Spruce Railroad 5k & 10k

Article and photos by Tiare Bailey

The Spruce Railroad race is considered a “Destination” race. It’s a scenic, historic, and tourist-focused location. Although I live on the Olympic Peninsula, it’s a bit of a drive to run the race, but well worth it. I chose to spend the night before the race in our RV near the town of Sequim, a short 45 minutes from home. Before sunrise Nick and I headed out in fog and heavy drizzle toward Port Angeles, then into the historic town of Joyce where we were directed to park our vehicle. Joyce is known for the Joyce General Store and post office.  There is limited parking at the race start so runners and walkers are required to ride the shuttle to the trail head. Many of the busses are comfortable tourist busses.

As anticipated, the weather improved as the first shuttle pulled away on time at 7:30 am. We had an 11-minute ride along the tree lined, picturesque Strait of Juan de Fuca byway. Chickens, goats, and gardens were pleasant sights as we sped towards the drop off location.

The Spruce Railroad race takes place on a portion of the Olympic Discovery Trail along Lake Crescent in the Olympic National Park. Lake Crescent is a DEEP lake, 624’at maximum depth, and the second deepest in WA State. It is a crystal-clear glacial lake.

The race was well organized as are all of the five RTP (Run the Peninsula) races. Departing the bus near the start line there were designated tables for bib pick up, hydration table with water and Gatorade, bag drop, awards table etc. An EMT medical unit was on site, and porta potty’s off to the side.

The race terrain was a paved trail, and race pace markers were implanted at the start to help with congestion. The race was chip timed but not a certified course. My Garmin watch showed 3.15 for the 5K.

The race starts on level ground and immediately inclines for the first half mile. You see Maple trees with moss hanging from their limbs, spruce, Hemlock etc. sights to distract you. Before long, you get to descend, then head upward on the curving trail to an elevation around735′. It’s basically a rolling hill course. There is one water stop on the 5k course. Halfway through my course as the trail hugged the shore of the lake, the sun permeated the trees, the water glistened, and the spectacular blues shone.

The trail follows an old railroad once used to haul Spruce trees out of the depth of the forest. It also passes very near an attraction called the Devils Punchbowl, a clear, still pool that is over 100′ deep. It’s common in the summer to see adventure seekers jump from the adjacent cliffs into the frigid water of the punchbowl. Another attraction which is part of our course is the McFee Tunnel. It’s a 450′ long tunnel. It was a functioning RR tunnel along the Spruce RR Trail and was blasted during WWl. It was later difficult to reach and was unsafe. It was renovated for public use and was officially opened to the public July 15, 2017.

There were 457 combined runners in the 5k/10k event. The 5k had 280 participants and the 10k had 177. Out of the 457 runners and walkers, 115 were women aged 50+ and 44 were men aged 50+. Some outstanding performances at the Spruce Railroad 5k. Christopher Roark was first male Silver Strider and 2nd overall in the 5k. Katherine Braun was first female Silver Strider and 3rd overall in the 5k. David Baker was first male Silver Strider and 10th overall in the 10k. Jennifer Mathews was first female Silver Strider and 15th overall in the 10k.

First place overall M and F in both races received a medal poster by artist Todd Fischer. Each finisher received a high-quality medal at the finish line, also designed by Todd Fischer. Every participant received either a carafe or beverage container, your choice. Ribbons were awarded 3 deep in 10-year divisions. First place in each division received a blanket/throw with pictures imprinted in the fabric representing each of the 5 races in the annual series. I was lucky to get first place and receive one of the blankets.

Busses were lined up and drivers were ready to transport participants as soon as we were ready to head back to our vehicles; No delay in getting back. Nick decided not to jog the course as he wasn’t feeling well so I ran and hurried back, thankful we had our RV so he could rest.