Tomorrow on March 20th spring arrives officially and that means great trail running conditions in beautiful Moab, Utah. Yeah, I know this winter was pretty mellow compared to the last few winters Moab has encountered but Moabites get extra excited when its official. Why? Because trail conditions are consistently drier and the weather is warmer, high 60′s to low 70′s. This means less clothing well running and taking off your GTX trail running shoes for a more breathable trail running shoe. My favorite trail shoe in the warmer dryer months in Moab is the Pearl Izumi Peak II. Its a light weight (9.6 ounces) responsive shoe. This is something I personally need on the Moab rocky trails. The Peak II allows me to blast down rocky technical trails with confidence because I can feel every step I take which allows my feet to be responsive. This tells me whether the ground is loose or solid, and allows me to make quick micro adjustments on my weight distribution.

I may see more people out on the trails during this time of year but its nice to see another person enjoying my backyard. My favorite backyard trail to run before it gets to warm is Mag 7. I can link 17 miles of pristine single track that starts higher in elevation and drops you off along the mighty Colorado River. Its a new trail system that starts outside of Dead Horse Point State Park and takes you by natural sandstone bridges. If you are lucky enough you can see herds of big horn sheep running across slickrock. If you take Mag 7 to its peak you can gaze down into beautiful Moab because you can run along the infamous Portal trail. The Portal has exposed single track in one area of its trail. There are warning signs at these areas warning mt. bikers to get off their bikes and walk these parts. Reason for this people have fallen to their deaths on a few occasions. This is where I slow my trail running pace down to almost a walk. Its short but its gets my heart pumping! The only downfall about this trail its a point to point. For those of you on a trail running vacation this can be difficult logistically. You would need two cars one to leave at you finishing point and another to drive you around (20mi) to the upper trail head. When you are done you need to make that same drive back up to retrieve your other car.

At 360 Moab Adventures we offer this guided tour as a full-day ($100 per guest) trail running vacation. 360 Moab Adventures does all the logistics for you and all you have to do is just show up. On this guided trail running vacation we will transport you to and from the trails, we will make you a great deli lunch at the finishing point along the Colorado River. We will take your photos along this beautiful trail so you can share them with your family and friends. So when you are looking for a new trail run let 360 Moab Adventures guide you!

Remember this “…you can’t get lost on an adventure…” Nemi Talli (my son).