Start and Finish Instructions

Strava Segment: https://www.strava.com/segments/30562117

Download GPX File: vk9-blackeagle.gpx

Runners begin at the start of the Baden Powell trailhead on Horseshoe Bay Drive (see Photo #1). The entire course follows the Baden Powell trail with the VK finishing as you reach the views on Eagle Bluffs. To confirm your finish with the Strava segment please run to the very top of the bluffs just before the forest reentry.

Description

Black Eagle is a new course for the 2022 VK Series, featuring the famous Baden Powell route from Horseshoe Bay to the scenic Eagle Bluffs. Featuring one of the best finish views in the series, this route is not to be missed! The route has some interesting features with a very steep start - stay left on all the turns you hit on the wide access trail in the early part of the course (see photo #2), then a short fast flat section before you begin a steady climb up toward the mid-section of the course. The last third of the course is its steepest as it ascends up the challenging steep terrain on the side of black mountain. Please note there is a boulder field to traverse, so please watch your footing as you run up this route. Route finding is not that easy on the boulder field, so pay attention to paint marks on the route (see Photo #3) and some wear on the rocks where there is a faint impression of the regular route through the field. The final push of this route features a climb up a few slabs, which is best attempted on a dry day for those with unsteady footing or vertigo. The VK segment finishes as seen in photo #4, but we ask all participants to run through the finish and finish just before the entry to the forest as seen in photo #5

Map

View course map at Caltopo: https://caltopo.com/m/BES17

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