Valley Forge Trail

I was called by work and told that I didn't need to be in until 4 PM, instead of 2 PM. I took the extra time and decided to run at Valley Forge National Park. It was a great experience.

The weather was almost unbearable. I got out to freezing cold and a driving wind. There are a lot of open fields up there, so the wind blows right through. Luckily, I was running on the trails and they were blocked by trees.

I found the Mount Joy trail and started up that in my new trail shoes. The start was incredibly steep. I had to work very hard to get up it. I had trouble breathing because it was so steep. It did even off a little bit at least.

I opted for the less steep portion when I encountered a spot with two choices. I eventually ran on what I thought was the trail and wound up near some deer. I had heard that they don't move and are used to people. I didn't believe until I actually saw it. I was about 15 yards away from them and they just stared at me. It was a neat experience.

Eventually, I got back onto the right trail. I took off my Under Armour Hood because it was too hot. Every now and then, some wind did blow at me though. The trail was quite narrow and interesting to run on at times. I finished it up and turned around after just over a mile. I was disappointed that it was so short.

I found a steep turnoff and ran up that. It was very rocky and quite the climb. I passed some walkers, who had trouble even going down in that fashion. I managed to get up and down it though. Since I was trying to find more trails, I found a very steep path. It went down to nearby Route 252. It was tough to even run down it. The trail then really kicked my ass on the way back up. I had to stop and walk briefly a couple times.

After getting back on level ground, I headed towards home. I found one more new steep incline before I eventually headed for home. That uphill was very tough as well. I haven't experienced hills like this. I guess the trails off of Forbidden Drive are comparable, but I've typically just stuck to the road.

The running and the hills were excellent and I'll definitely be back. My ass was really kicked today and this will be a good test of my fitness as I get stronger. Hopefully I can cruise on this trail at some point in the future. Now I see why the Kenyans like to run here. I'm still adapting to trail running in general. Downhill is tough and this trail was quite narrow.

I was disappointed that this trail wasn't connected to any others. There are a couple other trails across the creek. I'll have to try them out next time. That should give me enough mileage. I had hoped for 7 miles today, but 5 miles at that difficulty was okay.

I'm really enjoying trail running. Now, it's back to the roads tomorrow though. It's an easy 3 miler as I rest for the upcoming 5K. I might run the 5K route and see how fast I can do it. I really want to break 20 minutes for the run.

5.11 miles - 51:57 (10:09 pace)