I may or may not be “retired” from bike racing but that is a totally different story. With that being said Mia and I were looking for a 2025 spring challenge, something to keep us occupied and focused on for the winter months. I don’t remember which of the two of us stumbled upon the Mammoth March series last fall but since they had an event in Oregon, and Silver Falls is only 50 miles from the house, we figured what the hell might as well. Normally I would not consider paying money to “hike” but when you throw in aid stations, a beautiful state park and the challenge of doing 20 miles in one shot, it made the idea more appealing and interesting.
Mia and I are no slouches when it comes to hikes. We’ve spent a lot of time in the White Mountains of New Hampshire and the Cascades here in Oregon. Hikes of 10+ miles have been rare in the last few years. Having an aging dog has cut back on some of our longer jaunts. Admittedly it has been a long time since either of us have hiked more than 15 miles at once.
The Mammoth March events are not races, there is no “winner”, no prize purse, etc. It is strictly for the fun and challenge. Their marches are 20 miles, with some events even offering a 30 mile course. Participants signup for a start wave and they send you off in small groups to spread everything out.
The first 5 miles of our 20 mile loop follows the popular Canyon Trail which exposes you to multiple waterfalls in that distance. As you reach North Falls parking lot, you cross a paved road and venture off on the Perimeter Trail.
With quite a bit of rain the previous few days, the falls were raging. I could feel it in my chest as the water was crashing into the rock below. The trail wasn’t super muddy, but there was a fair amount of standing water at points. Plus, the creek was at trail level in a few of the lowest points of the Canyon Trail.
The Perimeter Trail climbed steadily up to the high point of the day at almost 2400′. We left the waterfalls behind and entered into a forest that felt like Endor at times. No stormtroopers or Ewoks were sighted though.
This part of the park was totally new to both Mia and me. We’ve both done the Silver Falls Trail Run a few times and I have mountain bike raced out here too. But neither of us had been on the Perimeter Trail. This part had a lot more muddy parts and was quite slick in a few spots too.
The next aid station came just before mile marker 10. A quick stop for some snacks and water refill and we were on our way again. One final climb before a long gradual descent back to the finish. It was steep between mile 11 and 12. After that it was a more gradual climb topping out at around thirteen and half miles at just under 2300′. This section between mile 10 and the top was probably the most “boring” since we were on a logging road for most of it. After hitting the top though we dropped back into the woods and followed some singletrack for the next 4 miles. I was wishing for my mountain bike on this section. It would have been super fun.
Mia whipped out a ziplock of Donnettes at mile marker 18. They are just as dry and waxy chocolate tasting as I remembered.
The common theme amongst participants between miles 14 and the finish was that the mile markers were way off. By the time we hit mile 13 Mia and I were at least 3/4 of a mile more than they said. Based on the number of people saying similar things we can only assume that the promoters were a bit off. Both Mia and I finished with a hair over 21 miles in total. No complaints, just found it interesting.
Mia and I both agreed that it was a good day and the event was fun. Not sure either of us would sign up for the same thing next year, but there is a Mammoth March at Bear Brook State Park back in New Hampshire in the fall and it might be a good excuse to go visit family and friends.
A few thoughts:
- This event is in Oregon, in March, the number of people we saw in sneakers and non-waterproof shoes was a bit nuts.
- The ratio of women to men had to be at least 5:1 if not greater.
- We heard one woman fall hard on one of the long greasy descents. When we asked her if she was okay or wanted my hiking poles she declined and said she was okay
- Bring extra socks if you do this Oregon version.
- The Kate’s Real Food Peanut Butter & Dark Chocolate bars found at the aid stations are pretty awesome.
- Not a lot of younger people (mid 20’s or younger)
- I haven’t hiked 20+ miles since Paul and I did Owl’s Head in the White Mountains almost 20 years ago.
Thanks for reading,
-Pete
ON & OFF RHODES 