A Week of Highlands Sky – Day 8
“Seriously?” That was my first thought as I came around a bend and saw boulder fields stretching out in front of me. The yellow ribbons confirmed my first thought – seriously. This was the trail. Keep calm and carry on…
On fresh legs, these would have been a fun challenge to hop around and skip through. Today, however, these caused me to climb, crawl and hope that I did not lose footing and end up stuck on Dolly Sods in between a boulder and a hard place. All went well though, and I quickly moved through the boulders and back into the forest.
(I know there are only 7 days in a week, but I have more pictures, and this was an “8+ day week” kinda race.)
A Week of Highlands Sky – Day 7
Ahhh…the endless stretches of “shoe sucking mud” (thanks to @ultrarunnergirl for the great term) that, at this point, had turned into “soul sucking mud”. On the top of Dolly Sods around mile 32ish(?), this stretch of deep muddy holes, lots of rocks, and endless muck tested me. Thankfully, the beautiful views and abundant flowers kept reminding me why I love to play on the trails.
A Week of Highlands Sky – Day 6
After the 7+ mile trek on the Road Across the Sky, we turned off onto Dolly Sods at approx. mile 27 onto the Raven Ridge Trail. A rocky stretch that definitely tested my blistered feet. I was very happy those dark clouds never amounted to anything more than a sprinkle or two.
A Week of Highlands Sky – Day 5
The Road Across the Sky – a 7.3 mile stretch of fire road that runs along Dolly Sods. Yes, it seemed to go forever.
A Week of Highlands Sky – Day 4
“Listen to the river sing sweet songs to rock my soul…”
One of 3 stream crossings on the course – a peaceful mountain stream that sang a sweet song.
A Week of Highlands Sky – Day 3
What a beautiful stretch of trail this was! The mountain laurel was spectacular, the sun was shining and the trail was “kinda” dry for a few minutes. Ha! A gorgeous summer day in the West Virginia mountains. Amazing.
A Week of Highlands Sky – Day 2
The view from the top of the first mountain. The sun came out, the mountain laurel was magnificent, and the rocks were abundant.
A Week of Highlands Sky
This weekend I ran the Highlands Sky 40 Miler in West Virginia. It was an amazing experience full of fun people, a beautiful & unique course, and a challenge unlike any other I’ve had. This week I’ll share some of the photos I took on the course. Enjoy!
The first photo is from the first climb – crazy switchbacks, stinging nettles and a rainforesty feel. 
I see trails 