Thanks so much for taking the time to share your experience out there, Chris. Well done on the North 500. No mention of the Canyon hike itself, must've been easy... ;p Nothing really surprised me about your comments, good to get some confirmation. I do want to get back up to Boulder Creek since I did ride it in spring, so I can give a valid comparison. The sun angle is something I didn't consider, nice observation. So glad you enjoyed the Kaibab after the portage. I agree, it's one of my favorite sections on the entire AZT and so stoked more people will get to ride it.

Looks like Colin was met with the scheduled prescribed burn near Blue Ridge this morning. The detour is posted on the ground, so I don't expect anyone to follow the orange line precisely on this one. Chris has been sending some good updates on his trek north. There was a surprising amount of water available on the Four Peaks section, Boulder Creek was flowing!! Also a bunch more difficult to ride than when I rode it in the spring. Seasonal storms really change the topography in these parts. Mike reported a mostly miserable day out of Picketpost with temps hovering in the mid to upper 90's most of the day. Good to see he's back at it and gaining some elevation. Sounds like the Bulldog Canyon area was exceptionally sandy for him. That's always a possibility, I guess I've lucked out the handful of times I've been through.

Nate will be kicking off a NB 300 run this weekend and Mike K. goes for the 800 - 3rd time's the charm, eh?

Thanks Mike, beat me to it!! It's almost like you're hovering over these AZTR pages itching to launch...getting close, dude!! Go time!!

and Jennifer dinged her knee pretty good in Martinez Canyon. She may re-load her SB 300 attempt soon.

For the record, both Mike & Chris hadn't planned to be on the tracker, we encouraged them so others could follow along since they are both following the AZTR route north from either Gold Canyon or Picketpost.

2019 Fall ITT tracker is up!!

ATTN: 2019 fall ITT'ers, registration is now OPEN!! Please fill out the registration form here.

Tracks have been uploaded, download the latest version here.

In case anyone missed it, the 300 is unchanged from spring. The 800 now includes the Four Peaks route, Colonel Devin trail near Washington Park and new sections of singletrack on Happy Jack & Babbitt Ranch. Both of those projects are ongoing with Happy Jack scheduled to wrap up the end of October and Babbitt Ranch sometime next year in time for the October 2020 Grand Depart. Exciting times!!

We've also had some decent rains here last week with the remnants of not one, but two tropical depressions rolling through the desert. Some areas around Phoenix received upwards of 4" of rain. That's a big deal here, since the average annual rainfall in Phoenix is just over 8". So, there may be a trickle of water in the brand new water collector about 12 miles south of Picketpost. I still wouldn't count on it as a reliable source.

I currently have the route using the logging detour near Flagstaff that was used in the spring, but reports coming in say the AZT may re-open next week north of Buffalo Park. If the AZT opens, by all means take it, but for this fall season both routes are allowed.

Also, not sure what the timetable is for the prescribed burn near Blue Ridge, so please be sure to download the burn bypass route. Again, that route has not been verified on the ground, but sure looks good via satellite!!

Our first rider will be setting off on Saturday, Oct. 5th for the 800!!

There is a scheduled prescribed burn that will affect a portion of the AZT near Blue Ridge Reservoir in early October. Length of closure is not known. Here is a bypass that I mapped out (*FULL DISCLOSURE: I have not verified this route on the ground, although it looks good. I'm hoping to pre-ride it in the coming weeks. As it stands now, use at your own risk!!)

Blue Ridge Bypass v2

This bypass adds about 32 miles to the overall route. I did my best to avoid as much of SR87 as possible, that road sucks to ride on, no shoulder & high speed limit with RVs. No thanks. The good news? It now takes riders through Clint's Well (diner & gas station available)

Of course if the AZT is open when you get to this bypass, take the trail!!

Cookie Mike really put the hammer down and separated himself for a solid 2nd place finish. Congrats!! Ben Hanus also dug deep and crept up the rankings over the past couple of days. He should be wrapping things up shortly for 3rd and he was posting songs from the top of Kokomo...dude is hectic.

Does anyone know if Russ Kipp from the Montana High Country Lodge posted up the rest of his pics someplace?? He put about the first dozen riders here, but I know he was busy taking pics the 1/2 day I was at the lodge. I'll try reaching out to him directly too.

Also, I'm slowly getting all my daily ride recaps posted on the blog. It's current through Day 8...

Oh no!! Brett Stepanik is heading off route.

Anyone happen to have a gpx file for this ride? I would love to do it during the area 51 nonsense.

You should be able to download it here: https://www.trailforks.com/ridelog/view/20260/

Steve Denny did some bonus riding on the Monarch Crest Trail, definitely worse trails for extra mileage!!

Looks like Kurt is about 2 1/2 hours off Jesse's record pace through Cochetopa Park. (3:20:44 is the time to beat) Plenty of riding to go!! ...and hiking...

Checkpoints are now loaded on Trackleaders!!

Fast, stacked field this year!!

Looks like Kurt took a 2 hour nap a bit after Cataract Lake last night. Timon may have gotten in a snooze at Spring Creek Pass. Nice to see some competition at the front end.

Dang, Kurt & Timon getting resupply in Silverton at 5p!! Blazin' fast. Scott Sidener not far behind on his SS Fatbike, must be those fancy bags he's sporting.

Greg Gleason took a spill early on & messed up his calf and scratched. Such a bummer, I really wanted to see what he could've done out there.

I emailed Scott about the checkpoints, hopefully just a glitch.

Hey all,
Checking in after getting wrecked by the Divide.

I'll reiterate a few points & concerns from earlier posts.

Couple of reasons for the change. No particular order here, the AZT has rapidly risen in the ranks of thru hiking trails and spring is by far the busiest time for hikers. The fall switch helps alleviate some stress on trail resources, most notably the cache boxes. A few months ago I asked the hive what they thought and it was a near unanimous vote, about 95% wanted an October start. That was something like 80 responses.

The late October date was chosen because believe it or not the first week in October the average daytime high in Phoenix is still 95º. I used this year's start date of April 18th and looked at the historical data for Phoenix. Avg. temp? 85º. The 4th week in October? 85º. So, I don't buy the argument that April or October is hotter/colder than the other during the day. It's Arizona in the shoulder seasons, it's a total crapshoot. Let's face it, there is no magical perfect weather window for this event. Isn't that what makes it special and more challenging? I love that you have to plan for massive temperature ranges for both the 300 & 800.

Yes, a big negative perhaps is the loss of two hours of daylight in October. As with anything else, plan accordingly.

Tim is spot on re: a southbound group start. That will never be planned. If you want to go southbound, go for it, ITT style. If you're really dead set on riding in the spring, go for it. ITT style. It would be cool to see small groups of ITT'ers lining up in the spring.

For anyone considering an ITT this coming October, that's only 3 months away!! The ATA is hard at work on a few trail projects and making great progress. I'll try and get the most updated track posted to the website in early October. Looks like the Babbitt Ranch singletrack project is moving along nicely (AZTripper can comment more on that) and there should be more singletrack along the Happy Jack Passage soon. It'll be interesting to see how far along the Rosemont re-route gets. (North of Kentucky Camp)

Thanks all for the kind words and support here. I gave it everything I had. Still not sure what exactly bit me, but it was in a really bad location, just above my right knee/front of the quad. By the time I noticed it, maybe a day or two after it happened, it began affecting my pedaling. I was already battling some intense saddle sores. By the time I reached Salida I really needed a hotel room. The next morning, July 4th, I felt worse. I made it over to the ER to have the bite site looked at. They installed a drainage loop and got me on a heavy double dose of antibiotics. I took another night hoping for a miracle, but it just wasn't meant to be. I could barely walk around my hotel bed. That was it. My wife then hopped in my car and drove the 11+ hours up to Salida to bring me home. I still can't believe I had to scratch out so far in. I'll probably come back to Salida sometime soon and finish it up. Not sure I'll do the full route again, it's really the logistics nightmare for most people, myself included. Cheering hard for the group of riders I had been in close contact with the past week: Hal, Eric, Bonnie, Grant, Mikki. I had an amazing time out there. Starting to go through the pics and begin the blog stuff....

I think we can all agree, there is no perfect date. There's always going to be a compromise. As Aaron mentioned, the two major factors were spreading out the usage of trail resources, i.e. caches. during the heavy through hiker spring season. It's always bugged me and I assume Scott as well, that the North Rim singletrack is always bypassed due to snow. It's some of the best riding along the entire AZT. When the topic was posted a couple of weeks ago, I was a bit surprised at the overwhelming support to a fall switch. So, the vast majority seem to be in favor, then let's do it. I have a feeling there will always be a few spring ITTs.

The big tradeoff will be colder nights up north and about 2 hours less daylight. Sounds like there are a few folks interested in giving the AZTR a whirl this October as ITTs. Fantastic. I'll set an October 1st deadline for myself to have the gpx track as updated as possible after the summer ATA build season.

Taprider, I hope you realize that 0% margin for error doesn't mean you'd get an (*) for cutting through a corner parking lot!! Yes, I'm well aware of possible deviations due to down trees, etc. Yes, that zig-zag section south of Flagstaff was also not updated in this year's track. Missed it. Now updated for 2020!! Of course, any trail re-route like that trumps any gpx track. The rule has always been to follow the AZT as signed (excluding Wilderness detours). So, of course you wouldn't get an (*) for staying true to the current trail alignment. I do my best to get all the re-route projects the ATA performs, but I don't ride the entire trail all the time. As expected, trail reports are gathered from locals and ATA when possible. IIRC, there are still two small sections that riders can go either way and be ok, at the end of the Gold Canyon singletrack riders can hop/climb through the fence OR stick to the track and essentially do an out-n-back to a gate that brings you back to the fence crossing and the section from Washington Park up to the Mogollon Rim, riders have never been dinged for not turning on the Tunnel trail and staying on the powerline trail. Personally, I think the powerline trail is a bit tougher, less scenic and overall crappier. This parameter is really meant for those that think it's ok to miss a mile or two here and there, that'll get you an (*). Prime example is the two mile stretch of trail after the Kelvin trailhead leading down to the Gila River. It can be easy to miss, but it's a miss.

2020 AZTR & beyond: 4th Thursday in October. So, October 22nd, 2020.
Again, ITT's are welcome ANYTIME and encouraged!!

Website has been updated except for the GPX page. That will happen at a later date, but before this coming fall in case anyone wants to get a jump start.

Also, some clarification needed to happen on the Rules page. I encourage anyone considering an AZTR ride to refresh themselves with the rules. Please share with your friends and family members too, don't get put in an awkward situation from well-wishers.

https://aztrail.home.blog/rules/

Here's a snapshot:
A clean finish is following the route defined by the GPX 100%

An (*) will denote a rider who missed between 0% & 1% (3 & 8 miles respectively) A finish time will be recorded.

A rider will be relegated for missing between 1% (3 & 8 miles) & 5% (15 & 40 miles) of the route defined by the GPX. A finish time will be recorded.

Snow detours and any official posted detours or signed reroutes do not apply to the above.

An Alternator is any rider who deviates from the defined GPX file by more than 5% (15 & 40 miles) A finish time will NOT be recorded.

It is highly encouraged for riders to record their ride via GPS, Strava, Trailforks, etc. In the event of a discrepancy, the track may be requested by the Race Director. The rider will have 7 days to submit the track, if requested. Any tampering with the gpx file with result in relegation.

Mobile bike service is allowed. If a bike shop wants to offer mobile service for AZTR riders, but doesn’t normally offer mobile service, this must be declared at least one month prior to the Grand Depart.

None of this is really new per se, it just needed some definition to help avoid gray areas.

-------------

As for the route itself, there's a year and a half for ATA projects to come to fruition. The updated route should include: Rosemont re-route north of Kentucky Camp which cuts out Las Colinas, potential new singletrack north of Freeman Rd. bypassing the gas line section & more singletrack before dropping into Ripsey Wash (Both currently tied up at the State Trust Land Division), Four Peaks option from 2019 will become the official route, Colonel Devin trail added at Washington Park (Should've been added in 2019, but it was omitted by mistake!), Completion?? of the Happy Jack singletrack project which would eliminate miles upon miles of lava rock embedded forest roads, Babbitt Ranch singletrack project which adds about 11 miles of singletrack bypassing dirt roads and finally, the addition of the Kaibab Plateau singletrack on the North Rim which would swap 40 miles of pavement for 50 miles of pure AZT.

Plus, there are two much larger long-term projects on the horizon. The Temporal Gulch re-route will create singletrack open to bikes around the Mt. Wrigtson Wilderness area between Patagonia & Sonoita. Re-route will start near Red Bank well, windmill, on the Canelo Hills West Passage and connect in at Gardner Canyon south of Kentucky Camp. What does this mean? The AZT300 will be 100% AZT from Parker Canyon Lake to Hope Camp just outside of Tucson.

The other one is the re-route along the Ripsey segment leading into Kelvin due to the Ray Mine tailings relocation. Fear not, the Big Hill and famed Ripsey Ridgeline will still be there!! Gone? The switchback attack descent towards the Kelvin trailhead and the two goofy miles of trail across the Florence-Kelvin Hwy.

No timetable for either at the moment.

Excited? You should be.

Thank you again to all the riders this year and everyone who has an interest in this non-event. Please continue to support the Arizona Trail Association so all these projects can become a reality. If you're not a member, please join!!