I love camping in the San Rafael Swell, so when I saw that a 1/2 marathon would be taking place there, I convinced some friends to run it with me.  This event – called the Little Grand Canyon Half Marathon – was awesome.

We camped in the San Rafael Swell near the race finish line, and on the morning of the race, rose at the crack of dawn and drove to the start.  Only 300-400 people signed up, so it was a nice manageable crowd – if only it wasn’t 27 degrees.  My feet were frozen for the first mile.

My play list at the start of the run included a mix of fast-paced Grieg, Ravel, Haydn, and Rimsky-Korsakov.  It gave me goosebumps to listen to it while watching the sun rise over the red rock, the chill in the air quickly forgotten.  The event followed the main road through the Swell, passing petroglyph’s, canyon walls, and blue, red, and green vistas. Despite a gravelly road, I managed a consistent 10-mph pace once my feet thawed and finished the run in 2:13.

Back at camp we napped in the shade, took a hike to stretch our legs and explore the mica-glinting hills, and chilled by the river with Dutch oven curried chicken and some cold hard cider.  Great weekend, all in all.

Late afternoon along the swell: