Overview

The Cascadian Wilderness Endurance Series events present an exciting opportunity for outdoor enthusiasts to participate in a multimedia adventure blogging contest. These self-supported/unsupported events are open to trail runners, backpackers, fastpackers, and hikers, and each event features a unique and defined route which participants must complete on foot and in one push. Unlike traditional endurance races, there are no course markings or aid stations along the way, providing participants with the freedom to create their own adventure. It’s all up to you! Participants can choose to tackle the route solo or with a couple friends. There are no cutoffs, so participants can take as much time as they need to complete the route without pressure. This unique event is not just about the physical challenge or exploring wild and beautiful places, but also about the opportunity to capture and share the beauty of the wilderness through captivating multimedia content.

1. After finishing your route, share your trip report about your experience. You can do this by posting in the Facebook group, tagging us in an Instagram post, making a YouTube video, creating a photo album, or any other artistic endeavor you can imagine.

2. Submit your time via the event page on Ultrasignup. If you have a GPS track, please include it. If you happened to get the FKT for the year, you must provide GPS proof.

3. Each year a meetup will be held in Seattle to wrap up the previous year, kick off the next year, make any big announcements about new routes or changes, and hand out patches, awards, and prizes for the previous year’s participants. If you are unable to attend the event, arrangements can be made to mail your patches to you.

We strongly encourage all entrants to join the CWES Facebook Group and/or follow the @CascadianWildernessEndurance Instagram to ask questions about the routes, gather and share trail beta, connect with other participants, scope out the competition, and keep up to date on the most recent news, information, and general goings on. This contest is brought to you by the Cascadian Wilderness Endurance Company LLC.

Seven Lakes Loop

This route is 60+ miles and may be closer to 70, has three big climbs, and about 11,700ft of elevation gain. Much like its sister route Graves Creek, it is a great mix of everything that makes the Olympics so amazing: big trees, dense forest, steep trails, river valleys, high open ridges, fun single track, and good odds of seeing bear, elk, and other animals.

The loop includes six miles of primitive trail connecting the Bogachiel River basin to the Hoh River basin, however this trail has received maintenance in recent years. It also includes about 5 miles along the Upper Hoh Road. You must travel this section on foot.

Being a loop route, you can start at either the Hoh Visitor's Center, the Snider-Jackson Trailhead, or the Sol Duc Trailhead, and you may travel in either direction. This route has been completed both ways.

Route

Travel up the Hoh River Trail until it reaches the junction with Hoh Lake Trail. Travel up Hoh Lake Trail, up past Hoh Lake, and up to Bogachiel Peak and the High Divide Trail. Travel East on the High Divide Trail toward Heart Lake and traveling counter-clockwise, the long way around the Seven Lakes Basin on the Sol Duc River Trail. At the Northwest corner of the loop turn south onto Deer Lake Trail heading up towards Hidden Lake and eventually Deer Lake. From Deer Lake connect to Little Divide Trail toward Blackwood Lake. From the junction to Blackwood Lake take the Bogachiel River Trail down the ridge toward the North Fork Bogachiel River and along the river until it joins the main Bogachiel River, continue until the junction with the Bogachiel River South Bank Trail. Continue until you reach the junction with the Snider-Jackson Trail. Take this up and over the ridge and back toward the Hoh River valley. Finally connect back to the Upper Hoh road and continue the five miles back to the Hoh visitor center.

Rationale

Why should you pay $20 to complete one of the endurance challenges? A small part of the fee will go to cover website maintenance and domain registration, as well as getting patches made and other small goodies/swag. The majority of this fee will be donated to trail maintenance organizations.

Why are we even doing this? To get people out into the wonderful wilderness areas that we have here in the Northwest and to build the community of adventurous people! The trip report is just as important as actually finishing the route, and we love it when people come up with creative ways to share their experience. Information isn't always readily available for these areas, and maps can be scarce and not always reliable (especially the Pasayten and Frank Church/Selway Wildernesses.) That can intimidate some that aren't as experienced outdoors-people. The goal is to empower people to get out into these wilderness areas and hopefully to protect them into the future.

Event's current local time: 8:05 AM PT