Local Dirt: Cook Hill 🍭
While the foliage has come in dramatically since this pic, the hero downhill sensation remains the same.
From IT/Communications Director Sheldon Miller
The hard facts:
~11k, 287m/6.7m, 941’
This lollipop is a great way to work on climbing and descending in the Craftsbury area, on low-traffic roads. I have bigger mountain goals this year, and this loop is a great way to start to acclimate my body to the demands it needs to meet for me to accomplish those efforts - but it’s also a great way to get up and get some wicked nice views!
The route:
Start at the parking for the Town of Craftsbury beach on Overlook Road. If you’re running in the summer, you’ll be perfectly situated for a post-run dip!
The route starts climbing immediately, so depending on how you roll, you may want to head out toward the pavement a bit before jumping into the uphill grind. It’s a short jaunt, but gives you another kilometer or so of warmup if you’re into that kind of thing.
You climb for the next 3k/1.9 miles before you get a brief respite before you get to the high point of the route. Edsal Hill and Cook Hill are Class IV, so a bit less maintained than some of the earlier roads - but they’re generally solid and not too challenging (read: it does not devolve to gnarly mountain singletrack or anything like that).
After the high point, it’s just a matter of holding on as your legs endure the eccentric loading all the way back to the car. Generally, I don’t care too much, as I’m too distracted by a panorama of the Green Mountains in front of me. On a clear-ish day you can see from Mt Ellen to Jay Peak - almost 60 miles of VT’s spine!
Kit recommendations:
Wetter conditions can skew me towards a more legit trail shoe, but generally, this is a pretty forgiving loop. You can run this with road shoes and not be handcuffing yourself. Depending how fast/thirsty you are, you may want to bring a soft flask or other water carrying device as well.
Accoutrements:
I’ve already mentioned the swimming if you are doing this during the warmer months. But if you’re staying at the Center, you’ll be driving past Blackbird Bistro, the Genny and the C Village Store with myriad ways to satisfy your post-run needs from sweet to savory.