September 23, 2006
Dupont Waterfall Run

A beautiful, sunny day greeted us at the Hooker Falls parking lot.
There were no scantily clad overly made up ladies of the evening
selling wares of the flesh despite the name. Due to race organizer
Adam's inopportune absence, only four runners participated.
The low turnout didn't dampen our spirits but I'd like to see 20
runners next time. We split into teams of two, which was a wise
decision as the run became as much an adventure race as it was a
run. The distance appeared to be 22 miles but they were a long 22
miles. The course was tougher than the Dupont Marathon.

Carl and Sam went ahead of Rob and myself up the paved road. We all
missed the first turn. We looked at it but it was unmarked so we
went past. Rob and I backtracked and concluded that the trail was
correct so we took it. We came back to the point were we turned
around and proceeded across the road. The trails were somewhat
rocky at this point but mostly runnable with the exception of a few
short, steep climbs.

Dupont is full of sand. It has more sand than some beaches.
Fortunately, the sand is gentle on the feet until it gets deeper and
then it tends to suck you doen and you work a bit harder to keep
going. Corn Mill Shoals trail is a nice wide trail until it
seemingly deadends at a stream. I looked around for a way to cross
without getting wet and figured there was no way around it. Rob and
I crossed at a shallow point but the current and the slick rock just
about sent me on my ass. Once you get your feet wet you don't mind
doing it again.

The trail continued on beautiful single track which I'd never
experienced since I'd always wussed out on the stream crossing. The
climbing had begun. The first waterfall was soon to come. Bridal
Veil Falls drops over a large slab of granite. The water was
plentiful and the most I'd seen at this waterfall. We didn't get in
and swim this time.

The run took us past Lake Julia, bluer than the sky above and
inviting for any and all watersports. The trail crossed a bridge
and we entered an extremely lush section and then started ascending.
My shortcoming is running long inclines. I slowed Rob down a bit
but he didn't seem to mind. He knew the value of traveling slowly,
having completed the Leadville 100 in August.

The climbing continued until we hit a dirt road. It was about two
miles to the next trail. We came upon an unnamed trailhead and were
tempted to take it. Looking at the contours of the map it seemed to
be in the wrong spot so we continued on, hoping we wouldn't regret
turning. We made the right choice and turned down an extremely
rocky trail. We moved with haste and dexterity about the myriad
rocks. It seemed like a dry riverbed and a good warmup for
Pitchell.


Another stream crossing led us to Wintergreen Falls where we heard
voices in the distance. I figured it was some kids playing in the
falls but it was the other team of runners, Carl and Sam. Carl was
under the falls which were impaling his body with great force. I
slid into the pool and had my breath taken away. The crisp, clear
water was refreshing but quite cool. I got partway under the falls
for the photo op then struggled to exit the pool on the slippery
rock.

The falls would now come more quickly. It took 16 miles to get to
the second one but in 6 more we'd have visited them all. We all
swam at Grassy Branch as well. Again the rock proved a challenge to
traverse in and out of the pool. Beyond the covered bride lay High
Falls. The water was stronger here and Carl climbed up a bit and
slid back down.

We climbed up a steep trail and headed for Triple Falls. A steep
trail brought us between levels. It was on to Hooker Falls and the
finish. After a quick jaunt on the Galax trail, we passed through
the parking lot and went on to Hooker falls. We finished back at
the lot. The traverse took 5:50 to complete, well beyond our
estimates of 4:00-4:30.

This is a highly recommended run but don't underestimate the
difficulty of terrain and the adventurous aspect as well. Some
trails are a bit confusing but this just adds to the experience.

Raging Bull