Members Only

North Trail Head White Blue

Route Description: This is a loop starting from the North Trailhead. It takes the White trail all the way to the other end of the park to Peavine Falls and then takes the Blue trail all the way back to the North Trailhead. There is a substantial climb up white within the first couple of miles. The White trail takes you to the highest point in the park (Shackleford Peak), after which you will enjoy several miles of gradual downhill running to Peavine Falls and then take the Blue trail all the way back to the other end of the park, with several miles of runnable trail until the final descent back to the North Trailhead. Note that this GPX file does not include a descent down to the falls, but if you would like to do so, you can easily find the trail down to the falls and back out.

SOTO Loop

Route Description: This is a BUTS favorite, especially for elevation training. This GPX file shows the clockwise route, but the counter-clockwise route is equally challenging. Starting from the North Trailhead, you will take the Red Road to the north Red/Blue connector and then begin a long steady climb up to the Blue trail, where you will immediately turn on to the steep, unforgiving Eagle’s Nest Overlook climb. After reaching the top of the ridge, you will run for a short distance on flat terrain before beginning a steep descent down to Blue. Following Blue you will have several short ups and downs, with nice runnable flat sections in between, until you reach the south Red/Blue connector, which is a steep, technical descent. At the bottom of that hill, you will cross the bridge and take the Red/White connector on a moderate climb, and then make a long descent down White to Maggie’s Glen. From there you will take the Yellow Trail back to the North Trailhead, including a couple more gentle hills.

North Trail Head White Peavine Backcountry Blue

Route Description: This is a loop starting from the North Trailhead. It takes the White trail all the way to the other end of the park, covers the Peavine backcountry loop, and then takes the Blue trail all the way back to the North Trailhead. There is a substantial climb up white within the first couple of miles. The White trail takes you to the highest point in the park (Shackleford Peak), after which you will enjoy several miles of gradual downhill running. Upon reaching the Peavine Falls parking lot, you will go through the picnic pavilion and cross a short barrier to take the Peavine Backcountry loop. After descending to the bottom of Peavine Gorge, you will make a creek crossing and then begin a long climb out of the Gorge, and then take the Blue trail all the way back to the other end of the park, with several miles of runnable trail until the final descent back to the North Trailhead.

CAUTION: This route uses unofficial backcountry trails that are not marked with blazes and not on the official park map. If you have any sort of emergency and require assistance, it will be difficult to explain to rescue workers exactly where you are, and you are unlikely to encounter any other hikers/runners on these trails. Use at your own risk.

Big 20 Loop

Route Description: This is a single 20-mile loop of OMSP with relatively little elevation gain. In other words, it’s very runnable! You will start from the parking lot near the bathrooms at the BMX track, taking the trail on the north side of the lake through the cabins area, continuing to the North Trailhead. From there you will make the only significant climb up Blue to the ridge and then enjoy several miles of nice runnable single-track until you reach the Peavine Falls parking lot. From there you will take a short section of the Green trail and a connector to the Fire Pits trail. This is the first of several mountain bike trails that you will take. When running on bike trails, make sure to watch and listen for mountain bikers! After a short section of smooth runnable trail, you will hit a very rocky section and pass Blood Rock before returning to smooth single-track on the Johnson Mountain trail, which will take you all the way to Peavine Falls Road, where you will take the Foreplay bike trail to the South Trailhead. From there you can refill water bottles at the water fountain by the bathrooms before taking the Lake Trail around the lake, crossing Terrace Drive, and then taking the Seven Bridges bike trail to Camp Road, where you will take a short section of the Yellow trail to Garret’s Gulch and then the Chimneys bike trail back to the BMX area. Note that this GPX file contains a short out-and-back that I ran after reaching BMX to get to 20 miles.

Johnson and Hyde

Route Description: This route is run entirely on mountain bike trails, meaning that almost all of the route is extremely smooth and runnable. When running on bike trails, make sure to watch and listen for mountain bikers! You will start from the South Trailhead parking lot and take the Foreplay trail to where it crosses Peavine Falls Road and connects to the Johnson Mountain trail. This trail winds through the far southwest section of the park and gradually climbs up to the ridgeline where it crosses the Jekyll and Hyde trail, which will give you a few miles of buttery smooth single-track that gradually descends back to Peavine Falls Road where you will take Foreplay back to the South Trailhead parking lot.

Blue Balls

Route Description: Note that this GPX file contains two loops of this route. This is a very challenging and technical route with steep climbs and descents. Starting from the North Trailhead, you will take the Red Road to the first Red/Blue connector and begin a long climb to the Blue trail where you will then take the Eagle’s Nest trail to continue climbing. Once at the top of the ridge, you will run for a short distance on a flat section and then begin an extremely steep descent down the OB Highway trail, until you reach the Blue Trail. After running for a bit on Blue, you will take a side trail to a backcountry section that will take you through an old quarry before beginning a long, technical climb called Yellowjacket Climb. After you reach the top of Yellowjacket, you will run for a short distance along a ridgeline with nice views before beginning a series of descents and climbs that will eventually take you to the backside of the King’s Chair overlook. From there you will follow the marked blue trail to an intersection where you will once again make a steep climb to the top of Eagle’s Nest again, this time from the opposite direction, before dropping down the same hill that you climbed at the beginning of the route. From the bottom of the Red/Blue connector, you can then take the Red Road back to the North Trailhead.

CAUTION: This route uses unofficial backcountry trails that are not marked with blazes and not on the official park map. If you have any sort of emergency and require assistance, it will be difficult to explain to rescue workers exactly where you are, and you are unlikely to encounter any other hikers/runners on these trails. Use at your own risk.