As I have found lo these many years up to now, it takes an hour. Everytime takes an hour, from awakening to exiting the house for a long run. It does not take this long for a weekday run. Maybe I am more focused. Maybe it takes fewer supplies. In any case, this is what it takes. Even if one has slept the better part of the night on the floor, as I have been wont to do lately.
This has more to do with Thunder the Wonder dog whining through the night than getting ready for a long run. No, I probably should not give in and sleep next to him on the floor, but some sleep on the floor is better than no sleep in the bed. Especially when one’s task for the day is scouting out another section of the Shut In trail. This is a task best tackled at the earliest possible moment.
Or if one has been sleeping on the floor, its ok to tackle the run after a bit of warming to the day. I arrived at the Walnut Cove overlook at about the time the sun was begining to burn off the last evening’s shroud. After the last exploration, I was hoping that the trail might moderate itself, and my first impressions were positive, but it became immediately clear that there was no running out of the Sleepy Gap parking area.
Which was ok, because a sign said that this was 11 miles and change from Pisgah, and Pisgah is my goal in a race of almost 18 miles. So this was one third of the way. And after the initial climb out of Sleepy gap, things did start to moderate. The somewhat broader, more even trail passed through great tunnels of rhododendron and laurel. This is what I had come looking for.
When my somewhat unreliable yet still functional equipment said I had been on the trail for something close to an hour, I decided it was time to find a logical turn around. No sooner had this thought come to mind than I hit the forest service road at Bent Creek Gap. A memorable landmark if nothing else. Headed back down the mountain, I reflected on the news that the Shut-In race is full, and I have no idea if I am in or not. While there is a good chance that I am, it will be fine either way. This chance to be on the trail is worth it.