Meeting the Moose

Moosalamoo summit itself doesn't have views, but this sweet vista is nearby.

I drove down to Ripton to check out the Moosalamoo Ultra course for the first time this weekend! One hiking app described the Moosalamoo Mountain trail as little used, and that seems true. There was one other group on the trail that day, three naturalists, and otherwise just miles of forest empty of people.


I started out from the Moosalamoo campground and headed down to the North Branch stream, and then up to Moosalamoo Mtn. The refrain from my ultra mentors in my head was, 'walk every uphill, walk everything that feels like a hill.' But does that apply when the entire trail is uphill? I walked as fast as I could and ran some of it, despite the advice. Moving quickly was also my best defense again mosquitoes, which was by far the most prevalent wildlife I saw out there. (Also a small snake, and the lots of scuttling away sounds in the leaves.)


Moving on from the summit, I descended down toward Rattlesnake Cliffs, aiming to get to 4 miles, or to the cliffs, which ever. Alas, the cliffs are closed through July because Peregrine Falcons are nesting there, but I got close enough to be warned not to go farther.

Despite the places names in this forest, I saw no rattlesnakes, falcons or cliffs.

Reversing back, I met up with the naturalists again at the top of Moosalamoo, and they asked if I always run instead of hike. Not hardly! At this point, I was feeling tired, slow and in position of a fresh realization of how hard a trail marathon could be. Ultra-hard.


Leaving the naturalists, I headed down Moosalamoo and quickly got lost. Not terribly lost; I realized quickly enough that i wasn't in the right place but I added a 1/2 mile in retraced steps before I spotted the turn in the trail I should have taken the first time. It was reassuring to know I could always just go back up to the summit and hang out with the naturalists until they finished their lunch and walk down with their help, but I was super glad to finally notice the split in the trail that had eluded me earlier. Triumph!

Crossing the brook near the start of the run.

Take-aways from this run:

• Approx. 2.5 hours, 8.5 miles
• 200 ft descent, 1000 ft ascent, 500 ft descent; then reverse back to start
• It gets a little lonely in the woods; I'll try a more a more popular trail next time
• My water pack worked well, no chaffing and plenty room to carry water, rain layer, food

Thank you, Beth, for monitoring my whereabouts and return time!