Cool Ultra Trails

Here are some sweet ultra trails in wilderness settings in California and Washington State. If I am going to be running as far and long as these trails, the scenery better be spectacular and this list delivers! I don’t think I am ready to run the longer trails on this list, but maybe sometime in the future.

• Wonderland Trail (93 miles): Encircles 14,410 foot Mount Rainier, entailing forest, meadows, alpine lakes, and spectacular views of glacier-clad Rainier.
• Stevens to Snoqualmie (75 miles): Along the Pacific Crest Trail from Stevens Pass to Snoqualmie Pass traveling through the heart of Alpine Lakes Wilderness with some of the best mountain scenery in the United States.
• John Muir Trail (211 miles): A point-to-point trail from the summit of Mount Whitney to Yosemite Valley covering the most wild and rugged section of the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range.
• Tahoe Rim Trail (165 miles): Running a complete loop around Lake Tahoe just sounds sweet.
• High Sierra Trail (72.2 miles): Passing some of the most gorgeous scenery in Sequoia National Park, this point-to-point route goes from Crescent Meadow (West) to it’s official end at the John Muir Trail at Wallace Creek (East) 49 miles from the start. The trip would continue over the Sierra Crest and down to Whitney Portal for an additional 23 miles, hence 72 miles total.
• Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne (33 miles): Following the Tuolumne River through a spectacular canyon almost to Hetch Hetchy Reservoir, this point-to-point starts at the wonderful Tuolumne meadows and concludes at White Wolf Campground.
• Skyline-to-the-Sea (29.5 miles): From Saratoga Gap at the crest of the Santa Cruz Mountains to the Pacific Ocean, traveling through Castle Rock State Park and the gorgeous redwoods at Big Basin State Park.
• Rae Lakes Loop (46 miles): From Road’s End in Kings Canyon up to a string of gorgeous lakes in the High Sierra.