I have been hitting up the near by trails lately and loving it. Several people have been trying to get me to run more trails over the last several years, but I always felt like it was a bigger time commitment. It takes at least 15-30 minutes to drive to the nearest trail and can take up to an hour for some others. I always just hit the road right outside my door. Now I did do that 10 mile Jim Bridger Trail Run last year and loved it. I still didn’t get me out the door to the trails. This year, my awesome friend that got me through my marathon training wanted to hit up her favorite trails before she moved over to the west coast. Once my foot was healed up enough to put on a shoe and not affect my running form.
We first started at the Triple Tree Trail just south of town. It is a 5.5 mile loop with a pretty steep section. There is a bench at the top which overlooks the valley. What an amazing view! We did this a couple times together before heading over to another trail. This time we headed up South Cottonwood which is also on the south side of town. This one has a little bit of a climb in the first 1/2 mile, but then turns into rolling hills as you gradually head up the mountains. There is no overlook, but the trail goes on for 11 miles up to the top of Blackmore Mountain with a couple of off shoots to other trails that would take you over into Hyalite. This is the best trail that I have ran so far. With talking to other trail runners, this seems to be a favorite by far. As it is only about a 20 minute drive out of town and you can pick your distance. We did a couple 8 milers together before switching to another trail.
Our last trail run together was up Sypes Canyon just north of town. This is a harder climb as you instantly are heading up the drainage towards the top of the Bridger’s. Once you hit the first clearing, you overlook Bozeman. The trail keeps climbing up the side of the mountain. We went about 3 miles up before turning around, but you can catch the foothills trail and keep running all day long. It was another great run!
Lets just say, I am hooked. Not only do I get a run in, but I am getting my “hikes” in as well. I am hitting two birds with one stone which is actually giving me more free time. Plus trail running is a great workout! The agility it takes just to stay up on your feet is a good workout. Not to mention the climb and elevation gain! Who wants to go hit up a trail with me? Good thing there is the Jim Bridger Trail Run is tomorrow. There are several of us signed up this year too! I love running races with friends!
Now on to the goodbyes, last weekend we had to say goodbye to 3 sets of friends, including my running buddy. I am excited for their new adventures, but am going to miss them all. My friend got me through so much of my training last year. She will never know or realize how much I appreciated her there for me. We has some cold, wet and long runs together. That is a lot of time to get to know someone! I hope she gets a chance to make it back and we can hit up more trails together.
