Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Keuka Outlet Trail site
Keuka Outlet Trail map
photo slideshow
The Keuka Outlet Creek runs 8 miles from Keuka Lake to Seneca Lake, and starting in the late 1700's was host to a variety of mills and factories - as many as 40 at one point. The Crooked Lake Canal ran through the Outlet gorge alongside the creek from 1833 to 1877, and was used to carry goods from the mills to the lakes, but never turned a profit. In 1844 a railroad was built along the towpath, and ran until the tracks were destroyed in 1972 by floods caused Hurricane Agnes. Now the railbed is a recreational path which runs alongside the old canal bed, through an old lock, and past the ruins of numerous mills. (See the trail site for more info; another good source of information are Rich & Sue Freeman's hiking and biking books published by Footprint Press.)
I've been to the Outlet Trail several times, both to ride and to run, and have always enjoyed visiting the area. Unfortunately, it's a bit out of the way for me (going there adds 60-75 minutes of driving to my trip to or from Rochester) so I only get there once or twice a year. I had originally planned to ride the Outlet Trail yesterday, on my trip back to Albany, but then my travel plans changed and I ended up going there to run instead.
It was a good day for a run - mostly sunny, but not too hot or humid. Best of all, the bugs didn't seem too active! I decided to run almost the entire length of the trail, if I could... as it stands, I made it almost to the end, leaving out only a short stretch between the Penn Yan Recreational Complex and route 54A.
My run out was interupted by many stops to take pictures... just a few minutes in, I was very surprised to see a young deer off on the edge of the woods, and there were many points where I stopped to photograph the creek and, of course, the waterfalls. Encountered a few other folks on the trail - some riding, a few walking, and even two folks on horseback. The last mile or so was paved and took me down into Penn Yan... not quite as scenic as the rest of the trail! All in all, it took me just under two hours to reach the end, with no idea how much time I actually spent running!
I took a break at the recreation area to swap in fresh water bottles, and then headed back, intending fewer breaks and more consistent running. I reached the parking area in Dresden after 100 minutes... I'd estimate that I was running for about 85 minutes in all, which means I probably ran for a little under 3 hours, total. This is one of those times when it's good to be a Gallowalker, ie. someone who follows Jeff Galloway's strategy of inserting periodic walking breaks to give the legs a brief rest and allow for longer runs... since I'm used to taking breaks while running, it didn't bother me as much that I took so much time on the way out to shoot pictures. I'm also reminded of a book I'm reading, The Old Man and the Road, by Paul Reese, which describes his completing his goal to run across all 50 states in the US at age 80. (He had previously run across the country and completed running across all the lower-48 states west of the Mississippi River in his 70's... for fun! He's quite an inspiration!) One of the things he talks about in his books is doing the runs for fun and taking time to stop and enjoy his surroundings, whether its to stop and chat with someone, learn a bit about the history of where he is, or just take a photograph. Since I don't know when I'll make it back to the Outlet, I'm glad to took time today to enjoy my surroundings, in addition to getting in a fairly nice 13.5 mile run.
JMH
