Orange Trail Monkey 100
October 9, 10 2015
The Orange Trail Monkey 100 is a “bandit” 100 miler race set
up by Steve Huff and Sam Jewkes. (bandit meaning unofficial, non-sanctioned) 2015,
the year I ran the race, was the second year it was held. This is considered a “self-supported” run due
to the fact that there are no formal aid stations and no trail markings. However, the night before the race Steve and
Matt were kind enough to drive drop bags of your choosing at designated locations
along the trail about 10 miles apart.
The race runs from the base of Perry Canyon up to Willard
Basin 10 miles away. It continues along
the Skyline Trail past Willard Peak and Ben Lomond Peak and then on down to the
North Ogden Divide (2nd Aid Station). The trail continues up towards Lewis Peak and
then down to Pineview Reservoir (3rd Aid Station). After going past Pineview Reservoir and
across the dam (comprising the only 1 mile paved section of the race), the
route continues up Wheeler Creek Trail on to Green Pond (4th Aid
Station) near Snowbasin Ski Resort. The
trail winds up to the top of Snow Basin near Mt. Ogden, over the saddle between
Mt. Ogden and De Moisy Peak and then continues west down the mountain
eventually heading to the base of Beus Canyon, the turn-around point and 5th
aid station. With 3 major climbs (done
twice) and an elevation gain of over 25,000 feet, this is one tough course!
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| The sun rises over Brigham City - Day 1, Mile 5 |
There were to be three of us doing the 100 (Steve, Sam and
myself) and several others meeting us at the turnaround point (50 mile mark,
Beus Canyon Trailhead in Ogden) to do as much as they could through the night
and into the next day. The idea was Sam
would stay with me the first 45 miles to show me the course so I would be able
to navigate my way back at the turn-around point by myself if necessary. Makes sense, right?
RACE DAY
The race began on Friday October 9th at 6:00 AM
at the base of Perry Canyon in Perry, Utah.
The starting point was an unmarked, dirt parking lot with access to the
trail leading up the canyon. I almost
made it there on time. However, even
with Sam talking me through directions on where the start was, it was difficult
to find in the dark. But I arrived and
we were on the trail about 6:10 AM. The
trail starts by heading into some trees, winding around and crossing a stream
(I think). Again, remember- dark,
unfamiliar trail, a few trail junctions.
I’m supposed to remember this some 36 sleep deprived hours later coming
back at mile 99. After a mile or so, the
trail eventually breaks out onto a main trail that heads up the canyon.
 |
| Tony and Sam - Mile 6 |
 |
| Steve sets the pace early on |
We’re still moving along guided by headlamps, with Steve
wanting to run more than we should this early in a long race, and Sam and I
trying to hold back. If you remember one
thing about this part of the trail, it is that it has an infinite number of
switchbacks. Not just the diagonal kind
the actually make forward progress, but what seem to switchbacks that form
nearly parallel lines with very small, incremental forward progress and lots of
lateral progress. Due to the flat nature
of these switchbacks, there are quite a few runnable sections even heading
up. After about an hour, the sun starts
coming up. And as we gain elevation,
we’re beginning to get views of Brigham City below waking up to a Friday.
 |
| Fall colors light up Willard Basin - Mile 10 |
 |
| Steve - partaking at Aid Station 1 |
After about 6 miles of switchbacks we head south and the
trail follows a ridgeline at about 8000 or 9000’ feet. And our first major goal is in sight - Willard Basin at the foot of Willard
Peak. The single track trail soon joined
the jeep trail that headed straight to Willard Basin. Willard Basin is nestled below Willard Peak
on the south and Inspiration Point on the west.
It is filled with groves of pine trees and even has a pond. Upon arriving at Willard Basin (about Mile 10,
8500 feet), we headed to the first aid station – a tent set up by Steve the day
before which contained our supplies. It
even had an air mattress for a catnap though-
too early for that. We refueled, refilled our hydration packs and headed out of
the basin.
DISASTER AVERTED
 |
| Willard Basin Pond - Mile 10 |
On my way out I stopped for a potty break (one that requires
TP) in the trees. After hurrying to
catch up with Sam, I realized after ¼ mile that I didn’t have my cell
phone. I ran back to the tent and looked
all over. No phone. So I checked the spot of my bathroom break
and fortunately, there it was. Disaster
averted. It had fallen out of my shorts
onto some pine boughs. Don’t worry – it
hadn’t been affected by my bathroom break.
So now, I really had to hurry to catch up to Sam who was waiting for me
on the trail up to the saddle between Willard and Inspiration Point. Steve was long gone – probably 20 minutes
ahead of us at this point. But that was
OK.
We were now on familiar ground to me. I really love this section of trail as it
skirts below Willard Peak heading towards Ben Lomond Peak. This is a very narrow section of single track
with steep scree below. You don’t want
to step off of the trail or it’s a long slide down towards Perry- but really
not too much danger if you stay on the trail.
Later on the trail follows the ridge between Willard and Ben
Lomond. And this is a great place to
spot herds of mountain goats. First we
ran into a couple of people who were hunting mountain goats. We joked that we’d make sure we’d scare any
away that we saw. Sure enough, a few
minutes later there was a herd of about 30 mountain goats on the west side of
the ridge. This herd is pretty elusive
and difficult to get close to, but they’re fun to watch from any distance.
 |
| Sam just after Ben Lomond |
The trail comes within about 50 yards of summiting Ben
Lomond (9200’?). We considered doing
that but decided to save our energy since we’d both been to the top
before. After zig-zagging down the east
side of Ben Lomond, the trail settles into a beautiful 7 miles of gradual
downhill, single track alternating sides of the ridge above North Ogden on the
west and north Ogden Valley on the east.
 |
| The woods north of North Ogden Divide |
We were able to make up some time here running the majority of this
section. Although tempting, we were
careful not to totally “open up” in this section because we didn’t want to
trash our quads with 75 miles yet to go.
The trail finally reaches a point where there is a series of switchbacks
as you make your way down to the North Ogden Divide, our second Aid Station at
approximately Mile 20
NORTH OGDEN DIVIDE
Sam had cleverly hidden our supplies in the trees behind the
parking lot at the North Ogden divide.
He even had a cooler and a soccer chair we could sit on as we refueled
and filled our hydration packs. My drop
bags all contained basically the same things – cookies, crackers, grapes, ½
PB&J, a snack pack of diced peaches in syrup, and last but not least a
bottle of Coca Cola for a caffeine burst and carbonation to settle my
stomach. Some of these items I would eat
at the stop, others I would stuff in my hydration pack or pockets to eat along
the trail. The only real exception to this was my drop bag at the Beus Canyon
Trailhead (50 mile turnaround) which also contained my night clothes.
Heading out of the North Ogden Divide, there is a rather
steep 2 mile climb up onto the ridge.
 |
| The climb out of N. Ogden Divide |
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| Looking back at Ben Lomond |
The good thing about this climb is it’s mostly shaded in pine
trees. Once you arrive at the ridge,
unfortunately the pine trees go away.
But at least the climb is more gradual.
For this course instead of following the ridge all the way to Lewis Peak
which overlooks Ogden, it takes a left and heads southeast down towards Ogden
Canyon.
 |
| Lewis Peak Panorama |
This is a very runnable section,
although sometimes quite rocky, that lasts for several miles. Again, Sam and I were able to enjoy running
most of this section as it made its way down toward Pineview Reservoir. There are several beautiful vantage points of
the reservoir on the trail. About 2
miles before the reservoir, the trail goes into a series of switchbacks that
ease the drop down to the highway adjacent to the reservoir.
 |
| Tony and Sam pause on Lewis Peak |
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| Pineview Reservoir (mile 30 and 70) |
The Pineview Reservoir or “Beach” aid station (mile 30) was
just off the trail, across the road, and in “The Beach” parking lot. Steve had left his vehicle there with our
supplies inside. After helping some
ladies secure their paddle board to the top of their car, we stopped and
refueled at Steve’s car. We then headed
down the road, across the dam and up Wheeler Creek Canyon.
I’d never been up this canyon before. It is a gradual rise with a stream alongside
and for a section rock canyon walls.
After a few miles it opens up as you arrive at Art Noord Park and cross
the Old Snow Basin Road. The trail
continues southward and upward, but gradually, as it heads towards Snow Basin. This was probably a low point for Sam as he
was suffering from stomach issues. But
he snapped out of it as we hit the next aid station at Green Pond (mile 40)
just below Snow Basin.
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| Sam heading into Green Pond |
At Green Pond, again Sam and Steve had cleverly stashed our
stuff in some bushes near the parking lot.
After refueling, we again crossed the Old Snow Basin Road and jumped on
the Green Pond trail. This trail is primarily
for mountain bikers but is a nice single track for runners too. It winds its way through the woods on the
Snow Basin ski resort. We didn’t stay
exclusively on the Green Pond trail but took other trails and maintenance roads
up through the resort. Since it was
quite confusing this was the only section of trail that Steve had marked. He did it with clothes pins at critical trail
junctions.
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| Sam providing directions at Green Pond |
At this point the sun began
to go behind the mountain. By the time
we were nearly to the summit below Mt. Ogden, it was dark and we had to don our
headlamps. At the summit, we paused briefly
and took in the view of the city lights of Ogden far below. As we gazed up on the ridge, we saw dozens of
pairs of eyes staring down at us. Upon
further inspection we realized it was a herd of mountain goats, Mt. Ogden
variety.
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| Ogden from Mt. Ogden saddle (Mile 45) |
It was at this point that Sam took off down the trail. It was only 5 miles down the mountain to the
50 mile turn-around point at the Beus Canyon trail head. We headed down the ridge line. As I followed Sam’s headlamp, he took a left
off of the ridge. It was about 100 yards
off that we realized that we’d lost the trail.
So we backtracked and got back on the main trail heading down the
ridge. About ½ mile later the actual
trail headed left off of the ridgeline.
This trail was not distinct at all.
It was almost like a game trail, but if you paid close attention you
could stay on the trail. But this wasn’t
easy in the dark.
After awhile, Sam’s headlamp disappeared into the
darkness. I managed to stay on the rough
trail even at points where it crossed over rocky sections surrounded by dense
foliage. The closer I got to the bottom,
the more distinct the trail became.
Finally, I reached a familiar section I’d scouted out a week ago. I reached the point where the trail followed
the stream down Beus Canyon to the trailhead.
I saw a headlamp coming towards me.
It was Steve Huff. He was coming
back after an extended stay at the turnound point. He mentioned his stomach was giving him a lot
of trouble but he was going on. Next up
I ran into Sam and several people who had agree to run with him during the
night. I knew I was less than a mile
from the turn-around.
HALF WAY DONE
As I approached the half way point, the Beus Canyon Trail
Head I grew more excited. I knew that my
daughter, Marissa, and son-in-law Quincy would be waiting to greet me with a
pizza. I had briefly communicated with
Marissa at the top of Mt. Ogden giving her my ETA. I crossed the Bonneville Shoreline Trail and
arrived at the trail head. Sure enough,
there was Marissa and Quincy. They’d
been patiently waiting about an hour.
Also there was race volunteer Mike Place to help me fill my hydration
pack and provide a nice soccer chair to take a load off. After putting on my night clothes (long
sleeve shirt, jacket, beanie, and gloves) guzzling some Coke, eating two pieces
of pizza, and taking one for the road -
I bid farewell to Marissa, Quincy and Mike and was off. Back into the darkness.
HELP! I’M LOST (#1)
I made good progress following the stream up the
canyon. I crossed over the stream and
headed southeast into the section where the trail became less and less
defined. Every so often I would reach a
spot where the trail crossed a rough boulder rock section. The trail either went below or above the rock
outcropping but one section was particularly unclear. I tried both ways and could never find the
point where the trail resumed through the thick brush. I tried this several times. So I headed down the mountain in search of
the trail through the thick brush and scrub oak. Keep in mind it’s 1:00 AM and I have very
limited sight with my headlamp. My legs
were getting scratched up pretty badly.
No luck. So I attempted to climb
back up the mountain above the rock outcropping. It was a struggle to fight through the thick
chest high brush. I was getting very
discouraged. I had several choices- 1) Head back down the trail to the
turn-around point 3 miles back and call it quits, 2) Hunker down where I was for 6 more hours
until daylight, 3) Pray for help. I
knelt down and chose number 3. I got up,
looked around with my headlamp and decided to fight my way a little further up
the mountain. In just a few minutes, I
stumbled upon the trail and was back in business. Although it was still not clear, I managed to
stay on the trail the rest of the way up the ridge to the saddle below Mt.
Ogden.
At this point, it was pretty darn cold and windy – well past
2:00 AM. So I bundled up a little more
and headed down the Snow Basin trail. I
actually managed to follow the clothes pin markers pretty well most of the way
down. The further I got down, the colder
it got. I was just happy I wasn’t lost
anymore. As I proceeded down the trail,
I gathered up the clothes pins that Steve had set up. I ended with a pretty good stash to drop off
at the next aid station. This was
actually a really cool section. With my
headlamp I saw a number of deer. At
first they appeared as 2 yellow eyes in my headlamp until I got a little closer
and could see that they were deer.
Another time, I heard clomping off the side of the trail. Then some more yellow eyes in the light of my
headlamp. Only these eyes were farther
apart. It was a couple of moose watching
me as I went by. At one point, I heard a
pack of wild coyotes wildly howling in the night. It was about 4:00 AM. I wasn’t too worried because they were in the
distance. As I proceeded down the trail,
the howls got farther away. I finally
reached the Green Pond Aid Station and tried to stay warm while I
refueled. Soon I was back on the trail.
LOST (AGAIN? #2)
As I left Green Pond, I reached a junction. Right was “East Fork” and left was “Middle
Fork”. I chose incorrectly and took
“Middle Fork”. I realized my mistake
after about a mile. But I also figured
out that both trails were headed the same direction. And the trail I was on would eventually dump
out onto to Old Snow Basin Road, just like “East Fork”. I just didn’t know where. And I didn’t know if that meant more miles or
fewer miles than the planned route.
Anyway, “Middle Fork” eventually did dump out onto Old Snow Basin
road. So I had to walk the road for
several miles before it reached the point where “East Fork” dumped out onto the
road. As I traveled down the road I saw
a bunch more deer and moose staring at me from the side of the road in the
darkness. Pretty cool. As I finally got back on course at Art Noord
park, about 6:00 AM I found an outhouse at the park where I took a much needed
bathroom break.
 |
| Trying to stay warm (mile 60) Definitely below freezing. |
Then it was back on the
trail headed down the Wheeler Creek Trail.
I started to see signs of civilization again in the form of mountain
bikers with headlamps heading up the trail.
I knew I was getting close to Ogden Canyon, Pineview Reservoir and the
next aid station. So I arrived at the
paved section, crossed the dam and headed towards Steve’s car at “The Beach”
aid station. At this point it was light
enough to turn off my headlamp.
At “The Beach” I jumped in Steve’s car to warm up and
refueled as well. Then it was back on
the trail making the windy climb up the switchbacks above the reservoir. It was really cool to see the sun come up
over the mountains and burn off some of the low clouds that had accumulated
over night.
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| Day 2 - Switchbacks above Pineview Reservoir |
I managed to get in touch
with Sam on the phone. He and Steve were
about 5 miles (1.5 hrs) ahead close to summiting this section. Even though they were far ahead, I took heart
in knowing I wouldn’t get lost for the next 30 miles because 1) I knew the
trail well, and 2) It was daylight. The only
problem was fatigue was setting in and I was not only having a hard time staying
awake but hallucinating – seeing people and animals ahead in what was only tree
stumps or rock formations. So I worked
my way to a bench at a reservoir overlook and curled up for a 15 minute cat
nap. I woke up when I saw Mike Place
heading back the other way. He’d been
running/walking with Sam and Steve but decided to bail and head back to his car
at Pine View. After a few words of
encouragement, we headed our separate ways.
 |
| Looking at Willard Peak from Ben Lomond |
I made good progress towards the Lewis Peak. After topping out on this section I headed
towards North Ogden Divide. But before
getting too far, I started weaving and falling asleep on the trail. I found a secluded spot just off the trail
and tried to catch some Zzzz’s in the dirt.
However, there were too many flies buzzing round so I got up and
continued down to the divide (Mile 80).
I made a brief stop and refueled and realized I had just one long uphill
push in the race. The problem was it now
early afternoon and it was really heating up.
So I headed up the long, exposed switchbacks towards Ben Lomond
Peak. On my way up I ran into old
running friend, Marc Coleman who was coming down the trail from Ben
Lomond. Marc is a 10 time Wasatch 100
finisher, a dentist who provides toothbrushes at mile 75 of Wasatch 100 for all
of the runners, and one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet. After visiting with Marc, I worked past the
switchbacks into the nice wooded area of the trail.
LOST AGAIN ?
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| Willard Basin - Mile 90 - Saturday 5:00 PM |
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| "15 more miles that a way" |
I finally reached the base of Ben Lomond about 4:00 and made
the final push to the high point of the course.
On my traverse over to Willard Peak, again I got a close up view of a
herd of mountain goats. After passing
Willard I headed down to Willard Basin, eager to rehydrate at the final aid
station. Unfortunately I couldn’t find
it. For about 45 minutes I backtracked,
bushwacked, and walked all over the basin looking for the tent that I’d been to
a short 33 hours before. The bad part
was my cell phone battery was gone, my charger was gone, I was out of water,
and since it was 5:30 I was running out of daylight fast. The last 10 miles were unfamiliar to me and I
was also not finding access to the jeep road out of the Basin. Finally, 45 minutes later, I stumbled on the
aid station tent, filled my hydration pack and jumped on the road out of the
basin. I picked up the pace in hopes of
getting to the single track to Perry Canyon before dark.
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| Day 2 sunset - Heading into the Perry Switchbacks - Mile 95 |
I managed to reach the single track on the ridge as the sun
was going down. So I was on the correct
trail. I was encouraged to be on the last
leg of the journey but had forgotten how long and drawn out the constant
switchbacks were of this section. I
started to realize this was going to take longer than I thought. I was having to use my headlamp for the 3rd
time on this run. Also, I had told my
daughter I would be finishing by 7:00 or 8:00 PM and would call her once I
finished. I realized I would be several
hours later than that. And I had no way
to call her and tell her I was OK. So
all I could do was hurry along the trail as quickly as I could on my tired legs
with my fading headlamp.
DUDE, WHERE’S MY CAR?
(Lost #4)
It seemed like I was on this section forever, never getting
close to the bottom of the canyon. I
finally heard water, meaning I was close to the last stretch down the canyon
trail. I was relieved at this point, but
also a bit confused. For the life of me
I couldn’t remember where the cut-off was to get back to the start/finish
parking lot. The only saving grace was I
could see the lights of the cement plant off to my right. I remembered this was close to the
start/finish. But to get close, I had
forge my way across a stream, bushwack through a field and climb over a fence. I managed to get out on the road that led to
the start/finish. I wandered up and down
the road for awhile not finding the entrance to the start/finish parking
lot. Keep in mind it was very dark and
there were very few lights. I tried a
dirt road that led to a dark, empty dirt parking lot and saw a lone car in the
dark. But as I approached the car, I was
certain it wasn’t my car. Again
frustration and disappointment. It was
approaching 11:00 PM. I was not in a
particularly sound mental state. As I
circled the car a few times in the dark, it started to look familiar. Yes, this was my car. I even found a monkey belt buckle underneath
the windshield wiper. I had completed
the Orange Trail Monkey 100 Mile Race!
It only took me about 39 hours and 50 minutes. But I had finished!
I found the keys to my car in my hydration pack. Boy did it feel good to get in my car. I started charging my phone and notified my
daughter that I had finished safely (and didn’t need a ride back to
Kaysville). I also texted Sam and let
him know I’d safely finished the race.
After a brief stop at the Perry Maverik for a hot dog and chocolate milk
I made the 35 minute drive back home to Kaysville.
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| The coveted OTM 100 mile buckle |
Here's how the timing workout out:
·
Aid Stations:
2 hours 20 minutes
·
Lost: 2
hours 30 minutes
·
Moving time:
35 hours
What went wrong:
·
I got lost for 2 and ½ hours.
·
One of my (2) 20 hour Garmins never got charged.
·
I almost lost my cell phone at the base of pine
tree while taking a bathroom break at Mile 10.
·
My cell phone didn’t hold its charge for very
long.
·
After I charged my phone with a portable charger
overnight, my cell phone only lasted until about 4:00 PM so I couldn’t contact
my daughter and wife to tell them I’d be later than planned.
What went right:
·
My stomach stayed happy the entire race.
·
I didn’t get any blisters.
·
My trekking poles helped on the steep ascents and
descents.
·
I packed the right amount of warm clothes for
the night
·
I didn’t get hurt. My knees were sore at the end, but what do
you expect after 100 miles and 25000 feet elevation gain/loss.
·
Although I got lost several times, I didn’t
panic and eventually got back on track each time.
·
I had a great time getting to know Sam and Steve.
·
I saw and heard incredible wild life and saw
amazing scenery.
·
I had an amazing race experience.
As you can see, I had a lot more things go right than
wrong. All in all, I felt pretty good
for running 100 plus miles, scaling over 25,000 feet, and being on my feet for
nearly 40 hours. My knees were a bit
sore, but I didn’t have any blisters, could still listen to the 4th
quarter of the Utah game, and had arrived safely home. As with all 100 milers, I felt a strong
sense of accomplishment and relief.
However this one was different – without any constant support, trail
markings, pacer or crew, this race was more challenging and more of an
adventure run. I was glad I did it, but
felt like I had my fill of the “bandit” 100 milers for awhile.
EQUIPMENT/CLOTHING:
Altra Lone Peak 2.0 trail shoes, Injinji toe socks, Nathan
hydration pack, Black Diamond trekking poles, Garmin 310
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