2026 Gorge Waterfalls 100k

Watch our journey on YouTube

One of my favorite things about running ultras is finding epic races across the country that allow me the opportunity to explore a new state or region. Being newer to this sport, there are still a lot of good ones out there to choose from, but this race in particular lit me up the first time I heard about it, and I couldn’t get it out of my head. It checked all of my boxes - new area, picturesque scenery, primarily trail, challenging climbs, and a Western States qualifier. As an added bonus, it would take place the weekend after my 20th wedding anniversary - what a perfect way to celebrate!

It had been on my list for a few years, and my heart was calling me to get out there. I threw the idea out to my running friend, Sara - she was in. I shot a message to my mother-in-law to see if she could stay with the kids so Elliot could join - she was in. Holy shit, it’s time to make this happen!

I’m not going to hide it - the 100k is (or maybe now I should say was) my least favorite distance. My first was the Zion 100k in 2023. While the course was breathtaking, and overall I look back on that race fondly, I fell apart at mile 50 due to severe GI discomfort, and the last 12 miles felt like an absolute slog while questioning my life’s decisions. We finished in the dark, freezing cold and exhausted. I made Elliot pull over on the way home so I could puke on the side of the road. It wasn’t pretty.

My second 100k attempt was at Beaverhead in 2024. Long story short, the altitude, record high temps, and poor air quality from the wildfires absolutely crushed me, and we DNF’d at mile 38.

So, I took a season off from the distance. I was able to complete two 100 milers in the meantime, which helped build both my fitness and confidence. Still, facing this distance again made me nervous, especially after taking a nearly 4 week hiatus from running due to hernia surgery shortly before our training block began. But I was also more motivated than ever for this to be my redemption 100k. I was determined to toe that start line as prepared as I could possibly be.

Training for a spring race in Minnesota can be, well, challenging. The elements bring an extra level of fun to those long, grueling weekend runs. I survived both my coldest run ever (15 miles in -22 degrees) and my longest run on the treadmill (25 miles). This particular winter was not conducive to running in general. Early on in the season we got rain followed by a deep freeze. The roads never recovered, leaving us with ice upon ice upon ice, meaning lots of long runs in spikes, more treadmill time than I’d prefer to protect my lungs, and trail time was nearly nonexistent. Even if we had gotten to the trails more regularly, vert is hard to come by in this state. But, we got the miles in, and I hoped that would be sufficient.

What felt like a lifetime away when we made the commitment came upon us quicker than I anticipated, and before I knew it, it was time to hop a plane to Portland. Elliot and I stayed with our friends Sara and Jeremy in a cute AirBnB in Hood River, about 25 minutes from the start/finish of the race. Sara would be running the race with us, and her husband Jeremy graciously offered to be our transport to and from. We arrived on Thursday evening, allowing us all day Friday to get our shit together and eat a ton of amazing food to prep for the big adventure. It was go time!!

The Gorge Waterfalls 100k is an amazingly scenic trail race through the breathtaking Columbia River Gorge. The course starts at Cascade Locks and consists of two out and backs. The first is a lollipop that runs westward (downriver) and the second is a straight out and back running eastward (upriver). The trail is a mix of fairly technical, rocky terrain with spurts of packed dirt and a couple short sections of pavement. In total, the course boasts 11,000 ft of climbing and descent, which made for a full day of quad busting fun.

With a 5:00am start time, our alarms were set for 3:00am to allow us an hour to get a solid breakfast in, make all of our final preparations, and leave the rental property by 4:00am. We arrived at Cascade Locks right at 4:30am and scored a parking spot right near the pavilion. While it was nice to have shelter prior to race start, we were fortunate that we really didn’t need it. Despite the forecast calling for rain, the skies were clear when we arrived and stayed that way until we hit the start line. But we took advantage of the pavilion anyway, and enjoyed the frenetic energy of all of the runners in the room awaiting their fate, including our friend Jason from back home who also happened to be running with his amazing wife Maria alongside him to crew and support.

Soon enough, we were being herded out to the start line amongst the roughly 430 runners. We settled in near the front of the pack, and listened as Dylan Bowman’s mother in-law read a poem she wrote about the gorge. I let my nerves settle a bit, and reminded myself that today was all about adventure. It was time to see this fantastic place that I have been waiting months for, and training hard for. Let's effing gorge!

As expected, as soon as we set off, Sara started making moves, weaving through runners to inch us ahead in the pack. We had all agreed to put a little pressure on early while we were on the pavement to get ahead of the crowd before funneling into the woods. While I was a little nervous about the pace I saw flash on my watch, I was thrilled that there was barely a bottleneck when we got to the trailhead. Just long enough to shed our rain jackets - we didn’t need them. Here we go, I thought.

We had about an hour of darkness to contend with. My headlamp isn’t great, and my night vision is awful, so I was being as cautious as possible while trying to maintain a strong pace. The single track trail was just rocky enough to make me feel like I was seconds away from a disaster. I hung a bit behind El and Sara, but caught them at the aid station quickly. We had a 15 mile pace plan to stay on track with for the day, and we were already 30 minutes ahead of schedule.

We were in and out quickly, just refilling our bottles before heading out to the Ainsworth aid station another 7.2 miles away. Before long, we were able to stow our headlamps, and I felt much more confident with a clearer view of the trail. The daylight also meant we could start seeing all of the beauty around us - giant woods, overlooks of the Columbia River, and the beautiful mossy rock features. The forest smelled so fresh and clean, and my heart could have exploded from the beauty. I couldn’t believe we were actually there. Finally. After months of waiting (and training). It felt like a dream come true, and I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face.

We kept crushing the miles, our pace staying faster than we needed. I told myself to just roll with it, let it feel good. We were all feeling strong, prepared. We hit a paved section and the smooth road felt effortless compared to the unpredictable unevenness of the trail. We picked up the pace, knowing we had to take advantage of every runnable stretch on the course. We also took advantage of the ability to look around with ease and soak in the surroundings. The clouds hung around the mountains ominously. It felt magical. Aside from Elliot and another runner nearly getting swiped by a passing shuttle bus, we were off to a great start!

After a couple miles, we were back on the trail heading towards Elowah Falls, the first waterfall on the course where we would navigate a water crossing. We could hear the falls before we could see them, and it evoked intense anticipation. The view from down low was magnificent, highlighting the height of the fall. The water felt cool and refreshing on my feet. I could feel the power of the thousands of gallons of water being pulled down to the earth by gravity. I felt humbled in its presence.

We tried not to dawdle at the falls too long. We had a race to run after all, and there would be plenty more to see. The trail leading to Ainsworth was much more technical than I was expecting, but we were still making great time. We pulled into the aid station about 45 minutes ahead of plan. While we had drop bags at both aid stations, we never ended up using anything from them. A huge win at this event was that the gel they provided was maltodextrin based, which is the fuel El and I are used to. I had initially planned on fueling this race with whole foods, but the gels were so easy to grab and go, I ended up loading my vest at each stop and cramming in whatever whole foods they had available. That technique ended up working great. We were diligent about taking a gel every 30 minutes. So diligent that by the back half of the race, I wanted to puke every time I heard Elliot exclaim “gel 30” as a reminder to put down the sugary goo.

With the new plan, we were also in and out of Ainsworth in record time - off to Wahkeena we go! The next section was shorter, only 4.9 miles, and it went quickly. There was a bit of climbing, but we kept a strong pace as we passed a couple more beautiful falls. One being Ponytail, where we got to run behind the fall! It felt like they were coming one after another and I was simply giddy. I continued to wear the same smile I sported at the start. It was epic! Before long we were at the mac daddy of them all - Multnomah Falls. This is a double waterfall, one taller fall towering behind a shorter one in front with a bridge running between them. I was awe struck at every turn and wished we had more time to take them in. But with the pace we were making, we were motivated to keep the engine roaring.

The aid station appeared shortly after, and we fueled fast before setting off to the steepest incline of the race - a 1500 foot climb over about 2 miles. We put it in 4WD and charged our way up, keeping it strong and steady. Climbing was feeling great, but I was surprised to see such a rocky decent, and nervous from how thrashed my quads felt when we got to the bottom. I got in a bit of a funk, having a hard time rationalizing how I could do another 40 miles with my legs already feeling toast. Suddenly, my smile faded away. My thoughts wandered back to Beaverhead.

We were in the midst of a 7.6 mile section, which felt extra long due to the climbing. I just needed to get to the next aid station and reset, I told myself. When we got to Ainsworth for the second time, I was grateful to have 26 miles behind me, but it still felt like we had a major mountain to climb (probably because we did). I popped a couple salt caps and put down some PBJ and trail mix. I told myself I just needed to get to the halfway point, that would be a huge milestone. It’s always a great feeling to know that you are counting the miles down. The stops were getting a little longer now, this one taking 5 minutes or so. But I enjoyed and needed the reset before heading out to Wahclella.

We were still way ahead of our goal time, and I used that bit of knowledge to stay positive. Even if we slowed down, 16 hours was very doable, I told myself. But thankfully, it only took a few more miles for the funk to pass as I slowly came back to life. When I realized I was on the other side of it, I exclaimed it! That would be my only low of the entire day. It was time to get to business!

We meandered our way back to Wahclella, revisiting a couple of the waterfalls and navigating the water crossing again. We dialed back the pace a little, knowing there was still a lot of race left. From Wahclella we only had 5.6 miles to Cascade Locks, and were pleased to roll in and find fancy flutes filled with Coke, ginger ale, and Red Bull, a pickle fountain, and HOT food, which really hit the spot. The Cascade Locks aid station was a huge milestone in my head. For one, this meant we had completed the first out and back section. From here, we’d start our second out and back, which would be to and from the Wyeth aid station. Secondly, we were officially over half way done with this beast, which was a great feeling. We took a little extra time here for Elliot to change his socks and for all of us to take a bathroom break. But after 12-15 minutes, we knew we had to keep the party rolling - let’s get this done!

Cascade Locks Aid Station

I envisioned the section to and from Wyeth being the hardest part of the course. It’s 10 miles each way between aid, and my legs were really starting to feel the fatigue now. But the section was breathtaking and the miles clicked quickly. We ran through some of the tallest trees I’ve ever seen and ran over a mix of rocky sections, runnable sections, and some straight up mossy boulder fields. We were now further away from the road, which created a much quieter, more peaceful atmosphere. And this was also the first section where we started to see runners coming back from Wyeth on their way to the finish line, including the front of the pack, which was exciting to witness. Here we were 7ish hours into this thing with 20 miles to go, and these guys were looking at maybe a 10k left. It was hard to fathom, and admittedly, I was a little jealous.

But I kept my head in the game as we continued on. We had a stretch goal to get to Wyeth before 4:30pm, before headlamps were required. It would be close. At this point, the climbs felt great, but the downhills were excruciating. Every muscle in my legs ached with every pounding step. We had one big climb at the beginning, followed by a couple of “bunny ears” (as they appeared on the elevation chart), followed by a big decent into Wyeth. As we continued, the sun started to peek through the clouds, and it was the first time I felt warm on the course. By the time we got to Wyeth, the sun was fully beaming down. We ditched our excess weight (jacket, sleeves, etc.) in our drop bag and reloaded with some quesadillas and Coke. We ran into Jason’s wife Maria, who let us know he was still pushing and starting to perk up. And then we got the heck out of there. 4:45pm, still on track for 15 hours!

As we left, Sara asked how long the section had taken. I calculated 2 hours and 40 minutes. We needed the return to Cascade to be 2 hours and 30 minutes to stay on track for 15 hours. Let’s give it our best! I was amazed at how much we were able to run. Maybe hitting the 50 mile mark gave me a little mental boost. Or maybe it was the fact that we were on our way home. Or maybe it was that we were able to pass a bunch of runners who were headed to Wyeth, encouraging them all like we were encouraged on our way there. “Less than a mile!” “One mile to go!” We hollered at the incomers enthusiastically. The miles flew by, and we rolled into Cascade Locks slightly faster than it took us to on the outbound. Unreal!

En route to Wyeth; Photos: James Holk

Back at Cascade, I went straight for the quesadillas, grabbing two pieces on the fly as we did our best to be efficient. While we were unlikely to hit sub-15, we were going to be reeeeaaaaaally close. The trail out of the aid station was decently runnable, but did come with some ascent, not straight descent like we were anticipating from the elevation map. But we were moving well and I was ecstatic to be making such great time. Our other goal for the day was to avoid putting our headlamps on a second time, and we were chasing the sunset. My quesadilla turned into paste in my mouth. I pocketed the other one (where it would remain until I got back to the AirBnB). We only had a 5k to go, and I had been fueling well all day. At this point, I was content running on pure adrenaline, and it was time to just get this beast done!

A couple miles later, we dumped out onto the pavement - holy crap here we go. Seeing the town that we had run out of 15 hours earlier felt amazing, We were now able to run side by side and share our appreciation for the incredible day we shared together, and our gratitude for one another. We reminisced about all of our training miles together, through those bitter cold dark mornings. Sometimes it gets overwhelming, finishing something so massive. So difficult. And to do it alongside people you love is truly special.

Soon enough, we were on the main road, and that’s when shit got real. The sun had just tucked itself behind the Cascade Range across the gorge, leaving pink streaks across the sky in its wake. There would be no headlamp for us! I could see the neon ice cream sign come into view, and knew our turn into the park would appear right after it. Let’s effing gorge! We turned left down the stairs, through the tunnel, right into the park, and there was the finish line waiting for us in all of its glory. We grabbed each others’ hands and held them high over our heads as we made our way down the finish chute. We crossed the line at 15:06 with the biggest smiles on our faces. I honestly couldn’t believe it. That time had felt impossible to me when we took our first few steps, but there we were. Basking in a perfectly executed day.

After we finished, the darkness came on quickly, emphasizing just how close we were to needing those headlamps. I couldn’t wait to sit down, and I was eager to take my shoes off. Upon inspecting my big toenails, their purple color confirmed what I had suspected - they may not hold on for long. My entire body ached, but especially my quads. It’s amazing how difficult it is to move after finishing these events. Just 10 minutes ago we were running a 9 minute/mile pace, but now I couldn’t imagine running another step. Yet if we were running a 100 miler, we’d be getting right back out there. It’s funny how when your mind knows you’re done, your body follows suit.

Gorge Waterfalls exceeded every expectation and delivered everything I’d hoped for and more. Breathtaking beauty, a brutal challenge, amazing time with friends, a shiny new 100k PR, and a Western States qualifier. I’m so glad it worked for all 3 of us to run it together, and stay together all day. We’ve already got our sites on next year’s adventure together :)

Celebrating at the winery the next day :)