughter...

We left the slot canyon feeling full and slightly more rested, only to have me wither in the hot afternoon sun. We started walking the descents as well as the ascents, as my poor quads couldn't take anything other than perfectly flat terrain. Judi and Marc pulled up in the Jeep right before we had to climb up Murphy's Hogback, making it the perfect time for a break.

Thank goodness for our support crew :)

 

We trudged up the final miles to camp, having spent another 5 hours out on the trail, not including our slot canyon deviation.  Upon arriving at camp, I had to take some 'me' time to sort out how I felt during the run, and the emotional roller-coaster that I went through. My mental highs and lows were as frequent and fluctuating as the trail, and I thank everyone for helping me through the dark spots and putting up with my moodiness. Little did I know that Day 3 would be the toughest, and longest, for me...

 

Stay tuned for Days 3 and 4...!

Running the White Rim-Day 1...Mineral Bottom to Potato Bottom...

Ah the joys of being fresh and rested at the start of an adventure! 
Our White Rim run was made possible, and more fun, by the loving help and support of Mom and Dad and our dear friends, Marc and Judi.
We left Moab, not so bright and early, on Wednesday morning, all piled into Judi's Jeep and Dad's trusty old truck, and headed out to Mineral Bottom to start our trip.

In the back seat of Judi's Jeep!

Hal and I have both mountain biked the White Rim multiple times, going the opposite direction, but this was our first time running it, and doing it counter-clockwise.
Our goal for the first day was Potato Bottom, where our first campsite was. It was 14 miles away, with about 1,800 ft. of elevation gain. Dad made our run start 'official' by waving an orange trash bag that we found in the parking lot!

Official start!

Our run began by descending the Mineral Bottom switchbacks, which was a nice easy way to begin. The route was mostly flat and rolling, with a big climb up Hardscrabble Hill about 2 miles from
camp.

Stopping to admire all the desert wildflowers!

We took a lunch break at Fort Bottom and added in a 4 mile side hike with Mom and Dad and Marc just to make sure we were getting enough miles in-ha!

A much needed lunch break!



Oh, did I mention the wind?! Dear god, it was as if someone had set the world's most powerful fan on high, and then pointed it directly at us, all day...

 

Everyone hiding from the wind!



We arrived at camp roughly 5 hours and 17.8 miles after we started (including the side hike), in good spirits and feeling strong! Too bad we ran the downhills so fast, as we knew we'd be paying for our indiscretions the next day...

 

Hal looking strong...

 

We had such a fun first day, minus the gale-force winds, and it was great to get to camp and be greeted by everyone and enjoy the evening together. The wind died down at about 8pm and we were able to sit out under the desert sky and relish in the completion of our first leg of the White Rim!

 

Food supplies!



 

 P.S. All of the good pictures are courtesy of Marc Thomas, any others that are blurry and not in focus can be attributed to me and my aspiring photography skills :)