...and a world record to boot! Read on...
For a long time I've been saying to people that one of the things that appealed to me about where I live is the fact that, with just a few miles of running on roads, I could then run from my house all the way to the ocean, 40 miles or so away, on singletrack trails. But, although I've certainly run further than that since I've been saying so, I'd never actually done this particular route (logistical issues among other things getting in the way). Until yesterday.
Although I'd run pretty much all of this route in parts at one time or another, I wasn't quite sure of the distance until the night before, when I worked up a "schedule" to give my wife so she'd know where I'd be when. I came up with a distance of 46.5M, and estimated that if I left home at 6:30 a.m., I'd arrive at Waddell Beach at the ocean at 6:00 p.m. And with that extensive preparation, a new Garmin Forerunner 201 on my wrist, four water bottles (two on the waist, and two in hand) and a variety of food and drink items, at 6:40 a.m. yesterday on an absolutely beautiful Bay Area day I headed out the door of my house.
After just over a mile of neighborhood running, my route hits the railroad tracks (a railroad that runs from a quarry in Cupertino through Saratoga and Los Gatos to Campbell and beyond, and is actually a wonderful running corridor). Down the right of way a couple miles and then, after a block on Prospect Rd., onto a City of Saratoga creek trail that leads, after some very steep uphills, into the back corner of Fremont Older Open Space preserve, one of my regular running spots. I'm there at 8:00, right on my predicted time, having climbed 800' from my house to get here. A quick call to Debi (from one of the few places on my route where I'll have cell phone coverage) to let her know I'm on schedule and I'm off.
Down into Stevens Creek County Park and my first refill spot at a picnic area just opposite Stevens Creek. I'm carrying Cytomax powder (having started the run with the last of my Succeed Ultra), which I use to mix 3 bottles of electrolyte along with 1 bottle of water (always helpful in case I need to wash off a wound, or whatever). Then my major road running for the day, but it's hardly typical road running. 3.7 miles up Stevens Canyon Road, which is a tree- covered one-and-a-half lane road running up a very narrow canyon with Stevens Creek criss- crossing it six times and a few occasional houses squeezed in the small amount of space. Road running doesn't get much better, even though this late in the summer the creek is pretty quiet. It's an uphill route, not steeply so, but I decide to walk some and eat the first of my two cheese-on-a-bagel sandwiches.
At the end of the road, the road morphs into a single-track trail, and then crosses Stevens Creek for the last time before it heads up Table Mountain on its way to Saratoga Gap (at 2650' the high point on the route). A half mile before I get there a detour to the fire station on the nearby road, for my second refill. I arrive at Saratoga Gap at 11:00, again (remarkably, really) on schedule to the minute. Another quick call to Debi (the last I'll be able to make) and it's time to begin the Skyline-to-the-Sea Trail, 28 miles from here to the ocean. I've come 17.1 miles so far. Coincidentally enough, four hours before, the Stevens Creek Striders had begun their annual Skyline-to-the-Sea run and clambake from this very spot, but I'll see no sign of them all day.
Downhill I run. After a few miles I come to the spot where I had just spent the entire previous day, doing trail maintenance work (required for entry to the Angeles Crest 100, for which the run I'm doing is my last really long training run). This section of the trail (about a half mile) is now totally "clean," although running the rest of the route it's easy to see how quickly things "revert back to nature" (which is good, because I far prefer running on leaf- and pine-needle- covered trails to bare earth). A quick stop at Waterman Gap Trail Camp for my third refill, and I continue on my way.
At Waterman Gap (1200') the trail turns uphill, albeit gently, as it makes it way back up to the China Grade crossing at 1960'. Again, although it's all runnable uphill, I take advantage of the uphill to scarf down my second cheese-bagel sandwich. I'm running when I eat, definitely slower than I'd be running without eating, but I'm in no rush, and I know I have to measure out my effort. It's a long day. I hit China Grade Rd. again within minutes of my predicted 2:00 p.m. arrival.
So far all day I've been running for 7 1/2 hours, and I've seen a grand total of three people on the trail - one cyclist and one runner early in the morning in Fremont Older, and another cyclist near Stevens Creek. Now I've entered Big Basin State Park and now the people appear. It's not Yosemite Valley, not by a long shot, but from this point on I'll be passing people steadily all the way to the ocean. The first group I pass is actually a large family who had passed me yesterday, higher up on the trail, while I was doing trail work. The kids were the sorriest, saddest, whiniest bunch I've ever seen, and considering at that point they had walked exactly four miles, all downhill, it wasn't looking good. But evidently after a night of camping they were still alive and still moving forward.
In a little more than an hour I reach Big Basin HQ. I'd planned to stop at the store there for a sandwich and a coke, but I still have tons of food and drink powder left, so I skip that stop, and press on.
A funny thing has happened to my GPS. Of course it's well known that reception in treed areas, and canyon areas, is not good (or downright non-existent), but so far I've actually been surprised. Stevens Canyon is a VERY narrow canyon, but I actually got signals for MOST of that section of the route. The route up to Saratoga Gap is likewise all through the woods, as is the route from Saratoga Gap down to Big Basin, and I definitely lost signal at various times, but sooner or later it would pick up again. But now, shortly before hitting Big Basin HQ, I've lost the signal and it isn't coming back. Up the 400' climb of the ridge just past the headquarters, then down, down, down, following first Kelly Creek and then Waddell Creek on their way to the ocean, I'm running under tall redwoods, and I've got zero signal. But at least the timer works. :-)
I run the trail I've run many times, until I get to the turnoff for beautiful Berry Creek Falls, which is definitely falling, although it's not nearly as spectacular as it was earlier in the year with higher flow. But now, where I usually turn right to do the "falls loop", I turn left, and continue heading toward the ocean. I've only done this section once before, back in 1996 when a group of Dead Runners ran it for Karen Wells' birthday run, and I remembered this section as dull and boring, but I was definitely mis-remembering. Yes, parts of the trail are actually as wide as a fireroad in this section, the only time all day I was on a trail that wide, but since it also narrows down to singletrack, it isn't really a fireroad, just a wide trail, and it's still tree-covered, creekside running - how bad could it be? Well, for me it was wonderful, and I was even starting to push a bit as that barn smell hit my nose.
Nearing the ocean, the trail splits. The equestrian/bike trail (the last few miles only are bike- accessible) stays straight and flat to the ocean, while the hiking trail winds up a pretty steep hill involving around 400' more climbing and winding in and out of several canyons. Improbably, the sign at the split claims it's 1.3 miles either way to the ocean. I don't think so. But my GPS doesn't think anything, as it's still receiving no signals whatsoever.
That is, until halfway through this climb, about a mile from the ocean, when all of a sudden it beeps to life. Now I was waiting for this moment, and I assumed all along it would just give me a straight line distance from near Big Basin HQ to where I was, so that it would lose all the curves I followed, but at least it would be accurate as the crow flies. Well, if it took the distance from the HQ to where I was, it must have been via the North Pole, because when I looked down my watch was reading 535 miles!!! It soon lost its signal again. When it finally got the signal back again a while later, this time it actually asked me "Have you run hundreds of miles since you last had a signal?" and I said no, but despite that it jumped up again.
Anyway, eventually the trail comes down off the last hill, heads down a short (1/4 mile) paved park road, crosses Rt. 1, and hits Waddell Beach and the ocean. At that point my GPS now read 569.3M, a distance covered in 10:35:09 running time - a new world record! Woo-hoo!
And woo-hoo even without the record, because I made it, pretty much feeling great (I usually stiffen up toward the end of a run of this distance, but not today). Actual distance unknown, but was somewhere between 44 and 46.5 miles (and a guesstimated 4700' of ascent). The time seems awfully slow (I've run 50-mile races with more hills in less time), but of course it was just a self-supported training run and I was in no hurry. Remarkably, having predicted a 6:00 p.m. finish, I stepped into the parking lot at Waddell Beach at 5:58, perhaps my most remarkable performance of all. After a few minutes, I found Debi, who was down the beach bird-watching, having finished a 100-min run of her own (out-and-back on the Skyline-to- the-Sea Trail) and was also enjoying the fabulous day. The entire day for me was spent in the low 70's (I guess), just perfect weather. What a day! I'd recommend the route to anyone (but you'll need to start at someone else's house!). Excellent running with good self-support possibilities (three water bottles would have sufficed, four was overkill). Not an over- abundance of water supplies, but enough.
Steve's to the Sea. The 569.3 mile challenge.
Steve "yes, that Steve" Patt
in Cupertino, CA