2 runs, only 3 days apart. The first, up the Farmington Canyon singletrack to Sunset Campground and then down the road on Monday. A recovery run of sorts and it felt great. I PRd on the loop and a 5k PR on the way down! It was only in the 70s but it felt so hot. I was SWEATING!
3 days later, on Thursday, I headed up the Fruit Heights upper terrace from Shepherd Creek to Baer Canyon and back (about a mile north from Monday’s run). Note in the pictures…it was not hot and sweat in the 70s. A bit colder.
Looking South, across Shepherd Creek Canyon and towards the Farmington Upper Terrace trail.Trail?
Instead, I explored up Shepherd Creek. I have heard that the trail goes all the way to Francis Peak, but as with most of our trails – I figured it probably fades out.
I followed it about 2.5 miles up, and there were still pink ribbons tied in trees ahead. So, I am optimistic that it might actually be a viable route to the top. I made it about 1/2 way. Coming down from Francis Peak, there is a visible trail on the ridge. Maybe 1.5 miles between where I ended and that trail starts up? It could be a fun future adventure.
In any case – the Shepherd Creek trail was well marked, but a bit rough. No bushwhacking, but it is not the most well established or packed down trail.
Where I ended the trail winds around the base of some cliffs and then climbed to their top – which was cool. From there, you could see a set of waterfalls/slides on Shepherd Creek. It would be fun to hike down to them.
Did I mention that I was dead tired with no energy – took it pretty slow. More of a hike than run.
Bad omen for an early AM run.Looking up-canyon. See the pink George Chipman ribbon? marking the way around the rock outcrop?Looking down on the valley from about 2.5 miles up the canyon
With an official diagnosis of ankle problems, a fibula stress fracture, and a strong suspicion that running on pavement severely aggravates it, I decided to hit the dirt today and test out my theory. I started at the Farmington Pond, ran north on the BST to Shepherd Canyon, up to the Upper Terrace, and took that back to the car. Its a great loop. My left IT band hurt towards the end, but my ankle did not. Often the pain is delayed, really coming over the next two days…..and……no pain. The ankle felt great in the days after. So – I am officially swearing off pavement for now. And good riddance! I have also started taking vitamin D and calcium supplements, which the doctor said will help promote bone healing, growth, and strength. I doubt they are kicking in this quickly, but it can’t hurt – right?
The kids were in bed, the sun was on its way down, my ankle felt “ok” and there was a fresh 1 inch of snow on the trails above town, with a little rain/snow still spitting – what a perfect time to go for a run.
El Bandito de Farmington strikes again! (I didn’t end up needing the bandana as it wasn’t as cold as I had thought it would be
I strapped on my Montrail Badrock, which I had intended to be my snow/wet mud shoes but have hardly used and drove up to uber-rich neighborhoods above Fruit Heights/Farmington where there are a few trail-heads into Shepherd Creek and other canyons north. Knowing the sun would soon be down, I put on my headlamp and took off. The soft fresh snow gave a great cushion to the trail, and other than deer and bunny tracks, mine were the only feet to have touched the few hours-old snowfall.
Trail heading up north flank of Shepherd Creek
I climbed, veered north and ascended a rocky ridge that overlooked the canyon just north of Shepherd Creek Canyon.
Rock overlook point just north of Shepherd Creek Canyon
At this point, it became hard to distinguish which trails were actually trails, and which were just animal tracks in the snow. I pulled google maps up on my phone continuous and looked at the satellite images to try and gauge where I should go. I climbed the north ridge of that small canyon briefly, before crossing and bushwhacking my way back down the other side. The snow actually made the descent down what I assume were loose gravel slides nice and cushioned.
The other nice thing about the virgin snow is that if you get lost, you can just follow your backwards footprints back down the mtn.
I could have done without the multiple rock outcroppings that looked like perfect perches for Cougars to be staring down at me from. Shiver.
I made my way back down to the car, by which time it was dark. Unfortunately, I had only clocked a mile. So, I crossed over to the south side of Shepherd Creek, took that trail up until a branch descends down to the creek. As it was pitch black, covered in snow, and I had never been there before – I decided it would be a good idea to try and get down to the creek, cross it, scramble back up the north side to the power lines and explore them back down to the original trail I had just descended previously.
Crossing Shepherd Creek – glad to see a nice big rock in the middle
Not the smartest choice, but it ended up going well. It was fun to get out in the dark – though terrifying at times – and great to run some fresh beautiful snow.
