A single ~100.6-mile loop (per the marked/published mileage; the official GPX track measures ~100.1 mi) from and back to Lake Cuyamaca, crossing five areas: Lake Cuyamaca, Rancho Cuyamaca State Park, the Mt Laguna Recreation Area, the Pacific Crest Trail, and Noble Canyon/Indian Creek Trails. About 80% singletrack, 17% forest-service road, 3% asphalt. Climbing is front-loaded: 80-90% of total elevation gain is done by Penny Pines 1 (mile 59.2).
The RD's own framing: 'The race has been described as the biggest discrepancy between what it looks like on paper and how hard it actually is.' Elevations along the course range roughly 3,000-6,500 ft (FAQ states 3,000-6,000 ft; GPX-derived high/low points are 6,479 ft at Cuyamaca Peak and 3,639 ft near Blue Ribbon). Typical race-week temperatures range from the low 40s to mid-80s Fahrenheit, with near-freezing night wind chill possible and hot, exposed daytime sections, especially Green Valley to Sweetwater (mile 29.4-41.4), described by the RD as 'THE HARDEST SECTION OF THE RACE' and the section with the most drops. Climbing is front-loaded: 80-90% of total gain is complete by Penny Pines 1 (mile 59.2), after which the course trends downhill/rolling to the finish. Total elevation-gain figures conflict across sources by up to ~4%; see _meta.notes.
A closed, largely-looped 100-mile trail race starting and finishing at Lake Cuyamaca, 9 miles south of Julian, CA, running through Cuyamaca Rancho State Park, the Mt Laguna Recreation Area, Noble Canyon/Indian Creek trails, and about 20 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail, on U.S. Forest Service (Cleveland National Forest, Descanso District) and California State Park land in the Laguna/Cuyamaca Mountains east of San Diego.
Founded in 2001 by Paul Schmidt; the 2002 edition was cancelled for fire danger, and the 2020 and 2021 editions were cancelled for COVID-19. The course was substantially revised for the 2024 edition (reason not found in research; see _meta.notes). The race date moved from its traditional June slot to May 1-2 for the 2026 edition, and moves again to April 30 for 2027.
| Mile | Station | Cutoff | Crew | Bag | Pacer | Med | To next |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.00 | Lake Cuyamaca | ? | ● | · | · | ? | 12.70 |
| 12.70 |
Trout Pond
4,644 ft
|
10:00am | · | · | · | ? | 7.00 |
| 19.70 |
Cuyamaca Peak
6,475 ft
|
12:45pm | · | ● | · | ? | 9.70 |
| 29.40 |
Green Valley
4,015 ft
|
3:30pm | ● | · | · | ? | 6.20 |
| 35.60 |
Blue Ribbon
3,651 ft
|
? | · | · | · | ? | 5.80 |
| 41.40 |
Sweetwater
3,997 ft
|
7:00pm | ● | ● | ● | ? | 8.10 |
| 49.50 |
Pine Creek Road
4,804 ft
|
? | · | · | · | ? | 2.30 |
| 51.80 |
Hammer's Hideaway
3,840 ft
|
10:15pm | · | ● | · | ? | 7.40 |
| 59.20 |
Penny Pines 1
5,453 ft
|
1:00am | · | ● | · | ? | 5.10 |
| 64.30 |
Meadows
5,483 ft
|
2:45am | ● | · | ● | ? | 6.30 |
| 70.60 |
Red Tail Roost
5,968 ft
|
4:45am | ● | ● | ● | ? | 5.00 |
| 75.60 |
Per's Cabin
5,831 ft
|
6:15am | · | · | · | ? | 5.10 |
| 80.70 |
Penny Pines 2
5,454 ft
|
7:45am | · | ● | · | ? | 3.90 |
| 84.60 |
Pioneer Mail
5,280 ft
|
9:00am | ● | ● | ● | ? | 7.00 |
| 91.60 |
Sunrise
5,002 ft
|
11:15am | ● | ● | ● | ? | 9.00 |
| 100.60 |
Lake Cuyamaca
4,647 ft
|
2:00pm | ● | ● | · | ? | ? |
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