I made a return trip to the Uinta Mountains for another very long Saturday run. Dry August weather makes it an ideal time to experience the high mountains away from the valley heat. I hoped for to do a long loop of about 50-miles and decided to start very early in order to give myself plenty of time on the rugged slow trails.
I arrived at Moon Lake on Friday evening and decided to just rest at the trailhead in my car for a few hours. At 11:53 p.m. I was away on my nocturnal adventure. A nearly full moon was out to cast light on the hills around me. For the first 16 miles, I would be running in forest up Lake Fork, starting at 8,000 feet. Getting off trail in the dark was not a real worry because the horse-worn trail was very distinct and easy to follow. I had run 16 miles last week in Lake Fork and knew what to expect on this mostly boulder-free trail.