10 Miles of Trail.... 40 more to go

I got out to an early morning start. It was 6:30 but not nearly as dark as it looks here. But early enough that I did not see anyone for the next hour.




The first 3.5 miles were a relatively gentle incline.




Tranquil and beautiful.

But then it headed up and out of Sulivan Canyon and it got pretty tough. But at least it was cool, a little brisk even.



This climb hurt. I've ridden and ran this trail before and there is usually an amazing view.

After climbing out of the canyon, I took a fire road to link up to the Nike Missile site.



You can see the platform in the mist. Very eerie and cool, a tad unsettling.



More "amazing" views.




Westridge Trailhead. I felt fine after 9 miles, the steep descent down the streets were hard on th joints. A couple of times I had to run backwards down hill to lessen the impact.





Lions, tigers and bears, oh my. Ok lions bobcats and deer.

For my first long trail run, 10 miles in 2hrs, not bad. I am looking to finish the Avalon 50 miler before the official cut-off of 12 hours. That shouldn't be too hard, right?

What have I gotten myself into?