The annual Rachel Carson Trail Challenge takes place the Saturday nearest the summer solstice, the longest day of the year. The Challenge is a 36-mile long, one-day, sunrise to sunset endurance hike on nearly the entire rugged Rachel Carson Trail. Unlike a footrace, the "challenge" is not to win, but to endure, to finish the hike in one day. This time, the Challenge starts in North Park at sunrise and ends 36 miles later in Harrison Hills Park. The deadline for finishing is sunset, 8:54 PM or 15 hours 4 minutes, whichever comes first.

If 36 miles sounds too daunting, we offer two shorter events that same day. The first is the Homestead Challenge, an 18-mile hike from near the Rachel Carson Homestead. The second is a 7-mile Friends & Family Challenge from Tarentum. All events finish in Harrison Hills Park.

Upcoming Races

Jun 22 2024
34 Miles
Point-to-Point Course
3 Elevation Rating
Hilly, ~2500-7500 feet in 50 miles
3 Surface Rating
Some rocks, root, and/or ruts

Results

Date Finishers Top Result (M) Top Result (F)
06/24/23 506 6:39:35 7:38:47
06/18/22 486 6:08:52 6:26:37
06/19/21 476 6:23:10 6:44:10
06/20/20 Race Cancelled
06/22/19 501 6:07:45 7:33:18
06/23/18 444 5:49:13 7:58:34
06/24/17 431 7:19:04 6:56:34
06/18/16 452 6:20:13 8:21:44
06/20/15 375 6:41:04 7:53:39
06/21/14 475 7:00:14 7:08:40
Date Finishers Top Result (M) Top Result (F)
06/22/13 384 7:13:14 7:52:41