There are three words I use to describe Telluride: Remote, Tough, and Genuine. Remote because this place is in the middle of nowhere, about 2 hours drive in any direction to the nearest major town. This is not a populated area of the state, especially in summer. Tough because outside the several square flat square miles of streets all trails lead in one direction: Up. Basically, straight up into the mountains of exposed rock, alpine lakes, and glacially carved valleys. The town is at 8,750 feet above sea level, and heading up the trails you can quickly get above the 10,000 foot mark. And finally, Genuine: a former mining town, Telluride feels like the real deal, far removed from the ski resort that its associated with in the winter. There aren't hoards of tourists gawking at everything, or their tour buses spewing smoke everywhere, no RV parks in sight, and you don't have to deal with anal-retentive park rangers like so many great parks out west. Just people hiking and biking in the daytime (or doing not much of anything at all), and relaxing with a drink in the evening. This place feels nothing like a National Park. This however has some downsides as well: trails are not blazed and trailheads are not marked. You are pretty much on your own.
 |
| Looking down Colorado Ave (basically main Street) in the small town of Telluride, squeezed into a huge box canyon. |
The views and terrain were incredible. I managed to fit in a few trails runs and a mega-hike. The actual trails were easy in terms of terrain, mostly flat and packed dirt, and some jeep roads closed off to traffic. A far cry from the craggy, rocky, stepping stones found on trails out east. However, the views were the real danger. You need to concentrate on what you are stepping on, not the scenery miles away.
Yes, this is seriously a trail you can run on.
 | |
| An old jeep trail high above the Bridal Veil falls area. This trail (like so many others) is unmarked. The Hardrock 100 course actually goes right through here as it descends from the Lewis Lake alpine region to the town of Telluride. |
And so is this...
 |
| One of the Alta Lakes, part of a series of alpine lakes between Telluride and Ophir. |
oh and I almost forgot to mention this:
 |
| A trail that runs through the remnants of a small ghost mining town near the Alta lakes. Mt. Wilson (a 14-er) is in the background in the Lizard Head wilderness area. |
Mountain Biking
I didn't do all my activity on foot. One day I rented a mountain bike from a shop so I could take to the trails on 2 wheels. It was fun to cruise around town but once I hopped on the gondola to head up the mountain things started to feel real. Although it did give you a nice start, the gondola only took you about 1/3 the way up the ski mountain, the rest of the way had to be peddled. This was one of the hardest efforts I have ever put forth. Cranking forward in the lowest of gears, straight up Green and Blue rated ski slopes. It's much harder going up these slopes then it is skiing down!
I also gained a new appreciation for mountain biking. First off, its really hard to ride uphill on gravel, barely getting traction with big studded tires. Oh, and when you are in thin, 9,500 foot high air it makes things even tougher. Its hard to regulate your body temperature too. When I was in full sun, peddling my heart out I was dripping sweat, but as soon as you hit a flat area and get into the shade you'll start shivering. The toughest aspect requires almost no cardio - the going down part. This is scary as hell, your tires bounce around and slide back and forth. While you need to brake enough to stay at a safe speed, braking too much or too hard just causes you to wipe out. With not a soul in sight I tried my best to play it safe and go slow.
The view from the top made it pretty worth it. I also took a good 20 minutes to rest at a ski restaurant. Though it was closed for the season, I was still able to have a snack on the sun deck and relax.
 |
| Posing on the ski resort, post-rest and post-snack. |
One serious downside however of this region is the lack of trail blazes and markings. My guess is that since this isn't a National Park and much of the area is privately owned, the trails are just kind of there and its up to you to know where to go. It can be really dangerous as times even. At multiple points as I was riding through the woods on a bike trail I would reach 2 or 3 way forks in the roads. Where the heck do you go? I had to err on the side of caution and head back to what I thought was the mountain village. This can be really dangerous when you haven't seen another person for miles. Fortunately I have a good sense of direction and never got into serious trouble.
 |
| Um, where now?! |
My only regret was not doing more research ahead of time, but everything I looked at made it sound like it would be pretty easy to navigate without having full topographical maps and a compass. Live and learn. When I make it back to train for Hardrock I'll come prepared!
 |
| Some very approximate route maps made after the fact. Green was hiking, Red was trail running, Black was Mountain Biking. |
I took another ride early one morning up Tomboy Road which heads toward an old mining town. It was a rough, gravel road which headed straight up the hillside toward the old mining town of Tomboy.
 |
| Riding on "Tomboy" Road just after dawn. |
I only had a couple hours so I basically just had to turn around at a certain point. I was able to get a reward out of it though, a view just as the sun came up of the town of Telluride, the San Juan Mountains, and Bridal Veil Falls.
 |
| Incredible morning view of the San Juan mountains by Telluride. You can barely see Bridal Veil falls on the left. |
Ending my trip in Denver, back in civilization, I was able to contrast the experience in Telluride with everyday life. I wondered if I lived there, would I really make it out to the mountains enough to make living in basically a mid-western town worth it? Most locals I talked to in the city rarely make it past city limits, don't ski, and couldn't care less about endurance sports. Living in the D.C. area I have the opportunity to make it out to our mountains (albeit smaller mountains than in CO) in just a couple of hours. However, I find myself almost always sticking with trails around town since I hate driving long distances and the time waste associated with it.
I was still able to sneak a few trail runs in close to the mountains near Denver. There are some solid trails in parks like Red Rocks, Golden Gate Canyon, Green Mountain Park, and Bear Creek Park (to name a few).
 |
| Trail running just outside of Denver, sporting my DC Road Runners gear! |
I already miss the unparalleled views in Colorado. I do try to remind myself that this all happened on vacation, and the people who actually live and work in populated areas of Colorado do not experience this on a typical basis. It is however very accessible to those who choose to seek it out. Colorado does a good job marketing itself as the Rocky Mountain State. Looking at these pictures its easy to forget that the eastern half of the state is flat as a pancake, and that the city of Denver feels more like a city in the mid-west than the gateway to the mountains. They do at least have an arid, dry climate (even in the city) which I could really get used to. I have been sweating buckets in our swampy, humid weather back in Virginia. At least we have trees and shade to hide in while its hot out.
I have also been thinking about some very long term goals. I think I should stick with Ultras. I'm not just going to get much faster at short races and running exclusively on pavement just seems to result in injuries for me. I am still feeling achy in the hips, but at least I am back out running. Still a bit depressing, as I just don't have any "pep" in my legs and anything faster than an 8 minute mile feels uncomfortable. This feeling should pass once I'm back to 100%.
I don't know how long until I want to attempt another Marathon PR, but its going to be awhile. The only road Marathon on the horizon for me is Boston 2014, and even that it tentative. In the next year I want to continue with some more 50k's and 50 milers. JFK should be a good chance to get a 50 miler baseline time in. The weather will be cool out then. I could see doing a 100 miler in Virginia in the next year or two - maybe do Umstead 100 in N.C. (a flat and good first timer 100 miler) to get my feet wet before I attempt a feet like Massanutten Mountain Trails or Grindstone. Then who knows, maybe move out to Colorado Springs someday to get into real mountain running at high-altitude. I could do the Leadville trail marathon, "Silver Rush" 50 Miler and eventually the Leadville 100. Then try to run Hardrock or Western States someday. One thing is certain: I would not attempt an Ultra at high-altitude unless I could live and train there. I realize all this could be 5,10, maybe 15 years off but its easy to get excited about even the prospect of such an achievement.
I could try to get faster at shorter stuff. I could (and probably will) try to improve my Marathon PR someday but there is a certain lure to Ultras that makes them fascinating to me. They seem intensely satisfying and challenging and really appeal to most runners' desire for true adventure. Its an introspective feeling, about self-fulfillment and being "one with nature". There is always the chance that I hate running such a long ultra, but after getting my feet wet at Northface 50 miler I think there is potential here.
No comments:
Post a Comment