Camping & Trail Running at Lewis & Clark Cavern State Park PLUS: My New Big Project

 

We got a taste of the trails at the Lewis & Clark Caverns State Park back in March during the Expedition 12k race.  We've been to the Caverns before but we had no idea that this awesome trail system exists until then.  After that race we knew we had to go back and check out the trails on our own terms (in other words - not worrying about passing people or being passed).

 

The best part about going back and running/hiking the trails when not under pressure of a time clock is making up for all the missed opportunities to get awesome pictures, so most of this post is just that... trail porn.  But there is also a sneak peek at our upcoming project.

 

We drove in on Friday night after work and got the camp set up just in time for sunset pics.  Fires in Canada had blown in a thick layer of smoke that took over most of the state all day Friday.  You can tell it is a little hazy but by the end of the day at the campground it was at least a little better.

 

 

Mitch just can't resist the opportunity to be a goof when I take his picture.  This was home for the weekend.  The best thing (but hardest to get used to) was pretty much no cell service. 

 







 

 

Saturday morning the skies had almost cleared out of the smoke, much to my relief.  However, I slept in too long and didn't get out for the run until close to 11:00 am.  It was already quite warm and humid.  I've never been in a group campground that stayed quiet so late in to the morning.  I NEVER get to sleep in when we go camping and this trip I slept late both mornings!

 

The trail system is mapped out well and these signs are posted at most junctions along the trail.  To get the mileage I was aiming for I planned to do a full loop along the outside perimeter of the park and then turn around and go the other way.  That isn't quite the way things went but I still ended up with the 15 miles I had intended.  Mitch was having some knee pain and wasn't sure about a long run so on my first loop he set out for a mountain bike ride.  

 

Just a few beautiful pictures from my day on the trails. 

Here's where I tell you about our project!  I'm so excited!  While I was getting a few great pictures on my phone camera, I also took the GoPro.  Coming soon: RunWhichWay on YouTube!  Since we haven't done this before, I expect the first video to take a week or so to piece together and turn my clips in to an experience worth watching.  Unfortunately I had major technical difficulties with the sound quality so on the first edition we will have to find a way to work around that.  I'm looking forward to sharing our adventures in action.  Stay tuned because blog followers will get the first look!

I tried a new run fuel this trip.  Pictured below is Spring Energy Canaberry and I also tried the Long Haul.  Long Haul tasted too much like peanut butter and I wasn't a fan, but the Canaberry was very similar to one of my favorite running fuels made by CLIF.  But this is better because the package is much more manageable in size.  Spring Energy is made of natural ingredients and more "real food" than the typical gels.  This one (and maybe all of their flavors) is Vegan.  They are a bit pricier than Gu or Hammer, running about $2.30/package.  The ingredients are worth the extra few cents.

One last pretty spot in the last mile of my first loop....

I didn't take pictures on the second loop of the run and I probably should have since Mitch came with me and we took a different trail.  It was a physical struggle climbing to the Upper Visitors' Center a second time and I wasn't thinking much about the view any more.  I did a total of 15 miles and over 3,000 feet of elevation gain.

I was super tired by the end of it.  Not to mention very dirty!!  Thankfully the campground had showers - worth every bit of the $3 for 6 minutes to wash off the bug spray, sunscreen and trail dirt.

 

We will definitely camp there again.  If you haven't been to the Caverns the tour is very cool if you don't mind dark places and bats.  As you can see, the trails are amazing all by themselves and it doesn't cost anything to hike/bike/run on them unless you stay in the campground.  Go check it out!



A Day in the Bridgers and a Thank You Note to My Running Partner

Some days are a great reminder of why I love to run trails and even more of why I love that my husband has taken an interest in participating with me in my sport.  Saturday was one of those days.

I was hoping for a long run on trails this weekend and without doing loops in the same section that is hard to do in Billings. We also don't really have trails that are good to train on for our big runs this year like Moonlight on Mt Ascension and The Rut.  Except for Phipps Park, there aren't many hills and none of the hills are very long.  Red Lodge is our closest option but they got a foot of snow in the lower elevations earlier last week.  It's too early to enjoy trails there yet so we decided to see if we could find anything in Bozeman since we knew that at least the M Trail was clear.

Mitch settled on Sypes Canyon which is in the lower foothills of the Bridger Mountains and we could run to the M Trail if we wanted.  Spoiler...we didn't.

It was a gorgeous day.  I think the temps were somewhere in the low 60's, but it was humid and felt a little too warm.  The start of this run was so much harder than I expected.  Don't get me wrong.... one should expect to struggle on an uphill climb but I hadn't taken in to account that I had donated blood a couple of days before. 

This sign is such a good reminder.  This is about 3.5 miles (and 1500 feet) up the trail at the junction where we could have chosen to go toward the M Trail, down the other way to Cottonwood or up the hill further toward Mount Baldy.

We chose "up the hill" to Mount Baldy because why not add a few hundred feet more of elevation.
The pictures below are on a fairly steep climb but the camera never seems to capture that.

 

 A few minutes after the above pictures were taken, we were hit by a thunderstorm.  It poured rain and dumped sleet/mini-hail.  We had just got over a very steep section and I decided we should turn around because I was afraid the rain would wash down that part of the trail and make it too slick to get down it.  We missed the top of Mount Baldy because of this decision.  I didn't care so much then but in retrospect I am a little bummed.

We could tell that it rained much harder on the rest of the trail than where we were because the trail was so much more saturated on the way down.

Mitch took this great puddle shot.  Note:  For the most part I tried to jump over the puddles to minimize damage.  I ran through just this one for the sake of the picture and it was on part of the trail that was degraded sandstone and not as susceptible to footprints.

Running back down the hill was so much fun.  Most of it was a nice grade that you could do a comfortable speed and just technical enough to keep your mind occupied. 

We ended up with 8.3 miles which was less than I was hoping for but with the 2200 feet of climbing and plenty of stopping to talk to other hikers/runners, those 8 miles took over 3 hours.  We had a contest to see who collected the most mud.  Mitch won even though he had washed off his legs at one of the creek crossings about a half mile from the finish.

We are both wearing Dirty Girl gaiters.  Everyone that runs trails should have a pair of these.  They do an awesome job of keeping the debris out of your shoes and they come in such fun designs.  I would be a product ambassador for them if I could figure out how.  They are one of my top favorite gear for trail running.

Because the last little section was thick, stick-to-your-shoes mud we had to stand in the irrigation ditch by the car to get the mud out of the tread on our shoes.  This meant we went to lunch, walked around Bozeman and drove all the way home with wet feet.  Note to self:  always bring back up shoes and socks.

Last week a friend of mine had her last day at the place I work.  I went down to say good luck and as always we got on the topic of running.  She often comments on how great it is that my husband runs with me.  She says, "You have a built in running buddy."  She's right and I think it is long over due for a public thank you.

If not for Mitch, I know I would not train in the epic places I get to go.  Could I?  Yes.  Would I?  Probably not.  He does much of the route planning when we go out of town, always drives and is a constant companion and friend on our journeys.

Thank you, Mitch for being my running buddy and blog camera man.  Without you my blog wouldn't have as many great pictures, nor would the pictures be from such beautiful places.  Thank you for being my cheerleader, support crew and even my companion at countless races and training runs.  Thank you for taking me pretty much everywhere I want to go and for making it fun when we get there.  Thank you for sitting in breweries in every town even though you don't drink beer.  Thank you for being there in places that are just a bit scary and for always being willing to carry the bear spray and run in front.  Thank you for always encouraging me even when I'm feeling down about myself.  You have been the best friend and running buddy a girl could ask for.  I love you and if the world didn't know it before, they do now.