Bear Canyon Loop (The 2nd Time Around)

Last Saturday, Kathryn invited me to run the BCL trail with her. This is one of my favorite trails in Tucson. I'm not sure why exactly, but it's a great loop.

I remember every mile of it: 5 miles is right above 7 Falls; 7 miles is above Thimble Peak and the worst hills have past, 8 miles starts the fastest downhill I have ever run; 13 miles is near the end of the trail before the road and 17 miles is the end!

I guess knowing each milestone along the trail helps to make the miles fly by. And every time I run it, I remember more. 

We started at 5:30am in the SCVC parking lot. The high was going to be in the 90's so we wanted to start out early. It would take us about 4 hours to finish and that would put us ending at around 9:30am.

  We took the trail towards 7 Falls and would come back down the main road.

5:30am - Running down the road to
7 Falls.

Kathryn, almost to the trail head.

On the 7 Falls trail, about to cross a
water crossing. So beautiful!

  The trail was so beautiful at this time in the morning. I need to get out here more often at 5:30am!

We continued down the 7 Falls trail. I was doing a pretty good job of keeping up with Kathryn (running with other people stresses me out; I never know if I am slowing them down or not! Does anyone else ever get that feeling?). But then we reached the first switchbacks heading up the trail. I didn't see her again after that. She was so fast! I admit, I was taking my time and taking pictures along the way. Also, my weakness is running uphill so I need to work on that. ;)

A view of Tucson from back in the canyon. 

The canyon walls. So beautiful with the rising sun!

Looking back on the switchbacks. 

Running above 7 Falls. 

As the trail curves around, just above 7 Falls, there is a whole new canyon. I love running deeper and deeper into this canyon. You feel so alone! I usually never see hikers out this far.

The switchbacks from another view. 

Before running around the bend,
I came across this downed saguaro! Poor thing. 

A cute, little waterfall. Next time, I'd like to jump in that water!
It was hot and humid on this run! 

At the top of the trail, the highest point on the BCL,
I found someone's water stash.
You can see Thimble Peak in the background. 

The area above Sabino Canyon. So beautiful! 

 I didn't get to take any photos on the way down ( I was running too fast!). The downhill, just after this point, is such a relief after climbing for so long! When I reached the road, I jumped in the stream at every. single. crossing (it's about 5-7 water crossings). I swear, people thought I was crazy!

Definitely one of my favorite runs! I ended up finishing in exactly 4 hours. Just like the last time I ran it. I can't wait to get a PR on this trail. I am making some plans to include Sabino Canyon in some more of my training runs. I need to work on hills. :)

This run gave me some fantastic looking toenails (2 black toenails) so that tells me that I may need some bigger shoes (maybe a half size larger). I will share those photos with you later. ;)

This weekend, I am running Mt. Wrightson. It's supposed to rain and get pretty cold so I'm looking forward to an exciting run! 

Santa Catalina Ascent

Back in May, I decided to run up Mt. Lemmon. We would start in Sabino Canyon and end at the beginning of the Mt. Bigelow Trailhead at Catalina Highway, at least 14 miles up. The hard thing about this run obviously wasn't the mileage, it was the elevation climb: Almost 6000 feet of change! And had I completed the entire challenge (26 miles to the top) it would have been a lot more. 

We started out at 6:00 am at the Sabino Canyon Parking lot. I signed in, grabbed a map and dropped off my drop bag (Mt. Lemmon can get cold at the top, especially after all the sweating I would be doing) with the run director. I recognized some people, but I'm still too shy to say hello. I'm always the youngest on the runs and I feel as if I am not yet fully accepted. It's just a feeling, but I usually have good instincts about things, as silly as that sounds.  

We walked down the road together so we could all start together at milepost 0. And then we were off!
I will be honest, I wasn't keeping up my fitness, so I was really slow.
My goal was to make it to the top, alive, and not beat any records. That's it.
So, when the TTR group took off in front of me, I wasn't surprised. I was worried that I would be the last one, but I knew they wouldn't leave me out there alone. :)

Starting out early in Sabino Canyon, TTR runners out in front. 

A little farther down the road,
Thimble Peak in the background. 

Feeling slow, but good. 

 I finally reached the end of the road. I looked up and saw how far ahead the other runners were (there are a few switchbacks on the trail above the road). And they were booking it! They were running at such a great pace uphill I was amazed as to how they were doing it! I guess I need to train on hills more. :)

The end of the road and heading up Sabino Canyon Trail.

Looking back down at the road.

 I was already winded going up the trail so I had to slow it down and power hike it for awhile.
I knew how far I had to go (and how high) so I didn't want to completely wear myself out).

Heading up the trail. The blue mountains in the background
are where I need to be. 

I kept trucking along and finally got some energy from the gel I had eaten. I crossed paths with another trail runner (I think she was part of TTR) going the opposite direction and I wondered where she ran to. Did she make it to the top and she's coming back down!?! Holy crap!

I'm pretty sure that's not the case, but I have to keep myself entertained on these runs. :)

Take the East Fork!

I finally reached another trail sign after worrying that I may have missed it and was going in the wrong direction.  I looked at the map and decided the East Fork was the way to go. I had almost taken West Fork. Ugh, that would have made me really sad, with the way I was already feeling. 

Rounding another corner, going deeper into Sabino Canyon. 

 Sometime after the trail sign, I started freaking out. I had remembered reading about all those recent deaths from africanized bees here in Tucson and my mind started to race:
What if I get attacked today? I'm alone, no one would know until later. It's almost summer so no one is hiking this far back in Sabino Canyon because of the heat. And I'm the back of the pack of the TTR runners. Thankfully they would come look for me. But it'd be too late. I can't outrun bees when I'm this tired! Ugh, RUN FASTER! 
Seriously. This was what I was thinking. I am so paranoid sometimes!

 And then...I started thinking about mountain lions and mountain lion attacks. I was not doing a good job of motivating myself to run faster. I was slowing down, looking behind me, trying to be as quiet as possible, etc.
So, I didn't get any photos during this part of my run. And it was actually really pretty! There were large, shady trees and lots of green-ish plants (a big deal here in the southwest). But I was too busy thinking off mountain lions...

You should have seen my face when I heard noises some distance behind me. I literally froze.
Thankfully, I wasn't the last TTR runner!
Two women had taken the West Fork trail and go backtracked. So they were coming up behind me.
I was thankful because it gave me a reason to go faster...I didn't want to be passed!

Out of the canyon, heading
up some steep hills. 

 After I got another energy boost from the women behind me, I left the cool, shady trees of the canyon and started by ascent uphill. And it wasn't an easy uphill. It was some serious uphill trail. 

I kept pushing myself, and continually looking back to make sure I was still far ahead of them.
Unfortunately, they were going pretty fast. And those uphills were killing me!

So, I had to let them pass. We all stopped on an overlook of the city and chatted for a little bit. I asked them about mountain lions. They said they never saw one...ever. I think they thought I was a little crazy for my paranoia but they definitely helped ease my worry. 

However, it was too late. I was already drained from all the worrying I was doing.
Like...sleepy drained. I literally wanted to go to sleep. 

My drained self, wanting to take a nap. 

So, I did. I think. I can't really remember. I was so tried!
I remember sitting down on a rock and I think i put my head down for what seemed like a few minutes.
And I'm pretty sure it was a few minutes. Because I remember frantically texting my boyfriend telling him I may die and I needed to be saved. But I eventually just settled with telling him to meet me at the Mt. Bigelow trail-head on Catalina Highway. 

I forced myself to get up and walk to the end if I had to. I wasn't going to stay out there. 

So I pushed myself. I ate a gel, hoping to get some energy. I mostly walked, and sometime I got a minute of jogging in. But it was mostly an uphill battle, literally. 

Looking out over Tucson.

Thimble Peak, from the other side. You can even see Phoneline Trail if you look close enough. 

 I started to climb even more. I passed some fairly high cliffs and if there was running water, I'm sure there would be waterfalls. 

Looking over some cliffs on the Palisades Trail.  

Thimble Peak disappearing in the background
as go farther up the trail. 

 My next goal was to make it to Mud Springs, the farthest point I had been coming down the Palisades trail from the other direction. I was going to cover the entire trail today, something I had been wanting to do for a very long time! 

The second I hit the mud, I was ecstatic! I was so happy I got another burst of energy. I was impressed with what I had just accomplished. I never thought I would be doing anything like this 2 years ago.

I was almost there!!!

The mud from Mud Springs. The name doesn't fool you. :)

It was actually full today! If I needed some water, I may actually drink it too.
It didn't look nasty as usual. 

So, I was almost there.

I knew I had to keep going.
And I still had to keep pushing myself to get there.

Just after Mud Springs.
I knew this part of the trail well. 

 I was so happy when I saw the pine tree line up ahead!!

PINE TREES!!!! 

 I was a little delirious at this point. I was elated to be so close and so happy to be outdoors and doing what I love to do most! 

A few more uphills to go. 

 This part of the trail was really tough for me because I knew exactly how much more ground I needed to cover. My childhood summer camp is just above this trail I hiked it a lot as a kid and as a counselor a few years ago.
When I got to the top of a particularly tough climb, I met two elderly rangers sitting down and enjoying the view. They were so cute! The woman was asking where I had come from and she was amazed at my answer. I was too. :)

Looking back from where I came from, feeling
impressed with myself. 

 I came near an intersection in the trail that I used a lot as a camp counselor and I saw Shower's Point.
I have probably hiked there over a hundred times in the past 15 years. It brought back a lot of good memories.

Shower's Point! Oh, how happy I am to see you!

I was getting really tired again. My legs were cramping up and I just ran out of water. I hoping to see Chance out on the trail somewhere (not sure why I thought that, but I did) so I was disappointed when he wasn't there. I finally reached the end of the Palisades Trail and I guess who was there?? Chance! He was waiting for me!  

He gave me some Gatorade to finish the last mile and he drove alongside me for a few feet until I told him to meet me at the aid station. 

Organization Ridge Road: The final mile.

 I made myself jog even though I hurt. I rounded the corner and there was the aid station!
The TTR volunteers were happy to see me. They said they were getting worried. They were so welcoming and happy to see me. What a nice thing to arrive to. I ate some snacks, picked up my bag and told them I wouldn't be going any farther. They told me the women who passed me had quit early too. Well, at leat I wasn't the only one. :)

I jumped in Chance's truck and we went home. I felt so sick on the drive down the mountain! I wanted to throw up! Thankfully, that feeling passed and I arrived home sleepy and ready for a nap. 

The elevation gain. 

As soon as I finished, I told Chance I would never run this trail again.
But to be honest, it was quite an adventure! I hope to run it again next year! :D

We always seem to forget about the pain, don't we?

"We take these risks not to escape life, but to prevent life from escaping us."

After Hours in Sabino Canyon

Yesterday, I headed down to Sabino Canyon to get in a few miles. I had planned on going around 4pm and run all the way to the end of the road but life got in my way. As usual. :)

So I made it to the parking lot at 5:30pm. Much later than I had planned. The sun was already going down so it turned into a sunset run. The run to the end of the road is about 3.5 miles (one way) but I only ended up going 2 miles in (4 miles total).

It started to get very dark.

And I usually don't mind the dark near my house; But in Sabino Canyon, it's a different story.

The area is notorious for sightings of mountain lions.

And they like to come out at dawn and at dusk, exactly the time I was running.

They like to ambush their prey by hiding in bushes and on rocks. Every time I came close to a bushy/rocky area, I would run to the other side of the road so I would be the farthest I could from it.

I also became hypersensitive to every. single. sound. out. there.

I swear, it sounded like something was following me.

But of course, there wasn't. Thank goodness...At least I don't think there was...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My training for Week 8 of marathon training:

Monday: Rest Day
Tuesday: 4 miles
Wednesday: Weights at the gym
Thursday: 4 miles
Friday: Weights at the gym
Saturday: 3 miles EZ
Sunday: TTR Bear Canyon run. My schedule says 8 miles, but the run is around 16 miles. I really want to check out the trail so I may just go for the full route. It will be my longest run to date. I'm not trying to beat any record, so it will be a nice, slow run. 

Sabino Festival of Routes

April 22nd, 2012:

Sabino Festival of Routes

Tucson, AZ
Choice of distance

Back in April, before the heat really hit us, I thought I would try a run in Sabino Canyon with TTR. I was a little worried about the heat but we started at 6am and I assumed it would be early enough. I went solo for this one, although I wish I had brought someone else along.

I arrived to the Sabino Canyon parking lot around 6am greeted by a circle of TTR runners. I made just before they were about to run. Phew. I'll admit I was a little nervous, thinking they wouldn't like me or something ridiculous. If they had left before I got there, I wouldn't have stuck around. Got to get to these things earlier so I won't give myself the chance to wuss out! 

And off we went! The sun was just coming up and it looked like it was going to be a beautiful run. 

Trailing behind the other TTR runners. 

I quickly fell behind knowing that I am not as seasoned as most of these other runners. I wanted to conserve energy. So I trotted behind until I lost them on the beginning of he Phoneline trail. I decided to take the Seven Falls route and check out the beginning portion  of the Bear Canyon Loop (my goal is to conquer that route this winter). I was keeping my eye on some other runners and followed them up the Phoneline trail instead of my intended route. I had to backtrack a little bit, but it didn't make that much of a difference. 

The beginning of the 7 Falls trail.

Throughout the 7 Falls run, I was constantly looking around me. I was paranoid. A lone runner, running on a trail that is known to have mountain lions, yeah...I was freaking out a bit. I kept thinking: I'm the only person out here right now. If I get attacked, no one will know. 


Yeah, I wasn't really helping myself out...

A portion of the 7 Falls trail.

Everything was so still...

On my way into the canyon. Oh my gawd...is that a MOUNTAIN LION behind me?? Jk, jk...

Just before the climb up to the start of Bear Canyon Loop.

Finally, I saw another runner. Phew! And then another one! I was okay. I really calmed down knowing there were other people out here. It helped me re-focus on my run. 

The wash was dry, as usual. 

Overlooking 7 Falls. 

I got to the trail sign above 7 Falls and followed the trail up a little bit. I plan to run this route in the winter when they host this run. However, the sun was coming up a little faster than I intended and I needed to make sure I got back before the heat really hit.

Going up the Bear Canyon Loop trail. 

The trail going back down.

It was already so hot when I got back to the trailhead. I still had about 2 miles left to go until I reached the parking lot. I know I'm Heat Runner, but running in the heat is serious business. This summer, 2 people died from heat stroke. Both were from out of town and didn't understand summer heat. So, you'll forgive me if I was freaking out a little. Which I was. Thankfully, I knew where the water faucets were so water was no problem for me. It was the sun beating down on my head, neck and back. I walked for as long as I could but soon realized it would mean I would be out here for a longer period of time. I forced myself to run the last .70 miles. Man, that was rough. 


I made it back safety though! I reached the parking lot and was greeted by lots of food and cool drinks. I went straight for the Gatorade (wasn't feeling like eating anything). I chitchatted a little with some other runners who had recently made it back. At least I wasn't the last one! Although, I was surprised to hear other runners were still out in the heat.

It was a little weird trying to make conversation with the other runners. I am, by far, the youngest person out there. I have yet to meet anyone my age. It's a little disappointing. What really doesn't help me is how much younger I actually look (I look like I'm 18). People don't take me seriously because of it. So, it's always weird going to these events and trying to make conversation. Anyone else have this problem? 


Overall, I had fun. The TTR events are usually laid back, which I don't mind. I have to mix a few those in with the big, loud, crazy running events, right? I hope to continue going to these runs, considering that I now have my weekends off. Can't wait for the next one! 


Happy Running!