Today I ran a long way. On a whim, I posted on the Boulder Trail Runners list to see if anyone wanted to run 14 miles with me this morning. I got two takers! Cheryl, a forty-something mom of two, and Tom, a retired CU professor. They both kicked my butt!
We decided to run something close and the Mesa Trail fit the bill. (If you recall I ran this in November of last year.) So, we met at the Ranger Cottage at 6am and got started on the "lower" route. Tom knew all these really cool hook-ups that paralleled the main Mesa Trail, but further east. Many of the trail I had run before, but he knew all the secret shortcuts to link them together. Very cool! It took us 1.25 hours to get to the South Mesa Trailhead. Throughout these 6 miles I kept up very well!
Then, instead of heading right back as was our original intent, Tom suggested a 2-mile extension. We were all game since it was such a beautiful morning and we had made such good time to the south end. So, we crossed the Eldorado Springs Road and ran up Doudy Draw to the Springbrook Trail. Then we met up with the Fowler Trail. After the cool cut in the rocks, we dropped down on an unnamed trail right to the center of Eldorado Springs. From here, we ran up the Old Mesa Trail (Dan and I ran it for the first time back in May) and then linked up with Mesa Trail proper. By this time, my companions were starting to school me. The Mesa Trail is just constant ups and downs. By this point (13 miles in), I was walking the ups and jogging the downs. But, I made it and I lived to tell.
All in all we ran about 16 miles in just over 4 hours. Not bad considering the terrain. Here's the map!
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