A few recent runs
As it turns out, the last few weeks have been more mileage than usual. It felt good to hit the trails more regularly. Also a few hikes with the kiddos. Here’s the highlights:
Summiting Bountiful Peak via Old North
I had a lot of goals for running this season, and among them was to summit the 3 highest peaks in Davis County from the valley floor. I did Thurston and Francis Peaks back in July, so that left Bountiful Peak. I decided to bag it using the Old North Trail in Davis Creek Canyon. It is about 4.5 miles of, and 4,500 ft. elevation gain. Upness. 12.2 mile in 3:02:46 (moving time, a full 5 hours elapsed) @ 15:00…
Exploring Old North + Bloody Knees
Sometime in the next couple weeks I have been planning to bag Bountiful Peak (before snow hits). The best trail options are the Farmington Spine or the Parrish switchbacks. I have long wanted to go straight up Davis Creek though to the. I have heard that the trail fades – just like the Bountiful Peak trail and the Centennial Trail (up from Flag Rock). However, after doing a little research, it looked like Old North might be a good option….
To Hell [Hole] and Back Again, Twice
It was Saturday afternoon, the high was forecast to be around 70 so I couldn’t, in good conscience, not hit the trails. I decided to try out my new trekking poles on the steep climb up the Davis Creek trail area. 4.0 Miles in 1:02:44 @ 15:46 min/mile and 1,791 ft. elevation I felt strong and did get a PR on the initial climb from the trail head to the split to the first waterfall, but not on the…
Return to Pretty Valley
I was planning to rest my legs for a planned group run up City Creek Canyon Friday morning before work, but I just couldn’t resist tonight. It was in the low 70s, and beautiful. Moreover, I knew that I had a long night ahead of me cranking out some pages on a book manuscript that I owe to my editor by May 1st. I short little run seemed like a good way to clear my head before diving into a…
A Steep Bushwhack Up Triumph Trail
Apparently never content with running trails I have already explored, I set off on this Saturday morning to explore another new route. I had previously failed in following Triumph Trail up the north side of Davis Creek Canyon, but had since believed to have spotted where I took a wrong turn. So, with a new set of running tights to protect against some chilly morning air, I set off. The first part of the trail I already knew, and had…
First Run with a Friend
Back from my conference in Tucson, my family was out of town – so I had to take advantage of having free time to myself. Up till now I had only run solo. Even in Kearney on the streets – I may have run one time with my wife. My next door neighbor said he was up for a run, even though he runs full-on 100 mile ultras. He agreed to not make fun of my slow pace. I was…
Davis Creek to Ford Canyon
High on the excitement of feeling a little bit familiar with the Davis Creek trails, and having looked at the map a lot, I decided to explore further. I went up towards Pretty Valley, but cut East up the hill on what I thought was going to be a trail. It was not. More scratches and lesson learned. If it looks like it “might” be a trail…that’s about all it is – it “might” be a trail. But it is…
KIDS again!!!
Another hike with the kids We hiked up the Davis Creek trail to the first bench, which is pretty steep, and they did great!
Exploring Davis Creek Canyon. Trails on a Map don’t Mean Actual Trails on the Ground
Despite my declaration that I would use Flag Rock to train my legs, I looked up at the hills and couldn’t help but go explore something new. The trails up to Flag Rock or Steed Creek are more heavily traveled than the smaller trails going up the much smaller Davis Creek Canyon. I started up the Mtn. face north of the creek – trying to find the “Triumph Trail” I found on the Farmington Trails Map. I did the first…