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Pascal, Katie and Michael along the Three Mountain Trail route.

After reading the past few summers about the Juniors tackling the epic “Three Mountains” trail run, the Masters gave it a try for the first time on Sunday for the last long training run before next weekend’s Race to the Top.

“Three Mountains” is a 17-mile loop that starts at the Audubon Center parking lot in Huntington, goes up Sherman Hollow Road to Sleepy Hollow, winds up-and-over three adjacent mountain biking networks (Sleepy Hollow, Hinesburg Town Forest, and Carse Hills) to Hollow Road, and ends with 5 miles on paved roads through Huntington village and back to the start (see map link below).  The mountain biking trails briefly cross Texas Hill Road and Lincoln Hill Road, allowing for shorter point-to-point runs for those who lack the time or inclination for a 17-mile outing.

Pascal Cheng, Michael Dillon, and Katie Hill took on the mountain biking stretch of the “Three Mountains” challenge for a 10-mile point-to-point run from the Sleepy Hollow parking lot through the three trail networks to end on Hollow Road.  This is a rugged route – lots of rocks and roots and more than 2000 feet of elevation gain – but it was a real treat to string together so many miles of continuous forest trails, with several of the trails new to all three of us.  Katie left her car at Lincoln Hill Road for a shorter 6-mile run but opted instead for the full 10-mile distance, her longest training run in decades.  Micheal earned bonus points for riding his strategically-hidden bicycle from the end of the run back to Sleepy Hollow to complete the full 17-mile loop.  Wildlife spotted along the way included a barred owl and Ben Ogden on a mountain bike, following the same “triple” route as us.  This trail run is a “keeper” that we’ll definitely do again!

If you try the Three Mountains route, make sure you have at least the free version of the Trailforks app on your phone, with the Vermont map downloaded for when there’s no cell signal (i.e., most of this route).   This will give you access to detailed trail maps for most of our local trail networks.

Bummed that you missed this outing?  Join us for our next “epic” masters trail run/hike:  the Monroe Skyline between the App Gap and Lincoln Gap, tentatively scheduled for Sunday 9/15.  That’s 11.5 miles point-to-point, with shorter routes possible by going out-and-back or exiting via the Sugarbush access road.  Keep an eye on the Masters Training Doc & Slack for details.

-by Katie Hill

Three Mountains Loop – Huntington