Well this turned into the typical RD weekend day. In case you have not noticed I was not that active over the spring and summer. Though an announcement is not necessary I can confirm the inactivity will continue in months without an "R". Winter is back people. At least for the Weather Service. The official start of the new season began September 15th. Most of the country will have to wait for snow, but some places have already opened up their winter account including Denver who picked up 3.2 inches this week then hit a high of 77. There are currently no advisories up anywhere in the country so winter not exactly coming in with a bang.
When I woke this morning I had no plans for the day. Not a surprise. With a week to go before the running festival that will feature four different races and a marathons worth of running in 48 hours, I would normally keep any running activity light. When I saw the low clouds and wet conditions I figured I would have to get something in today. I could do a short loop around town. Not very exciting. My second thought was to do the route over South Mountain. Seems a bit much before an event. Plus in town runs are part of my weekly after work routine. I would rather see something different.
I had researched the Merrill Creek Reservoir before. The area is not far across the PA/NJ border. A 5 mile trail loop extends around the perimeter. Thanks to Strava and others who had done the run before I was able to get a feel for what to expect in terms of elevation. Not much change. The Blue Marsh loop had once been my go to for trail runs. This would be a little flashback.
Trail systems are not always the easiest to follow especially on your first visit. I've had my issues before. This one seemed basic. It was a loop around a lake. It was actually so basic I had considered taking regular running shoes. Good thing I changed my mind. Upon beginning the route I noticed a few things. For starters the trail was more technical than I had anticipated. It was actually quite rocky. Remember that morning mist and fog? What time of year is it? Wet rocks covered in wet leaves is always a recipe for potential problems. Maybe I didn't completely think this through. Last thing you are looking for in an injury on a simple trail run. Next I noticed red markers labeled MCR on trees. I'm only now realizing what that stands for. Perfect. It can only help when the trail is marked. As I continued the next markers were in both red and blue. Okay. There must be short side trails. I entered at a red marker so that is what I will follow. By the next marker it was yellow and blue. Now I'm a bit confused. Within the span of the next 15 minutes I saw either a combination or single markers of red, blue, green, orange and yellow. And for the next hour I saw these combinations quite often.
A 5 mile trail run should take me at most 50 minutes, and that's if I'm taking it relatively easy. I can see going off course here and there. That will not add that much extra time or distance. Let's just say I had a bit of trouble finding the full trail.
I basically ended up running the equivalent of the full trail on all the side trails before finally figuring it out. Along this journey I also ended up back in the parking lot I parked in twice. I eventually found out that I also passed both the starting point of the perimeter trail and the ending spot of the perimeter trail while trying to find that trail. What actually saved me from giving up completely was a small map that looked like it was put in the ground by a local resident. It had only the various trails shown on a piece of wood and a dot to indicate where you were standing. I realized if I ran back and made a right I should be able to make another right to lead me to the long trail. Sure enough there it was and sure enough I had passed it earlier. When I left for the park I didn't realize there were multiple trails. I didn't realize they were color coded and obviously I didn't know which color I was looking for.
When I finally ended up on the trail I needed I passed a couple who appeared to be combining bird watching and hiking. At this point it was over an hour since I started. I passed the same couple 45 minutes before this leading to turn off. As I trotted along the man said, "Again?" I knew what he meant but simply replied, "Again." I didn't have time to explain I've been going in various circles since the last time you saw me and this is not my second lap around the water.
I only need to see something once to know for the next time. I will be back for sure. The perimeter trail is actually quite easy to run. Not as technical as the side trails that are more for hiking. There are some surprisingly nice views especially from the back side of the trail. Expect to see people. Bird watching seemed to be quite common. Word of advice. There are two parking lots. One at the visitor center (where I parked) and another down lower for boaters. If you park at the lower lot it leads directly to the perimeter trail. One more thing. The trail is marked in black.
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