Ann's trail to View Benchmark peak with Jun:
I think I found my new favorite trail. Jun and I met early before work to run Ann's trail in Draper to the summit of View Benchmark. It is just under 4 miles one way with a gradual climb on a nice single track trail and the whole thing is runnable. It was cold enough at the start to freeze a snot rocket in 1.5 seconds, but the higher we climbed the warmer it was. The trail switches back through a really cool canyon and then heads east switching back the steep hill that puts you on top at Deer Ridge Drive right by the standard trailhead for View Benchmark. There was some ice to deal with near the top and that slowed us down a bit.
We ran most of the way to the peak (I hiked some of the steeper sections) and reached the summit just as the sun was starting to rise behind Timp. What a view! This whole run has really solid views and the trail is in great shape. We lingered on top for at least 10 minutes taking in the views. We could see Ben Lomond Peak to the north of Ogden and Mt. Nebo near Nephi to the south and every peak in between. Awesome!
The run down was really fun except the part where I took a wrong turn and ended up a bit lost and confused. Jun got me back on track and it was a nice cruise back to the cars. This was one of the best runs of the year. I'll definitely be back to do it again. | 