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Routes

Here are some possible routes from the Gate 3 entry:

  • 5 miles: Run toward the campus via Gate 4 a mere quarter-mile to the familiar 2-mile mark, where you'll turn around and return to Gate 3. Then proceed up the forest trail to the Gate 7 exit, where you'll turn left and run northward along 751 to the Gate 10 water stop before turning back and retracing your steps to Gate 3. Check the round-trip math: 2x(4.5-2)=5 -- voilà!
 
  • 7 miles: Follow the directions above for 5 miles, but continue from Gate 10 to the (floured) 5.5-mile mark before turning back: 2x(5.5-2)=7.
 
  • 8 miles: From Gate 3, run via Gate 4 to the 2-mile point and back to Gate 3; then run via Gate 10, Gate 13, and Gate 12 to the 6-mile point (at the Duke Forest "Gate 11 to Gate 12 Road" sign, about 150 meters past the Gate 12 entrance), where you'll retrace your route back to Gate 3.
 
  • 8 miles: A drier, less muddy, and flatter alternative, on this perhaps rainy morning, might be to run from Gate 3 via Gate 4 to the nearby 2-mile point where you’ll turn back to Gate 3 and then do a northern swing to Gate 10; there you’ll run the trail to exit Gate 13 and then enter Gate 12, where you’ll run ~150 meters to the 6-mile point at the “Gate 11 to Gate 12 Rd.” sign; there you’ll then turn back the way you came to Gate 3.
 
  • 9 miles: From Gate 3, run via Gate 4 to the original campus starting point and then back to Gate 3, where you'll follow the forest trail to the Gate 7 exit and run northward along 751 to Gate 10, where you'll turn around and return to Gate 3: southern 4.5-mile round-trip + northern 4.5-mile round-trip = 9.
 
  • 10 miles: From Gate 3 run all the way to the original campus starting point and back; then from Gate 3 run up the trail to Gate 7 and exit left along NC-751 northward to Gate 10, where you’ll run to the 5-mile point past the power line intersection with the trail and return to Gate 3 the way you came. (Since the 5-mile point, which is a half-mile from Gate10, will not be marked, simply run from Gate 10 toward it for half the time it takes you to run a mile, before turning back.)
 
  • 11 miles: Same as 10 miles above, but turn back at the 5.5-mile point (near the mid-point of the recently logged clearing at the tree on the right with the orange X marking its trunk).
 
  • 12 miles: From Gate 3, run via Gate 4 to the original campus starting point and then back to Gate 3, where you'll run on the forest trail to the Gate 7 exit and northward along NC-751 to Gate 10, where you'll proceed around the trail to Gate 13, out to NC-751 leftward the short distance to enter Gate12 and then around the Couch Mountain trail (shunning the rightward lollipop at the fork along the way) to Gate 11, where you'll exit rightward on NC-751 to Gate 10; there you'll run down along NC-751 to enter Gate 7 back around the trail to Gate 3: southern 4.5-mile round-trip + northern 4.5-mile Gate 3 to Gate 10 round-trip + 3-mile Gate 10-13-12-11-10 loop = 12
 
  • 13 miles: Follow the instructions for 10 miles in the preceding bullet but when you get to Gate 10 the first time insert the Gate 10-13-12-11-10 loop (mentioned in Option 1 above for 8 miles) before again running to the 5-mile point and turning back to Gate 3.
 
  • 14 miles: Same as for 12 miles, but on your initial southern swing, after entering the Buehler trail, run the whole loop (in either direction) around to your entry point where you'll exit Buehler and return to Gate 3. Alternatively, you can do the same southern swing as for the 12-miler, but substitute the "figure-8" 5-mile loop (Gates 10-13 then down along NC-751 to Gates 11-12-13-10) for the 3-mile Gates 10-13-12-11-10 loop described above for the 12-miler.
 
  • 15 miles: Same as for 13 miles, but substitute the “figure-8” 5-mile Gates 10-13-11-12-13-10 loop for the 3-mile Gates 10-13-12-11-10 loop.
 
  • 17 miles: Do the same southern swing described for 15 miles, but on your northern swing, when you reach Gate 10, run the 5-mile “figure-8” Gate 10-13-11-12-13-10 loop and then return to Gate 3.
 
  • 18 miles: On your southern swing, do the same as described for 12 miles; on your northern swing, when you reach Gate 10, run the 3-mile Gates 10-13-12-11-10 loop and then run again to Gate 13, exit it and enter Gate 12, and run ~150 meters to the 6-mile point (at the “Gate 11 to Gate 12 Rd.” sign), and turn back to Gate 10 and then to Gate 3.
 
  • 20 miles: Do the same southern swing as described for 12 miles, but on your northern swing when you reach Gate 10 run the 5-mile “figure-8” Gates 10-13-11-12-13-10 loop and then, back at Gate 10, run to Gate 13, enter Gate 12 and run ~150 meters to the 6-mile point (at the “Gate 11 to Gate 12 Rd.” sign), and turn back to Gate 10 and then to Gate 3.