Triple
Timpanogos
Mount Timpanogos
(11,749 feet)
is the most popular hiking destination in Utah. Two trails are
the most common accesses to the summit, Timpooneke Trail (from American
Fork Canyon) and Mount Timpanogos Trail near Aspen Grove (from Provo
Canyon).
Three years ago, I
made my
first ascent up “Timp,” It was a slow ten-hour adventure that
wore me out. It took me over five hours to reach the
top. I was physically drained and felt sick and sore for two
days. Eight to ten hours or more is typical hiking time for this
strenuous hike. Now, in much better shape, a typical run/hike up
and down Timp, without pushing too hard, takes me 4 hours 15
minutes. 2.5 hours up, and 1.75 hours down, with no rest
stops.
My favorite trail is
the
Timpooneke Trail because of its steady, runnable ascent and beautiful
scenery through a series of four plateaus and meadows, collectively
known as the Giant Staircase. The last of these plateaus is
Timpanogos Basin (10,100 feet), an open plateau, surrounded by
mountains on three sides. From this basin it is about two miles
to the summit. The total elevation gain during this hike is 4,579
feet. (Compare this to about 4,460 feet elevation change hiking down
into the Grand Canyon from the South Rim). Two local hikers/runners have
climbed Mount Timpanogos an incredible number of times. Ben
Woolsey (age 63) holds the all-time record, 348 times as of October 15,
2005. Phil Lowry is the runner-up with 307 climbs to the summit
as of October 15, 2005.
The Double Timp Accomplishing a double
Timpanogos hike is a significant physical and mental challenge.
To achieve this feat, you do the hike twice in one day with a very
short rest at the trailhead between trips to eat and drink.
The 9,158 elevation climb and 9,158 decent in about 28 miles is a
grueling physical challenge, but the mental aspect is just as
challenging. After finishing an exhausting single hike, you must
turn right around and make yourself repeat the same physical challenge
again. I have accomplished the Double
Timp on two occasions. During such a deed, you may pass other
hikers as many as 3-4 times. When they finally realize that
they have seen you pass them multiple times, they insist on knowing
what is going on. Reactions are amusing. People are
flabbergasted at the thought of hiking it twice, not to mention seeing
you run many portions of the trail. On my first double experience
several hiking groups cheered me as I descended for the second
time. I remember one group started a chant, “Go for 3, go
for 3.”
The Triple Timp
Would a Triple Timp be
possible? Veteran Timp runner, Phil Lowry told me that he
believes that no one has ever accomplished a triple. Phil
intended to do a triple several times, but the mental effort to push
himself out for the third time was incredible. A double was
plenty. My completive
nature loves to
face new challenges. Last Saturday (October 8) I
accomplished a Double Timp in some pretty cold and windy
conditions. I convinced myself that I could do a Triple
Timp, and it would be cool to be the first known person to accomplish
it. 13,737 feet up and 13,737 down in over 42 miles!
I planned to start
this crazy
challenge on Friday October 14, at 5 p.m. I planned to run/hike
through the night and finish about 8 or 9 in the morning. On the
first ascent, I would haul up some supplies to the ridge (saddle)
overlooking Utah County. It was critical that I eat and drink
plenty during this challenge to keep my body fueled with liquids,
carbohydrates, and electrolytes. Having things stored
near the top was also a mental strategy. If I left my goods there
after my second summit, I would have an additional reason for heading
back up to the top, to retrieve my stuff. Phil Lowry
supplied another motivation, promising me a prize if I really
accomplished the task.
I planned to have the first
two trips take 4.5 hours each and the third to be more than 5 hours
with additional time at the bottom, stops of about 15 minutes
each. By running the Triple mostly at night, I would not
need to carry and consume as much liquid compared to a run during the
day. I also do much better running in cool temperatures.
Trip #1 (4:50 p.m. – 9:48
p.m. Summit: 8:00 p.m.)
Running buddy,
Jeff Gerke
agreed to run with me on the first trip. The temperature at
the bottom was warm. I decided to run the first trip in shorts
and a T-shirt, with a warmer biking shirt wrapped around my waist for
use when it got colder. We started up the trail full
of energy and excitement about the adventure ahead. I
quickly despised the pack on my back because it slowed me
down. I was carrying up a thermos of hot soup, two water
bottles, some food, a warm jacket, and a pair of mittens. I
was careful to make sure that I did not use up my energy on this first
trip. Jeff, also an ultra runner, full of energy, and only doing
one trip, would run ahead at a faster pace and then run back to rejoin
me.
We passed a group of
hikers
moving very slowly down the trail. They asked if we were heading
to the summit. We said we were. They mentioned that they
had started in the morning at 7:30 a.m. and that they were proud that
they had reached the summit. Their round-trip would take them
over 13 hours. They looked like they were really
hurting. We didn’t want to burst their bubble of accomplishment
by mentioning what we were really doing. I silently predicted
that we would do our trip to the top and return to the bottom shortly
after they reached the trailhead, and they only had about three miles
left.
Shortly after
passing those
hikers, about an hour into our run, to my horror, I realized that I had
dropped my flashlight somewhere, as far as a mile back. I
knew this was a critical mistake. While I had a backup headlamp,
I knew that my pace would be slowed terribly during the night without
my bright light. We took off our packs and ran with great speed
down the trail to try and find the flashlight. The slow hikers
soon realized that we both were not typical hikers -- we were
runners. Thankfully, we found the flashlight in the middle of the
trail about a mile back. We returned and ended up wasting 27
minutes on that detour. That was discouraging, but I knew that
time was not the issue of this challenge. I decided not to worry
about time. Doing the triple was the important goal. If I
accomplished it, I could always be insane again and try to do it in
better time.
The sun began to set
on the
valleys below, decked out with stunning fall colors. We
were both amazed that the temperatures remained warm. There
was snow on the trail above 9,000 feet, but it wasn’t icy.
A nearly full moon rose above the eastern mountain ridges. When
we reached the saddle, we were presented with an amazing view of the
lights of Utah County. I spent about ten minutes setting up
my “aid station” of food and drink. The wind was
unusual. It was blowing from the southeast. Usually the
wind blows from the south or west, making the final accent to the
summit a windy experience. We noticed that when we passed
over the saddle, the wind disappeared. I put on my jacket,
but quickly took it off because the temperature was still pretty warm
for vigorous activity (about 40 degrees F.).
At 8 p.m. we reached
the
summit hut and signed our names in the register. (Surveyors who
used the peak as a triangulation point originally constructed the steel
shelter.) If I subtracted the detour time, and the time I took to
set up my aid station, my pace was about what I wanted for the first
trip. I told Jeff, “Now the fun begins!” We
broke into a run as we started the long return trip down the mountain
by the light of the moon and our flashlights. We were
having a blast. I love running at night in the
mountains. We ran most of the way down, but I was cautious
to insert walking periods so that I would not wear out my legs too
early. At one point several deer bounded up the mountain when we
approached. That startled us and made us laugh. We also saw a
porcupine crawling through the bushes.
We arrived at the
trailhead at
9:48 p.m., about a 5-hour round trip. If I subtracted the
time for the detour, my planned pace was just about right.
Jeff bid me goodbye and I worked to drink, eat, and motivate myself for
the next trip. We didn’t see anyone of the trail during our
run down, so I knew that on the second trip I would not have any
company going up. That would be a challenge. I tend to go
much slower if I don’t see lights of other people ahead that I can
catch.
I started to head out and
realized that I hadn’t changed into my long tights. I would
freeze on this trip if I only wore shorts. I turned around, went
back to my car, and made the change. I was frustrated that
I again wasted time. My stop at the bottom was a long 28 minutes.
Trip #2 (10:16 p.m – 3:27
a.m. Summit 1:15 a.m.)
I headed up
again.
I noticed that the temperature was dropping in valley pockets near the
bottom, but once I reached the plateaus, the temperature
rose. I was pleased that the conditions were ideal for
night running. I plugged in my MP3 and enjoyed singing to the
tunes as I power-hiked up the trail. I was pleased that my
legs felt strong and my energy level was high. Without the
pack, I felt much stronger going up on this trip.
At the Timp Basin
(about
10,000 feet), I noticed some pretty bad pain in my left heel and my
ankle felt loose. The constant incline was taking its toll on my
foot and ankle. I backed off the pace somewhat and the pain
decreased.
At the saddle I
enjoyed
drinking some warm soup. I exchanged my gloves for some
mittens and began the climb up to the summit. The wind had
shifted about 180 degrees. It was now coming from the
northwest. But I was pleased that the wind was only about 10
m.p.h. and that the wind-chill still felt like it was above 30
degrees. I still felt warm and good.
I reached the summit
for the
second time at 1:15 a.m. I again signed the book noting
that I had accomplished a double, and then quickly turned around for
the return run. I was pleased that my legs still felt
great, but I was careful not to push the pace. I didn’t want to
“trash my quads” on the way down. It was imperative that I should
arrive at the bottom feeling good in order to face the mental challenge
of continuing on for the triple. At about Scout Falls (20
minutes from the bottom) my legs finally began to feel somewhat
fatigued. They ready for a rest.
I was surprised that
there
were hardly any hikers on the trail. Even at this time of night,
usually when there was a bright moon, the trail is full of
hikers. I guessed that the BYU homecoming probably kept many
young hikers away. I did pass three groups near the bottom,
a group of college-age hikers, a solo-guy hiker, and a family moving
pretty slowly rearranging their packs. I reached my
car at 3:27 a.m. My trip had taken over 5 hours, but I
purposely kept it slower to save it for the third trip.
Trip #3 (3:45 a.m. – 10:00
a.m. Summit: 6:57)
At my car, I
felt great.
There was absolutely no doubt that I would head out for the third
trip. In fact, I felt so good, that I even kidded myself that
maybe I could do a Quad Timp. I quickly ate and drank,
cleaned some grit out of a shoe, and started the next trip.
My legs felt strong and I ran portions of the first couple miles,
hoping that I could make this climb faster than the first two
climbs. I was soon surprised to see lights coming down the
trail. It was the group of college-age hikers. They had
turned back after only an hour or so. As I ran past, a girl said
that it was too ambitious. I couldn’t resist, I mentioned that I
was on my third trip up for the night. But I could
understand why they were giving up. There was now frost on the
trail and it felt quite cold in all the valley pockets. I
knew that it would be warmer once above those pockets of cold, and sure
enough it was.
After a large snow
field that
that trail crosses (an avalanche area that never melted away during the
summer), I caught up with the family of hikers. They recognized
me from earlier and asked how many loops I was going. They
were stunned when I told them that I was on my third trip up.
They wished me well as I motored past them.
When I reached the
Timp Basin,
my heel again hurt pretty badly, and in addition my Achilles tendon
ached. When I tried to run, I could feel a sharp pain in the
tendon. I backed off. I didn’t want to risk
serious injury so I decided to take it pretty easy. But
still my pace was about twice the pace of the typical hiker. I
could see lights in the distance from groups of hikers heading on the
Aspen Grove trail. They were making very slow progress in the
snow above the basin. As I climbed up toward the saddle, I
passed the solo-guy hiker. He knew I was doing a repeat
trip and asked if I was an ultra runner. I said yes. I
cruised past him and I was again the leader on the trail.
The final section to
the
summit was pretty cold this time. The wind had shifted
again, from the north, and felt like it was 20-30 m.p.h.
The wind-chill was now below freezing and all the snow on the trail was
frozen. My left heel and ankle complained and I knew that
this would be my last trip up to the summit this day. The
sky began to fill with light. I was pleased to realize that I
would reach the summit close to sunrise. I arrived at 6:57
a.m. and was presented with spectacular colors in the sky as the sun
prepared to appear. I signed the register for the third
time (no one else arrived at the summit between any of my trips).
This was also my 15th lifetime summit. I had topped
the mountain 13 times during the past couple months.
I pulled out my cell
phone and
called Phil Lowry, leaving a message that I was on the Timp summit for
the third time. I had accomplished my goal. All
that was left was the return trip to my car. I decided to
take it easy and go slowly. At the saddle, the family of
hikers greeted me. They had many questions about my Triple.
When did I start? How long did each trip take me?
Many other hikers,
who wanted
to talk with me, further slowed my trip to the bottom. They would
ask, “Did you make it to the top?” I would reply, “Yes,
actually, I made it to the top three times during the
night.” Shocked questions would follow. As expected, I ran into
Ben
Woolsey, who was heading up for his 348th lifetime
summit. We talked for about ten minutes or so. He
told me I was crazy for doing a triple. I told him he was
crazy for climbing Timp 348 times. Near Scout Falls, another
group stopped me to talk. When I explained that I did a Triple, a
guy asked, “What’s up with that?” I explained that to my
knowledge, no one had ever done it before, so I thought I would
try. I had really succeeded.
The last couple
miles were
pretty slow and somewhat painful. I wasn’t eating much
anymore since I knew I was almost finished, so my energy level was
down. Lack of sleep was starting to take its toll too.
Despite being energy-drained, I enjoyed my stroll on my last trip down
the mountain. I met a group of people I knew from Saratoga
Springs, so I stopped and had a good time telling them about my
adventure.
Finally, I reached
the
trailhead at 10:00 a.m. I had accomplished a Triple
Timp. It felt like I had just ran a 50-mile ultra
race. I was tired. My feet ached, but my leg muscles
felt fine. I had no thoughts of continuing for a Quad
Timp. I believed I could do another trip, but I knew it
wouldn’t be fun. It would be painful. It was time to go
home and sleep. The Quad Timp would have to wait for
another insane day.
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