Tough Long Run on Blue Ridge Parkway

Before going camping I had mapped out a running route that basically dropped about 2000 feet over about 5 miles, then climbed back up over about 7 miles, with another 4 miles of rolling to finish the loop. However, I found an instance where Google Maps got it wrong. The road I planned to run down did not exist, at least not that I could find and not that a park ranger knew of. So I decided to just run on the Blue Ridge Parkway where our camp site was located.

From the camp site entrance, I first went left (North) for about 2 miles. I knew that way was mostly downhill. The first mile was not so much, but the second mile was down. After 2, I turned around and climbed back up and continued on past the starting point. I was carrying a hip pack style Camelback with water, two Gus and half a Cliff bar. I was aiming for 16 total miles. With 4 done, that meant 6 miles out and 6 back going South from the campground entrance.

After about 2, I decided to eat my first Gu and to ditch the pack and pick it up on the return. That meant I would run 4 more miles, turn around, run 4 back to and pick up the hip pack. I foolishly thought, "I can do 8 miles without water or additional fuel." Had it been 8 flat or gently rolling miles, that might have been true. If I had realized how much I had been coming down, and was still going to go and have to run back up to get the pack, I may have carried the it a bit further also.

Running uphill not only makes you run slower, it drains your energy much faster. With that first Gu in me, I felt pretty good for the next 4 miles. I was a bit thirsty at the turn around point, mile 10, but felt alright. I told myself just 4 miles to mile 14 and I'll have my pack with water. Before the turn around I had been coming downhill for about a mile and a quarter. I ran back up that and was getting more thirsty and more tired. A short downhill followed, then a short flatish section.

Then I began the 2 mile climb in the middle of which my pack hopefully waited with my water and food. "I really hope an animal did not find it and carry it off," I thought. I had to walk a little bit of that, but kept telling myself, "The more you run, the faster you'll get to that pack." A small bag with water and food had never been so important to me. Mile 14 done, I found my pack. I was so wiped out I had to fight the urge to lay down in the shaded grass. I quickly ate the Cliff bar, finished off the water and at the energy gel.

I decided to keep moving, but that meant walking for now. The food needed time to find my muscles. And I had one more mile of pretty good up hill before it leveled out a bit. That mile became a mixture of walking and running. With one mile left, the food was doing its job and the terrain became more friendly. I was able to run the last mile back to the campground.

Here is the elevation profile of this run. You can see how mile 14 - the hip pack hiding place - is in the middle of a long climb.

My quads are definitely sore today. Not just long run soreness, but uphill soreness I think. Despite the tough terrain and fueling errors, it was very beautiful, scenic, perfect temperature, etc. run and I'll have good memories of it.