NEW! Travis Macy, 7h27m46s, April 5, 2013 NEW FEMALE FKT! Bethany Lewis, 8h32m, April 21, 2013 Previous: Luke Nelson, 7h48m47s, May 3, 2012 Previous Female: Krissy Moehl, 9h09m, May 3, 2012
The Trans-Zion Trek (sometimes also called the "Zion Traverse") is a 48-mile route across Zion National Park in Southwestern Utah. It runs from Lee Pass in the Kolob Canyons section of the park, to the East Entrance Trailhead, though stunning and diverse high desert landscape. The route is typically done as a 5-day backpacking trip.
West-to-east distances are approximately as follows. Much more detail (and maps) is available on Joe Braun's site.
La Verkin Creek Trail
6.5 miles
Hop Valley Trail
6.5 miles
Connector Trail
4 miles
Wildcat Canyon Trail
5 miles
West Rim Trail
15 miles
Zion Canyon Road
1 mile
East Rim Trail
10 miles
TOTAL
48 miles
The crossing was apparently first done in a single day in the early 1990s by Terry Tucker. The idea was picked up by Bo Beck, and dubbed the "Far Far Fest". Beck and friends have made the trek several times, and in both directions. Beck's fastest time is 14h25m, set April 28, 2007 (west to east).
The route was "rediscovered" by Jared Campbell while studying maps of the park. Campbell and champion ultrarunner Karl Meltzer ran the crossing from west to east in 10h24m on April 19, 2008. The two were resupplied by friends at the West Rim TH (near Lava Point), and at the Grotto in Zion Canyon.
On May 2, 2009, a large group mostly from Boulder, CO, tackled the Trans-Zion. 14 runners started at the Lee Pass TH, and 3 at the East Entrance. The west-to-east runners had support at the Hop Valley TH and at the Grotto, but the east-to-west runners were unsupported. Conditions were excellent, with generally cool and overcast weather but little rain, and many water sources running. The Telephone Canyon Trail was closed, so all runners used the West Rim Trail (as did Campbell & Meltzer). All-star backpacker turned champion ultrarunner Andy Skurka ran east-to-west (unsupported) in a new record time of 9h27m. Ever the trip planner, Skurka has detailed information about the route on his website, including a map set and databook. He also posted a nice YouTube video & spectacular photos from the trip on his site. Other finishers of the Trans-Zion that day were Jason Chapman, Greg Poettgen, Peter Bakwin (10h29m, west-to-east), Carol Gerber (13h00m, west-to-east, women's FKT), John Prater, Mark Oveson, Eric Lee, Paul Grimm, Stephanie Ehret, Kari Fraser, and Chris Gerber (the last 5 also did side trips to Kolob Arch and Angel's Landing). Dan Brillon, Jonas Fast, Kristen Alvarez, Louisa Jenkins and Tressa Breindel started at Lee Pass and stopped at the Grotto.
Jared Campbell took back the FKT, with his friend Christian Johnson, on November 27, 2009, running west-to-east in 9h08m. They had about 1.8 "bonus" miles to get aid from Campbell's fiance at Wildcat TH, since her car couldn't get to the West Rim TH.
Campbell & Johnson's FKT held for less than half a year, as Matt Hart became the first to go under 8 hours, running east-to-west in 7h58m on May 14, 2010. About 2 years later, Luke Nelson took 10 minutes off Hart's time, running 7h48m47s on May 3, 2012, as reported below. Nelson ran east-to-west, which seems to be the preferred direction for going fast. His run was supported.
Carol Gerber set the first known FKT by a woman (13h00m, west-to-east) on May 2, 2009. Her report from the run is below. Candice Burt set a new women's FKT at 11h47m (west-to-east, unsupported) on November 16, 2011. Her report is on her blog. Krissy Moehl demolished the previous women's FKT on May 3, 2012, running the route in 9h09m (east-to-west). Moehl started with Luke Nelson, but they only ran together a short time before Nelson pulled away. Like Nelson, Moehl's run was supported. Bethany Lewis reported (below) that she lowered the women's FKT to 8h32m on April 21, 2013. Her run was self-supported and partially paced.
Carol Gerber's run report: My time was 13 hours (exactly, I think!). I took off at 5:20ish a.m. with 8 other runners. When we were running we were going at a good pace, but we stopped a lot it seemed to take pictures and admire the views. We also took the 1/2 mile Kolob Arch detour. When Peter, Dan & Jonas caught us, Chris mentioned that he didn't think we'd get caught within 10 miles [Peter, Dan & Jonas had started about an hour later than the others]. I looked at my watch and it was 8 a.m. and that meant we had only gone 10 miles in 2h40m! I told Chris we needed to pick-up the pace and he said our pace put us at a 15 hour finish. I decided I didn't want to be out there for 15 hours, so I took off and tried to keep Peter, Dan & Jonas in my sights. I ran solo until mile 15, where Mark's parents provided water. Peter, Dan & Jonas were there. I quickly filled my water bottles and said I'd try to keep up with them until they caught Mark & John. Peter, Dan & Jonas dropped me within 10-15 minutes, so I followed the map and ran solo to mile 37 - The Grotto. It was absolutely wonderful to be out there running by myself. There were quite a few backpackers and I met Andy, Jason & Greg going the opposite direction at one of the water places, so we chatted a bit. I didn't expect to see anyone else that I knew once I got to mile 37, so I went to the restroom, filled my water bottles and ate some food. I didn't see the trail, so I asked a park ranger where it was. He wasn't familiar with Zion... he was a Grand Canyon park ranger, so he wasn't much help. I started walking toward where the shuttles pick folks up to ask someone and low and behold there's Mark's parents and Mark! He was just leaving, so I asked if I could join he and John. We caught up with John at the next shuttle stop and the 3 of us started the climb up the East Rim Trail. Part way up, Mark suffered from dehydration and slowed down a lot. John and I kept going, but we kept Mark in our sights. John and I were talking non-stop catching-up on things, as he and I had met earlier this winter on a snowshoe trek up Quandary peak. We got water at the top of the climb. Mark was feeling better and moving faster at that point. Mark insisted that he was fine and that John and I should run to the finish, which we did. It was a great descent and I finished at 6:20 p.m. Mark's parents were there and it was great to see Dixie walking up the trail! I knew I was close to the finish when I saw her! Mark's parents gave me a ride back to The Watchman campground, which was great as I didn't want to hitchhike or run! Great run overall - great weather - overcast with a nice breeze. Great scenery! -- Carol Gerber
Zion Canyon, photo by Andy Skurka
East Rim switchbacks, photo by Kristen Alvarez
Posted by Andrew Skurka on Dec 4, 2009, 12:26am
Congrats to Jared et al. to putting up a new FKT. This record is still very soft, however, and I reckon that a sub-8 hour time is very possible.
I just completed the Trans-Zion 48 mile route from La Verkin to East Rim, today November 16th 2011. I was on a trip with my boyfriend to do the r2r2r, when he suggested I try to set a trans-zion women's time. We both ran the route today, unsupported, although we ran together most the day, carrying all our own gear. We began at 7:20am at the La Verkin trailhead, and finished at 7:07pm at the East Rim Trailhead. I ran the route in 11:47:00. We have the GPS data and lots of pictures that we will post on my blog within the next week. My blog address is http://www.runeatswim.blogspot.com
Let me know what kind of verification you need, thanks!
That's great, thanks for posting. What a great route! The GPS data & photos should be sufficient for verification. Thanks for considering that. I look forward to your report.
Crispy bodies from time in the sun and tired legs from scaling slickrock and running back and forth for the camera, Luke Nelson and I sat on the tailgate of his truck at 6am the morning of May 3 looking over the map for the last time before starting off across park in our individual assaults on the previously established Trans-Zion records. Accompanied by photographer Fred Marmsater and video-guru Jeff Johnson we cracked a couple of jokes, laced up our Tsali 2.0’s, made final bathroom stops and stripped down to t’s and shorts before making our way over to the trailhead, our start line.
I met Luke Nelson on the trail three years ago at the inaugural Pocatello 50mile trail race. Around mile 30 I headed out of the aid station before him and on the next climb he caught up explaining his massive bonk and decision to hang with me till the finish if I didn’t mind. We chattered away, likely me more than him, and soon found ourselves quickly closing on the finish line tying for 2nd place overall. It was a great day for running in many regards. In looking back on that day and now knowing the friendship that has developed since then, it is one that I am extremely thankful for.
Our talk of meeting up in Zion started in spring of 2011 and it took a couple of attempts to actually meet up there at the same time. After a fall trip with another fellow ultrarunner Jared Campbell this past fall to scope out the traverse I made up my mind that the following spring we needed to put our plan into action. In discussing this with Fred Marmsater on a couple of photoshoots the simple run for Luke and I evolved to a Patagonia project. Now with the financial support for travel and food we also tied photo and video shoots into the days surrounding the actual FKT attempt. Fred and Jeff made those experiences a lot of fun while also appreciating the task Luke and I had established for May 3.
The sandy wash start for the trail on the east rim kept Luke and I stride for stride for the first half mile. We reminded each other how cool it was that we were finally going for this goal and wished each other well for day before Luke picked up his pace and I settled into mine.
The Trans-Zion runs across the park connecting the east rim through Observation Point and the Weeping Rock trail. Once down in the canyon runners must pound the pavement miles to the grotto before heading up Walter’s Wiggles towards Angel’s Landing and making the bend and finishing the climb to the west rim trail. We each accepted aid from UltrAspire’s Cherie Santiago at the grotto swapping bottles for hydration vests as it would be another 20 miles before the possibility for a water refill.
Climbing out of the canyon at sunrise was spectacular and I was excited to feel energy in my legs to run more and powerhike when necessary. Fred and Jeff met us near the top for a few photos ops, knowing that they wouldn’t get us to run back and forth like the day prior they were busting their butts to keep up and get ahead (especially of Luke) and snag a few shots from the day. From there it was a solo effort up to and across the west rim. In stride I checked in on Luke and was happy to hear he looked strong and was moving along well.
The leg turnover was there for me having run plenty of road miles in the heat on a recent family vacation in hot and humid Florida and with the help of music I enjoyed covering the distance up top. I caught up to Adriane & Bryce who were putting in their CCC training miles and hooted a greeting and hi-fived them on the way by. Down into Potato Hollow and on to Wildcat canyon, my 70oz of water was disappearing quickly and I started to ration. I still ran dry, and found out Luke did as well on the same section. This section became about staying in body management mode for about an hour of running into Hop Valley. The temps were in the high 80’s and the constant breeze/wind felt cooling, but I believe was drying us out quicker than we thought. I guzzled at least 4 pints of icy water while UltrAspire friends Jim Speth, Adriane Frehner ,Cherie Santiago & Bryce Thatcher cheered me on and refilled bottles. Leaving with great energy from them but a heavy belly from the water I trudged through the next few miles trying to absorb and get my legs back under me. I honestly never felt great again, but did get a good laugh when crossing the sandy wash for the final time. I caught my toe on the only stick in the mud and did a fabulous sideways dive into inches of wet sand. Probably the softest landing I have ever had, but I was still finding sand Friday night when I got back home to Boulder.
Criss-crossing the La Verkin creek bed I took the opportunity to clean up and cool off a bit and was completely relieved to see Fred poised behind his camera when I was about halfway up the climb. He spurred me on with the news that Luke had dug deep to find success for his day. The final ascent climbs about 800 feet in 4 miles and in the heat of the day having run out of water twice, I was at more of a stumble than the run or even power hike I had hoped. Fred prompted me along and as I got closer to the rim he pulled away and I listened for the chatter of our friends and found one last bit of energy to climb at a respectable jog to the sign to hit my watch at 9:09. I first looked at Luke to congratulate him on his effort and in return received a great hug that two friends can share. Luke’s impressive 7:48 took ten minutes off of the previous record and my 9:09 was a happy ending to the day. We had time to sit in the dirt, drink Ultragen and tell stories before making our way back to camp in the park and cooling off the legs in the chilly creek that flows through the South campground.
It is awesome to set a goal. Even more to team up with a friend on a similar one. And then again even better when people rally around to make it all happen. Thank you to Fred for working so hard to turn our goal into a project. Thanks to Patagonia for seeing our vision and bringing in the support of Fred and Jeff to capture the experience. Those guys brought humor, hard work ethic and an artistic eye. Thank you to the UltrAspire crew, Cherie, Jim, Adriane, Bryce and Melanie, for showing your forever support and jumping in at the last minute to keep us fueled and hydrated along the way. Thank you to Luke’s girls, Tanae, Brinley and Chloe for being such troopers and providing endless smiles. I am continually thankful for the support from Patagonia, Patagonia Footwear, UltrAspire, First Endurance and Udo’s Oil. They are my constants not only in product, but in their personal interest in the sport and their athletes. And finally a personal, public thanks to Luke for an awesome friendship that has developed quickly and for an experience that will bond us for many miles to come.
I set the Trans-Zion record today in 7:27:46. Here's the route: http://app.strava.com/activities/47569051. Ran west to east with support. Got Vitargo bottles from crew at Wildcat and Connector junction and at the Grotto. Thanks to my family, Charles and Nick (support crew), the Fit for a Cause community (www.fitforacause.org), and Vitargo (www.genr8speed.com) for support. Vitargo was awesome for fuel, Hoka Stinson Evos were great, and CamelBack Ultra LR vest was awesome. It was an awesome day in a sweet place. Thanks to Andrew Skurka and Luke Nelson for route info, and I look forward to chiming in on with info for whoever wants to break it next time. Photos and video coming soon at www.followtravismacy.blogspot.com.
I lowered the female FKT for the Zion Traverse yesterday, running it in 8:32. Self-supported run east to west stashing water at West Rim and Hop Valley THs. My husband, Ben Lewis, ran with me from The Grotto onward. Carried a GPS watch with us and took lots of video for verification (will upload these soon via Ben's blog, http://www.ben-runlong.blogspot.com). Details in brief: hit The Grotto in 1h40, West Rim TH in 4h29, Hop Valley TH in around 6h, and Lee's Pass in 8h32.
Oh, and thanks to our fabulous sponsor CPT[TM] for all their support.
Posted by Mariah Tetzold on Apr 24, 2013, 11:55am
Hi Bethany,
Awesome job on the new female FKT.
Since you carried a GPS, would you mind uploading it preferably on strava.com (which has segment measurements and allows the exact following of CR and such) or if not strava, then on connect.garmin.com or anywhere else (and we can get it from there and put it on strava for you if that's okay with you, under your name, of course)?
There is a big group attempting more FKT's on this in a few days, and we're trying to figure out the exact route. We found 2 so far, and we are very focused on following the exactly precise FKT route (I assume at this point that it's the strava track that's being used here): http://connect.garmin.com/activity/301392452 and Travis' track: http://app.strava.com/activities/47569051/overview
Thank you so much and sorry for the inconvience! Very appreciated.
Congrats again on your FKT. I really like the notion of female FKT's. It was about time to have this distinction!
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