Zion 100 Mile

Race - Apr 18, 2020

Dogs Unknown

Features Spring · Views · Wildflowers

This is a challenging, scenic run through the Southern Utah desert adjacent to Zion National Park. The Zion 100 includes steep climbs onto mesas that offer incredible views of the varied geological features of the area including Zion National Park and the Mojave Desert.

A challenging, scenic run through the southern Utah desert adjacent to Zion National Park, the 100 mile course includes 4 steep climbs onto mesas that offer incredible views of the varied geological features of the area.

This route/course starts out with a steep climb up the Flying Monkey Trail up onto the mesa, where you'll find an aid station. You'll do a six mile loop at the top and then come back down the way you came up before heading east towards the Dalton Wash. There is a small stream crossing around mile 13.5, but if you cross it in the right place, your feet should stay dry.

After hitting the Dalton Wash, you'll climb over the hill on a singletrack trail for a mile, then head up the dirt road 4 miles to the top of the mesa where the Guacamole Trail begins. From here you'll begin a 7.5 mile loop that you'll pass through on your way out and back, then you'll head back down to the Dalton Wash for the second time (mile 30ish).

You'll then cross the highway and start across the desert towards the looming Gooseberry Mesa. You'll scramble up a 1,500ft ascent and then head out towards Gooseberry Point. A half mile from the overlook point will be an aid station that you'll pass through on your way out and back from the overlook (mile 40). You'll then hug the south rim of the mesa for a mile or so before heading inland, angling back towards the Goosebump descent, which you'll hit a second time around mile 47.

From here, you'll take a dirt road just over six miles to the Grafton Mesa. You'll then run north to the end of Grafton Mesa, where you'll drop down off the mesa at the bottom of a wash near the ghost town's cemetery (mile 57.5). You'll then head back up the mesa and will work your way back to the Grafton Mesa aid station for the second time, then back to the Goosebump aid station for a third time (mile 68.5).

You'll now go back down the steep trail to the bottom of the mesa, then you'll follow a faint doubletrack west along the foot of the mesa over to the Virgin Desert aid station. You'll do three different loops on the smooth singletrack of this trail system before bringing it home.