The Most Dangerous Trails in the US!!!

#385 - We runners love a challenge! So this week, I'm talking about 12 of the most dangerous trails in the US. They are dangerous for different reasons; some trails have huge elevation gains in short distances, while others have tricky and possibly dangerous trails while others are home to dangerous animals. Which one of these trails frighten you the most? You'll find out which one scares me the most! 

PS: I didn't include those trails that could be considered mountain climbing as that's not hiking or trail running. Also, I have individual episodes on the longest trails in the US and will continue those episodes on separate episodes. 

Transcript

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Hidden West share stories you might not hear anywhere else. Want to know why the last chance grade might be the most dangerous bit of highway in California? Why did the Japanese drop bombs on the western part of the U.S.? And where is the state of Jefferson? All these stories and more about what makes the Western U.S. so great are here. There's a new story published every week. Check out Hidden West on YouTube. Welcome to Martha Runs the World, a podcast with a new take on running, fitness, and all things health-oriented. I'm Martha Hughes, your host, and each week I present a new topic that is of interest to all runners. Hi, and welcome to episode 385 of Martha Runs the World. Thank you so much for joining me. I appreciate it each and every week. Are you interested in tackling a really tough trail? Maybe put aside the personal best race times for something challenging in other ways? Well, this week, I'm exploring some of the most difficult trails in the US. And they're all difficult for different reasons. Some are hard because of the fast elevation gain, others because of the amount of climbing or scrambling over rocks you have to do. One trail asks you to crawl along a tiny little narrow trail overlooking a steep cliff on the ocean, while another is home to many, many grizzly bears. Now, these trails probably won't be run on. You probably will have to hike more than running. And some of them are multi-day, so you might have to take up backpacking if you're interested in doing them. I know for myself I'm not a fan of climbing, scrambling, or anything that involves going up or down ladders. That's just not my thing. I will leave those trails to you. An important note in no way do I recommend doing any of these trails if you are not prepared. Please, even if you run on trails frequently, if you have not done a lot of hiking on rougher terrain or even running on rougher trails, please get some practice first before attempting any of these. The first one I'm going to talk about is one of the more known ones called Angel's Landing, and I'm sure you've heard of this one. Perhaps you've hiked it before. Angel's Landing is a strenuous 5.4 mile round trip hike in Zion National Park in Utah, featuring a 1,500-foot elevation game. Famous for its breathtaking canyon views and sheer drop-offs, the final half mile requires scaling a steep, narrow sandstone, they call it a fin, using bolted chains. So at least you're not like hanging on for dear life to the sandstone. You do have something to hang on to, which makes it a little bit better. And you do need a permit for that part of the hike, so you have to get the permit first if you want to go all the way to the end. It um and the permits are kind of hard to get now, so you have to plan a plan your trip ahead. When you reach the summit, Angel's Landing View, standing on an elevation of 1,488 feet above the valley floor. The panoramic view is spectacular, apparently. You get sweeping sights of Zion Canyon's red and orange cliffs, lush valleys, and the winding Virgin River below. It's apparently amazing and worth the effort. Now, here's some of the tips for the summit. Take it all in, spend some time at the summit to fully appreciate the view. There will be other people there, but with the permits, it's not as crowded as it used to be. Stay safe, keep a safe distance from the edge. A lot of these have cliffs, so on all of these, unless one trail where you can't really keep a safe distance, you're just there, which I'll talk about in a bit. But if there's a cliff to look over, just keep a safe distance, be careful, and celebrate your victory after you get back down. Don't celebrate it too much at the top. The breathtaking views and the feeling of standing on top of the world make every step of the trail worthwhile. But remember, you do have to come back down, so be careful coming back down. The hike is rated class three on the Yosemite Decimal system due to its steep and narrow sections. And you start at the grotto shuttle stop, which is accessible from early spring to late fall. And you can climb on this all year long, but be careful if you climb in the winter because of ice, and that makes it even harder. So if you want to add more challenge to your hike, you can go for the 3.6 mile hike to Scout's Landing, which is also in Zion. The next trail is in Maine. It's called the Precipice Trail, and it's in Acadia National Park, and it's a 3.2 mile loop, famous for its vertical iron rung climbs on Champlain, Champlain Mountain, but that's hard to say, requiring steep cliff-faced scrambling. It is strenuous, vertigo inducing, and not suitable for those afraid of heights or small children like me. I'm not a small child, obviously, but I don't like climbing on those on those rungs or scrambling or anything. It's like, nah, I'll skip it. The trail generally closes from spring until mid-August for peregrine falcon nesting. So you have to be careful, or parts of the trail do anyway. So just be aware of that. Often compared to European Via Furradas, which are via ferradas are in the um in the dolomites in the Italian Alps, and they had use a lot of the iron run climbs, and there's those are really tough trails. And I'll probably do a whole nother episode on the toughest trails in the world, and we'll we will exclude the US and do everywhere else. Well, anyway, this route challenges you with open cliffs and metal ladders drilled directly into the rock face. You will negotiate boulder fields, navigate very thin ledge shelves, and pull yourself up near vertical sections. Located roughly a mile north of the beehive in Sand Beach, Champlain Mountain is the sixth tallest peak in Acadia National Park, and the cliffs along its east face are some of the most impressive. The Precipice Trail is an ingenious route that heads up these steep cliffs, navigating the various fault lines and shelf systems. And there are lots of iron rungs, ladders, handrails, and wooden bridges to help hikers at the most difficult and exposed section. As such, this trail may seem more like I already mentioned a via ferrata than a simple hike. And it has the name Precipice Trail, so you've got to figure it's gonna be kind of tough. So check with the park first and make sure that parts of the trail are not closed for the peregrine falcon nesting, which is kind of cool. The next one is Huckleberry Trail in Glacier National Park. And the trail itself is not difficult, but there is a lot of danger on the trail for another reason. The Huckleberry Mountain Trail is a popular 11.6 mile round trip in Glacier National Park. It's famous for its abundant wild huckleberries and panoramic views from a staffed historic fire lookout tower. Now, when you think of wild berries, what else do you think of? Or I think of bears. That's right, bears. Bears love berries. This area boasts one of the highest grizzly bear densities in the United States. It's actually, I think, a requirement to carry bear spray. You think you have to carry that on the trails and glacier. You want to make plenty of noise, and you really want to hike with another person, at least one other person in the area. That's what makes this trail sometimes dangerous. The first mile is relatively flat, and then the climb is steady up. So the climb itself, the hike itself is not dangerous, but who you encounter on the trail maybe. So you're not gonna run into Yogi Bear, okay? It's gonna be, you might encounter bears on that trail. This next one is to me probably the scariest, but that's me. It kind of creeps me out. The Kalalao Trail on Kauai in Hawaii. The Kalalao Trail is a legendary 11-mile wilderness trek traversing Kauai's rugged Nepali coast. Stretching from K'A Beach to the secluded Kalalao Valley, it is famous for towering sea cliffs, lush rainforests, and the precarious Crawler's Ledge. Ugh, the Crawler's Ledge is really, really creepy. Overnight camping requires an advanced permit, and they're hard to get. Keach to Hanakapi Beach is two miles, and once you get there, you can do that. Um The Crawler's Ledge is this really, and I've seen it in videos, this is a super, super narrow, narrow, narrow part of the cliff that you that crawls that that winds along the cliff, and it's a steep drop to the Pacific Ocean. There's no chains, there's nothing to grab onto but the rocks. And usually people are doing that, a lot of times, you might be out for the day, that's true. But a lot of people are backpacking there, or they're going to stay overnight. So they're carrying heavy backpacks and they have to traverse this cr this very, very narrow ledge. And that's part that the Hanakoa to Kalalau Beach passes the notorious cliffhugging crawler's ledge before opening up to spectacular Kalalau Valley. You have to get past these rocks, and that's the only way they could do it, I guess. Or the best way. I don't know. It's it just screeps me out. It's difficulty and safety, rated nine out of ten in difficulty. The trail features steep climbs, loose footing, and dangerous stream crossings. Flash floods can strand hikers, and ocean currents of the beach are notoriously treacherous for swimming. So if you do it, don't try to swim in the water. Just don't. Just enjoy the beach and enjoy that you made it and realize that you have to get back that same trail. So I will leave this trail for you. Enjoy it. Mount Washington, New Hampshire. Mount Washington, located in New Hampshire's White Mountains, is the highest peak in the northeastern United States at 6,288 feet. Famous for its spectacular alpine views, it is also notorious for having some of the most severe, unpredictable weather on the planet. Now, this is a major destination hike for serious hikers and backpackers. The most popular direct route is the Tuckerman Ravine Trail, a rigorous, rewarding, and sometimes grueling climb. Now, if you park at the AMC Pinkham Notch Visitors Center, you can hike on the east side of Mount Washington where the Tuckerman Ravine Trail is, and out and back it's 8.4 miles, and you get a gain of 4,250 feet. It's likely the most commonly hiked trail to Mount Washington, and there are no significant scrambles, no water crossings without bridges, and has least technical footing. But you will also climb, I mean you will be climbing up uh some narrow rock shelves with significant drop-offs, and you will be able to see some nice waterfalls, which is kind of nice, but there's it's very rocky, so you have to be careful of your footing, and like I said, you're going up pretty uh tough elevation. And remember that the weather is never really good there. I mean, it's passable, but sometimes the wind is really bad, and you have to be very, very careful, especially if it's like towards winter or towards the end of winter. So just be careful with the weather and always make sure and check the weather first. Now, the views apparently are are really, really great, and you get expansive views of the whole area if you can make it up and actually see the views because a lot of times that whole area is packed in with fog or clouds or whatever. It like I said, the weather is just terrible, and that's what makes it really tough. Bar trail to Pikes Peak. The bar trail is a challenging 12.6 mile trail and it's 25.2 miles round trip in Manitou Springs, Colorado, that climbs to the summit of Pikes Peak. It features a massive 7,500-foot elevation gain, making it a demanding full-day or multi-day excursion for experienced hikers. The Pikes Peak Bar Trail is one of the most difficult hikes you will find in the Pikes Peak region. It is an advanced level trail because of the 12-plus mile distance to Pikes Peak summit, and because of the elevation gain, it is going up in altitude. The trail is well marked and is traveled often, providing packed dirt and rocks and an easy trail to follow. I would give yourself six to ten hours because it's just such a difficult trail. Even going down, you're going down 12.6 miles straight down the whole time. Your thighs are gonna hate you. And you might get some trail running in at the end there, but your thighs are still gonna hate you. So that's a really, really tough one. If you can handle it, I mean it sounds like fun. That that sounds like a doable one, but your thighs are gonna hate you. All right. Um, the next one is half dome, and I'm sure you've heard of that one. Perhaps you've done that one already. This is an epic 14 to 16 and a half mile round trip trek featuring almost 5,000 feet elevation gain. It typically takes 10 to 12 hours to complete, and summating via the famous steel cables requires an advanced permit from its recreation.gov. They're difficult to get to. The distance is 14 to 19 miles round trip, depending on your starting point in the Yosemite Valley. Elevation gain is 4,800 to 5,000. Um, it's very strenuous. It involves climbing up the steep granite stairs on Miss Trail, which also are slippery, and you have to be careful. And then you're exposed to the subdome switchbacks, and then the 400-foot almost vertical cable climb. And once you're up, you have to come back down, and people are coming up as you're coming back down, so it gets busy and it's kind of difficult. So just take your time and do it. But I know runners, we are probably in better shape than a lot of people. The problem is that a lot of the people who are doing it are not in that great a shape, so you have to deal with them. And just be careful and don't go too close to the edge of Half Dom Winter Up there. Just stay away from the edge. Just stay far away. Um, Bright Angel Trail in Grand Canyon. The Bright Angel Trail is a famous and historic demanding route originating at the south rim of Grand Canyon in Arizona. Dropping steeply down into the canyon floor, it offers spectacular panoramic views, seasonal water stations, and rest houses at 1.5 miles, three miles, and have a supai gardens. I know a lot of runners do the rim to rim to rim. Backpackers do the rim to rim, but runners do the rim trim to rim, which is like a little over 50 miles. If you can do that, that's awesome. If not, you can do the bright angel trail and you can do that and come back up if you want. It's difficult trail, but it's I think it's doable for runners. The golden rule is the descent is optional, the ascent is mandatory. Plan for the steep 4,000 plus foot climb out of the canyon, which is significantly more difficult than going down. You want to be careful, but as you go down, it gets hotter. So when you're at the bottom, it's hotter than it is when you're at the top. Rest houses are strategically placed along the route, but seasonal water availability fluctuates. If you go there off season, like towards the end of winter, the water is turned off because the pipes would freeze if they kept that on. So you have to carry enough water for yourself until you get down to the bottom. You have to just be careful about that and just take plants. Just take more water than you think you need. The inner canyon can experience temperatures exceeding during the summer. Start your hike at dawn or even pre-dawn if you want. Or your run if you're gonna run. If you're gonna do rim to rim to rim, you really have to start before dawn in the dark hours, and you're gonna end in the dark hours anyway, so you know you're gonna get plenty of of nice views and stuff like that. Of course, make sure you bring uh lots of water and sunscreen and lots of snacks. And you can get that lemonade at the bottom, which is apparently really good. I have not been there, so I would not know. Apparently it's very tasty. Okay, the next one. Devil's Path Trail in New York. The Devil's Path Trail is a serious hiking challenge. It's tough and technical. And in the summer there's no water. In the coldest months, some sections require winter mountaineering gear. Does that tell you a little bit how tough this is? The majority of day hikers tackle the Red Blaze Devil's Path hiking trail on one or two mountains at a time, using one of the many trailheads along its length to access the coals, rugged notches which grow increasingly deep and steep as you hike from east to west. This is a tough, tough trail. East Coast trails are different than west coast trails. In the East Coast trails, there's lots of scrambling over slippery rocks, and there's lots and lots of routes. And after those roots, there's more roots and more slippery rocks. It's a really tough trail, and you have to be aware of that, be ready for that when you go to do the Devil's Path Trail. And there's a reason why they named it that. They wouldn't have named it that it was this nice uh pristine path, right? The maze in Canyon Lands National Park. The maze is not a trail. But I wanted to still include this because it's an area with several trails, and it's one of the most dangerous places in the U.S. Canyon Lands National Park is this huge, huge national park that isn't visited as much as Zion or Arches. But it's still this incredible area, and it's divided into three areas: Island in the Sky, Needles, and the Maze. Most people go to the first two. You can camp out in Island of the Sky or Needles, both one of those. Very few visitors enter the maze. In fact, to even go into the maze, you need a special permit. And you need to know what you're doing. It's not for those who are curious, who just want to see what it's all about. It's not for those who have not done a bunch of hours of four-wheeling and don't understand primitive backpacking without trail markers. If you're not into real, real primitive um situations and or are not good at orienteering, this might not be probably not might not, probably would not be the place for you. In fact, the book and subsequent movie, 127 hours, takes place in the maze. And if you've seen it, you do know the main character does everything wrong. To even get to the trails takes hours of driving on a rocky, tough dirt roads that requires a four-wheel drive, high clearance vehicle. Your standard SUV isn't gonna cut it. You need something more, like a Jeep or something with really, like I said, really high clearance that can take those trails. The trails in the maze are primitive and unmarked. You're gonna need a compass. I would not rely on GPS because nothing really works out there. Uh your phone doesn't work, obviously. So you're gonna have to do some some primitive orienteering on your own. The trails are steep and require scrambling and sometimes climbing. The dollhouse trail is considered the most challenging. There are a couple trails in this area that are ranger-led in the spring and summer. So if you're really interested, I would do that first. I would go with the ranger first that they can tell you all the ins and outs and what to do and how exactly to tackle this tough, tough area. I mean, it sounds fascinating, but I don't know. It's a little primitive for me. Tanaya Canyon in Yosemite. Tanaya Canyon is a canyon in Yosemite National Park, obviously. It runs about 10 miles from the outlet of Tanaya Lake southwest to Yosemite Valley, carrying Tanaya Creek through cascades and pools and into a deep canyon between Clouds Rest and Half Dome. So it's up a little bit farther than the valley itself. Waterfalls along the creek inside the canyon include Piweak, Cascade, and Three Chute Falls near Moon. Mirror Lake. The canyon has no maintained trail and is closed to general hiking by the National Park Service. But people still hike there. The upper end of the canyon is visible from Tyoga Pass Road, which is Route 120, which crosses Tualmanny Meadows and Tyoga Pass. From Olmsted Point, a roadside overlook on Tyoga Pass Road, Clouds Rest and Half Dome flank the canyon. At the canyon's lower end in Yosemite Valley, Mirror Lake is reachable by shuttle bus and a short walk. The quarter domes stand a short distance up canyon. Tanaya Canyon has no maintained trail. Park signage warns against entering the canyon because of steep, glacially polished walls, mandatory swims, dangerous waterfalls, and exposure to falls. Risks rise during spring and early summer when the water levels are high. The U.S. Geological Survey's inventory of historic rock falls in Yosemite National Park records repeated rockfall activity in Tanaya Canyon. So you have to just really be careful. On July 6, 1996, two hikers died in the canyon on the same day after one fell from a cliff and the second fell while attempting to summon help. And other people have disappeared by using that area. That area is a really, really um dangerous area, and I would avoid it. I wouldn't even suggest going there unless you're super good at orienteering and I don't know, maybe you just I would suggest not going there at all and leaving that area to be wild. I mean some places deserve to be wild and left alone, I believe, right? And I think that's one of them. The last one I have is Cactus to the Clouds, which is a trail from Palm Springs to San Yacinto Peak, and it has the greatest elevation gain of any trail in the US. And it's in the California desert there. It's this giant mountain there. And it climbs 8,000 feet from the desert to Long Valley, then joining with the main trail to gain another 2,600 feet to the summit. This trail is not for the faint hearted. Understatement, right? The Cactus Clouds hike is long. Visitors start on the desert floor and climb 10,804 feet. The gain is over 8,000 feet in the first 12 miles, and much of this is hiking in dry, arid desert conditions. Or you could do it towards winter and be caught in snowstorms. This does happen. This is a very difficult hike, and people have died or been injured while hiking there. Many people, even experienced hikers and climbers. British actor Julian Sands passed away there in the winter of 2023 while trying to traverse the trail in winter, and he was a very experienced climber. So you really have to be careful. If you use caution and stay safe, you'll have a challenging but rewarding hike. The good news is that visitors who are worried about the incline or don't want to do it can take the aerial tramway up or down. If you want to go up and do the incline and then take the tram down, then you're set. Or if you want to take the tram up and then just go down, you can do that. You don't have to go both ways. There's of course a fee, obviously, but in you get these beautiful views. I have taken that tram, and it's pretty cool. I didn't get to hike. I mean I hiked at the top there a little bit, but I didn't get to hike go all the way down. But it's really, really a neat tram and it's a really neat ride. So which one of these trails would you like to do? Which ones scare you the most? The Hawaii one scares me the most. I I will tell you that. The drop off cliff to the ocean with that teeny little trail, uh just yeah, no. No, no, no. Just please note these trails are very dangerous, and please, please, please proceed with the utmost caution. Many of them should be left alone. However, if you are determined to do it, please be trained. But however, the most dangerous, most deadly trail that we can take is the one when we are not at our best. It's the one we're tired, exhausted even, when our bodies can't seem to go forward anymore, and when our minds are not thinking clearly. It could be a very it could be a pristine, smooth, wonderful, polished trail, but if we are not thinking clearly and we're not at our best, it could be a dangerous one. When we're overconfident and think that that trail is not a big deal, that's when it's the most dangerous. So just be careful and always respect nature. Always respect nature and know that nature is in charge, you are not. We have to abide by nature's rules, not our own. All right, and that is it for today. And I thought you would enjoy those trails and maybe get inspired by doing something, by doing some hiking or backpacking or even some running on some of these trails. Some of them I would suggest not running on. Some of them you can, but others, no, no, no, no. Just go go slowly and carefully. Anyway, so that is it for today, and thank you so much. And my email address is Martharunserworld at gmail.com. And check out my YouTube channel too. It's Martha Runs the World on YouTube. All right, well, take it easy and have a great day. And on that note, let's dive for two laces and go for run.