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Running shorts

On runs, sentences...

July was a month of making up for lost training time. My log after 22 days showed more than 92 miles jogged. Here are brief reflections on some of those miles.

Rifle River Recreation Area

The temperature was close to 90 F (32 C) on July 5 for this jaunty two-miler through the hilly, difficult section of Rifle River Recreation Area’s trails, beginning from the parking area near Grousehaven Lake.

The route is fully shaded and runs along several ridges, with the feel of a coastal trail. Two others hiked the route in the opposite direction to my own. The route is easily navigable.

More loops, longer ones extending south that I explored last year, are accessible from the same parking area and trailhead. But those were for another day.

The lake access was teeming with people relaxing, barbecuing and cooling off.

Entry is free with a Recreation Passport, which is available as an opt-in on license plate renewal.

Loud Creek Non-Motorized Trail System

Here is an area of great potential that would seem mostly to have been given back to nature.

Although the layout is fantastic and the signage throughout the trail system is superb, the amount of downed trees and limbs, debris and overgrowth on the trails make passage quite challenging.

Starting from the trailhead at Cauchy Road just two and a half miles southeast of Mio, the short loop called “Lazy 8” to signpost number 4 was well-maintained in both directions on July 11.

Several of the more difficult and most difficult loops extending farther to the southeast, on the other hand, had been neglected for multiple seasons and should be closed until significant maintenance is undertaken.

Ogemaw Hills Pathway

As with most good runs, this column finishes where it originally began.

Just like my first visit to the area I opted to set off northeast on July 1, aiming to count down from signpost 23 and run the outer perimeter of the trail system. Just like my first visit, this was a mistake. Traveling south from signpost 16, the turn west to reach signpost 15 was just as easy to miss.

Last year I’d made the same mistake April 14 and returned nine days later to run the full loop counterclockwise. This year on July 3 I missed the same turn, this time northbound, and circled right back to signpost 14.

Eager to make the connection, I returned July 6 and started from the trailhead on Sage Lake Road. The third try proved the charm and I successfully circumnavigated the outer loop of trails north of Clear Lake Road.

More recently, July 18, I strung together a five and a half mile route combining trails south of Clear Lake Road.

Possibilities are endless but beware straying off-trail, which can be easy to do when trails join and separate from off-road vehicle trails and seasonal roads.