Trail runners in the Western Corn Belt Plains ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment stretching across southern Minnesota, central and western Iowa, eastern South Dakota, eastern Nebraska, northwest Missouri, and northeast Kansas. The region's severe, mid-latitude, humid continental climate features hot summers and cold winters. Runners will traverse landscapes that were once tallgrass prairies, now largely converted to agricultural land, encountering remnants of little bluestem, big bluestem, Indiangrass, switchgrass, and small areas of bur oak and oak-hickory woodlands. The terrain includes nearly level to gently rolling glaciated till plains and hilly loess plains, with intermittent and perennial streams, and some natural lakes. Wildlife sightings may include white-tailed deer, beavers, raccoons, red-tailed hawks, and a variety of birds, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the Central Irregular Plains ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment spanning southern Iowa, northern and western Missouri, eastern Kansas, and northeastern Oklahoma. The region's climate ranges from a severe, mid-latitude, humid continental climate in the north to a milder humid subtropical climate in the south, featuring hot summers and mild to cold winters. Runners will traverse a grassland/forest mosaic with allgrass prairies of little bluestem, big bluestem, switchgrass, and Indiangrass, and oak-hickory woodlands with red oak, white oak, bur oak, chinkapin oak, post oak, shagbark hickory, and bitternut hickory. The terrain includes rolling and irregular plains, cuestas, and low hills, with perennial streams, some large rivers, and a few large reservoirs. Wildlife sightings may include white-tailed deer, badgers, raccoons, skunks, muskrats, and a variety of birds, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the Northwestern Great Plains ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment encompassing the Missouri Plateau section of the Great Plains in southeastern Montana, northeastern Wyoming, and the western portion of the Dakotas. The region's dry mid-latitude steppe climate features hot summers and cold winters. Runners will traverse grasslands and sagebrush steppe, encountering blue grama, western wheatgrass, green needlegrass, prairie sandreed, buffalograss, fringed sage, Wyoming big sagebrush, rabbitbrush, and scattered ponderosa pine and Rocky Mountain juniper. The terrain includes unglaciated rolling plains of shale and sandstone, occasional buttes, dissected badland terrain, and river breaks. The region's hydrology is marked by mostly ephemeral and intermittent streams, a few larger perennial rivers, many small impoundments, and large reservoirs on the Missouri River. Wildlife sightings may include white-tailed deer, pronghorn antelope, bobcats, cougars, prairie dogs, and a variety of birds and reptiles, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the Central Great Plains ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment lying across central Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and north-central Texas. The region's climate ranges from severe to mild, mid-latitude climates north to south and more humid to dry steppe climates from east to west, featuring hot summers and mild to severe winters. Runners will traverse landscapes that were once mixed-grass prairies, now largely converted to cropland, encountering remnants of little bluestem, big bluestem, sideoats grama, blue grama, Indiangrass, and sand bluestem. The terrain includes nearly level to irregular plains, broad alluvial valleys, and hilly, dissected plains, with intermittent and perennial streams, larger rivers with braided, sandy channels, and few natural lakes. Wildlife sightings may include white-tailed deer, mule deer, pronghorn, coyotes, jackrabbits, and a variety of birds and reptiles, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the Southwestern Tablelands ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment lying mostly between the High Plains and the Southern Rockies, covering parts of southeastern Colorado, eastern New Mexico, the panhandles of Texas and Oklahoma, and a small area in southwest Kansas. The region's dry mid-latitude steppe climate features hot summers and cool winters. Runners will traverse shortgrass and midgrass prairies, encountering blue grama, black grama, sideoats grama, sand dropseed, little bluestem, and western wheatgrass, along with sand sagebrush, yucca, and cholla. The terrain includes elevated tablelands with red-hued canyons, mesas, badlands, gorges, and dissected river breaks, with elevations ranging from 1,140 to 8,600 feet. The region's hydrology is marked by scarce water, mostly ephemeral and intermittent streams, and a few perennial rivers originating in the Southern Rockies. Wildlife sightings may include mule deer, pronghorn, coyotes, black-tailed prairie dogs, and a variety of birds and reptiles, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Heartland - Spirit of the Prairie
Trail runners in the Flint Hills ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment marking the western edge of the tallgrass prairie in eastern Kansas and north-central Oklahoma. The region's severe, mid-latitude, humid continental climate features hot summers and mild to severe winters. Runners will traverse the largest remaining intact tallgrass prairie in the Great Plains, encountering big bluestem, Indiangrass, switchgrass, and little bluestem. The terrain includes rolling hills, cuestas, and narrow steep valleys, with elevations ranging from 800 to 1,620 feet, composed mostly of Pennsylvanian and Permian period shale and cherty limestone. The region's hydrology is marked by intermittent and perennial streams, several springs, and few lakes. Wildlife sightings may include white-tailed deer, coyotes, bobcats, red foxes, badgers, and a variety of birds, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the Cross Timbers ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment in north-central Texas, central Oklahoma, and southeastern Kansas. The region's mild, mid-latitude, humid subtropical climate features hot summers and mild winters. Runners will traverse transitional "cross-timbers" vegetation, encountering little bluestem grassland with scattered blackjack oak and post oak trees, as well as big bluestem, Indiangrass, switchgrass, elm, black hickory, greenbriar, and Virginia creeper. The terrain includes rolling plains, rounded hills, ridges, and cuesta topography with Pennsylvanian sandstone, mudstone, claystone, and Cretaceous limestone. The region's hydrology is marked by intermittent and perennial streams, several large rivers, and some reservoirs. Wildlife sightings may include white-tailed deer, bobcats, gray foxes, raccoons, cottontail rabbits, black-tailed jackrabbits, prairie chickens, wild turkeys, and a variety of birds and reptiles, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the Edwards Plateau ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment in central Texas, transitioning between eastern mesic and western arid regions. The region's climate varies from dry subtropical steppe in the south to mid-latitude steppe in the north and mild, mid-latitude, humid subtropical in the east, featuring hot summers and mild winters. Runners will traverse juniper-oak and mesquite-oak savannas, encountering little bluestem, yellow Indiangrass, sideoats grama, plateau live oak, Texas oak, and Ashe juniper. The terrain includes a dissected limestone plateau with rolling terrain, broad valleys, ridges, and canyons, and a sparse network of clear, cool, spring-fed perennial streams. The region's hydrology is marked by a karst system of sinkholes, underground fissures, and caverns creating aquifers. Wildlife sightings may include white-tailed deer, javelina, bobcats, coyotes, and a variety of birds and reptiles, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the Western Gulf Coastal Plain ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment that includes southwestern Louisiana, coastal Texas, and northeastern Tamaulipas. The region's mild, mid-latitude, humid subtropical climate features hot summers and mild winters. Runners will traverse landscapes that were originally tallgrass prairies, now mostly cropland, encountering remnants of bluestems, yellow Indiangrass, brownseed paspalum, and other herbaceous species. The terrain includes flat coastal plains, barrier islands, dunes, beaches, bays, estuaries, and tidal marshes. The region's hydrology is marked by low gradient intermittent and perennial streams, with main features including the Rio Grande and the Laguna Madre coastal lagoon system. Wildlife sightings may include white-tailed deer, ocelots, jaguarundi, coyotes, ringtail cats, armadillos, and a variety of birds and reptiles, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the Columbia Plateau ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment between the Cascade Range and the Rocky Mountains, covering central and southeastern Washington, north-central Oregon, and a small part of northwestern Idaho. The region's dry, mid-latitude desert and steppe climates feature hot, dry summers and cold winters. Runners will traverse arid sagebrush steppe and grasslands, encountering bluebunch wheatgrass, needleandthread, Sandberg bluegrass, Idaho fescue, basin big sagebrush, and bitterbrush. The terrain includes moderate to high relief tablelands with irregular plains and open hills, shaped by lava flows and massive floods, with elevations ranging from 195 to over 4,900 feet. The region's hydrology is marked by ephemeral streams, some wetlands and marshes, and perennial streams and rivers originating in adjacent mountainous ecoregions. Wildlife sightings may include mule deer, pronghorn antelope, coyotes, black-tailed jackrabbits, and a variety of birds and reptiles, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the Northern Basin and Range ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment forming part of the northern Great Basin, covering southeast Oregon, northern Nevada, southern Idaho, and a small portion of northern Utah. The region's arid climate features mid-latitude steppe and desert conditions with hot summers and cold winters. Runners will traverse sagebrush steppe vegetation and cool season grasses, encountering mountain big sagebrush, Wyoming big sagebrush, low sagebrush, bluebunch wheatgrass, rabbitbrush, Idaho fescue, and Thurber needlegrass. The terrain includes tablelands, intermontane basins, dissected lava plains, north-south trending mountains, and valleys with long, gently sloping alluvial fans, with elevations ranging from 2,600 to over 9,840 feet. The region's hydrology is marked by ephemeral and intermittent streams, some perennial streams at higher elevations, larger rivers like the Owyhee, Malheur, and Bruneau, scattered lakes, and playa lakes. Wildlife sightings may include mule deer, pronghorn, coyotes, and a variety of birds and reptiles, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the Wyoming Basin ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment covering a large part of central and western Wyoming, with small extensions into Montana, Colorado, Utah, and Idaho. The region's dry, mid-latitude steppe and desert climates feature warm to hot summers and cold winters. Runners will traverse arid grasslands and shrublands, encountering Wyoming big sagebrush, black sagebrush, fringed sage, rabbitbrush, western wheatgrass, needle-and-thread grass, blue grama, and junegrass. The terrain includes a broad intermontane basin interrupted by high hills and low mountains, piedmont plains, pediments, and areas of badlands, with elevations ranging from 4,000 to 9,350 feet. The region's hydrology is marked by intermittent and ephemeral streams, perennial streams originating in adjacent mountain ecoregions, and seasonal playas. Wildlife sightings may include mule deer, cougars, bobcats, coyotes, pronghorn, and a variety of birds and reptiles, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the Central Basin and Range ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment in the central Great Basin, covering a large portion of Nevada and western Utah, with small extensions into California and southern Idaho. The region's dry, mid-latitude desert climate features hot summers and mild winters. Runners will traverse Great Basin sagebrush or saltbush-greasewood vegetation, encountering shadscale, winterfat, black sagebrush, Wyoming big sagebrush, ephedra, rabbitbrush, Indian ricegrass, and squirreltail. The terrain includes north-south trending mountain ranges separated by broad xeric basins and valleys, with playas, salt flats, low terraces, sand dunes, and scattered low hills. The region's hydrology is marked by intermittent and ephemeral streams, a few perennial streams from mountainous areas, and large lakes near the margins and adjacent mountainous ecoregions. Wildlife sightings may include mule deer, pronghorn, bighorn sheep, coyotes, bobcats, and a variety of birds and reptiles, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the Colorado Plateaus ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment located between the Southern Rocky Mountains and the Wasatch Range, covering most of eastern and southern Utah, western Colorado, and small portions of northern Arizona and northwestern New Mexico. The region's dry, mid-latitude steppe climate features hot summers with low humidity and cool to cold dry winters. Runners will traverse sparsely vegetated low elevation basins and canyons with blackbrush, shadscale, fourwing saltbush, and galleta grass, as well as uplands and higher valleys with Wyoming big sagebrush, black sagebrush, pinyon-juniper woodlands, and areas of Gambel oak, mountain mahogany, aspen, and Douglas fir. The terrain includes rugged tableland topography with precipitous side-walls, benches, mesas, buttes, cliffs, canyons, and salt valleys, with elevations ranging from 2,900 to over 9,840 feet. The region's hydrology is marked by many ephemeral and intermittent streams, perennial streams originating in adjacent mountainous ecoregions, and several large rivers such as the Green, Colorado, and San Juan. Wildlife sightings may include elk, mule deer, pronghorn, coyotes, kit foxes, and a variety of birds and reptiles, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the Arizona/New Mexico Plateau ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment covering a large portion of northern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico, and the San Luis Valley of southern Colorado. The region's dry, mid-latitude steppe and desert climates feature hot summers with low humidity and cool to cold dry winters. Runners will traverse arid lower elevations with shadscale, fourwing saltbush, greasewood, galleta grass, blue and black gramas, and higher elevations with pinyon-juniper woodlands, big sagebrush, rabbitbrush, winterfat, western wheatgrass, and blue grama. The terrain includes plateaus, mesas, cliffs, deep canyons, valleys, and some irregular plains, with rocks representing almost the Earth's entire geological timespan. The region's hydrology is marked by scarce water, mostly ephemeral and intermittent streams, perennial streams originating in adjacent mountainous ecoregions, and several important rivers such as the Colorado, San Juan, and Rio Grande. Wildlife sightings may include mule deer, pronghorn, cougars, bobcats, weasels, badgers, and a variety of birds and reptiles, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the Mojave Basin and Range ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment located in southeastern California, southern Nevada, southwestern Utah, and northwestern Arizona. The region's dry, subtropical desert climate features hot summers and warm winters. Runners will traverse sparse desert vegetation, predominantly creosote bush, white bursage, Joshua-tree, and other yuccas, with sagebrush, juniper, singleleaf pinyon, and bristlecone pine in the mountains. The terrain includes scattered north-south trending mountains, broad basins, valleys, old lakebeds, and long alluvial fans, with elevations ranging from 279 feet below sea level in Death Valley to over 10,820 feet on the highest peaks. The region's hydrology is marked by scarce surface water, intermittent and ephemeral streams, the Colorado River, and some springs, seeps, and ponds. Wildlife sightings may include desert bighorn sheep, pronghorn, coyotes, kit foxes, black-tail jackrabbits, and a variety of birds and reptiles, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the Sonoran Desert ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment that includes southeastern California, southwestern Arizona, northeastern Baja California, northwestern Sonora, and the northern tip of Sinaloa. The region's dry subtropical desert climate features very hot summers and mild winters. Runners will traverse desert vegetation such as palo verde-cactus shrub, giant saguaro cactus, creosote bush, white bursage, ocotillo, brittlebrush, catclaw acacia, cholla, desert saltbush, pricklypear, ironwood, and mesquite. The terrain includes fault-block mountain ranges, scattered low mountains, alluvial fans, and alluvial valleys, with elevations ranging from sea level to over 4,500 feet. The region's hydrology is marked by ephemeral and intermittent streams, few surface water resources, and the Colorado River. Wildlife sightings may include desert bighorn sheep, southern mule deer, coyotes, bobcats, kit foxes, and a variety of birds and reptiles, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the Chihuahuan Desert ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment beginning in north central New Mexico, extending through West Texas, and more than 500 miles south into Mexico. The region's dry desert to steppe climate features hot summers and mild winters. Runners will traverse desert grassland and arid shrubland, encountering creosotebush, tarbush, acacia, mesquite, ocotillo, honey mesquite, lechuguilla, striated agave, and yuccas, with high elevation islands of oak, juniper, and pinyon pine woodland. The terrain includes broad basins and valleys bordered by sloping alluvial fans and terraces, isolated mesas, and mountains. The region's hydrology is marked by mostly ephemeral streams, a few springs, major river drainages such as the Rio Grande, Rio Conchos, and Pecos River, and playa lakes. Wildlife sightings may include desert bighorn sheep, mule deer, pronghorn, coyotes, bobcats, and a variety of birds and reptiles, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the California Coastal Sage, Chaparral, and Oak Woodlands ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment occupying south central California and northwestern Baja California, including the Channel Islands, Isla de Cedros, and Isla Guadalupe. The region's Mediterranean climate features hot, dry summers and mild winters. Runners will traverse chaparral and oak woodlands, encountering coastal sage scrub with chamise, white sage, black sage, California buckwheat, golden yarrow, and coastal cholla in the south, and inland chaparral with ceanothus, buckeye, manzanita, scrub oak, and mountain mahogany. The terrain includes coastal terraces, open low mountains or foothills, parallel ranges and valleys, and irregular plains, with elevations ranging from sea level to higher peaks. The region's hydrology is marked by mostly ephemeral and intermittent streamflow, with a few perennial streams, ponds, and reservoirs. Wildlife sightings may include mule deer, gray foxes, cougars, coyotes, bobcats, and a variety of birds and reptiles, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the Southern and Baja California Pine-Oak Mountains ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment in the highland areas of southern California and northern Baja California, including numerous mountains of the Transverse and Peninsular Ranges. The region's mild, mid-latitude Mediterranean climate features long, hot dry summers and mild, slightly wet winters. Runners will traverse complex mountain topography with a variety of natural communities, including chaparral, oak woods, mixed conifer forests, and alpine habitats, encountering chamise, oak scrub, ceanothus, manzanita, pinyon-juniper woodland, and mixed conifer forests of sugar pine, white fir, Jeffrey pine, ponderosa pine, and mountain juniper. The terrain includes high, sloping, narrow mountain ranges, plateaus, unstable slopes, sharp crests, and narrow valleys filled with colluvium and alluvium, with elevations ranging from sea level to 11,500 feet at Mt. San Gorgonio. The region's hydrology is marked by mostly intermittent and ephemeral streams, with a few perennial watercourses and reservoirs. Wildlife sightings may include black-tailed deer, coyotes, bobcats, cougars, and a variety of birds and reptiles, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the Madrean Archipelago ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment straddling the national border in southeast Arizona, southwest New Mexico, and northern Sonora. The region's dry, subtropical to mid-latitude steppe climate features hot summers and mild winters. Runners will traverse semi-desert grasslands and shrub steppe in the basins, encountering black grama, tobosa, sideoats grama, blue grama, plains lovegrass, sand dropseed, vine mesquite, curly mesquite, ephedra, sotol, yucca, ocotillo, cacti, and agave. On mountain slopes, they will find Madrean oak-juniper woodlands with various oak and juniper species, and at higher elevations, ponderosa pine, southwestern white pine, Apache pine, Chihuahuan pine, and Douglas fir. The terrain includes basins and ranges, or "sky islands," with elevations ranging from 2,620 to over 9,840 feet. The region's hydrology is marked by scarce surface water, mostly ephemeral and intermittent streams, some perennial streams at higher elevations, and springs. Wildlife sightings may include mule deer, cougars, jaguars, coyotes, bobcats, and a variety of birds and reptiles, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Flagstaff Sky Peaks Mountain Runs
Trail runners in the Arizona/New Mexico Mountains ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment extending from northwestern Arizona into central and southern New Mexico, with a small section in west Texas. The region's climate varies widely, featuring severe alpine climates to mid-latitude steppe and desert climates, with warm to hot summers and mild winters. Runners will traverse chaparral at lower elevations, pinyon-juniper and oak woodlands at lower and middle elevations, and open to dense ponderosa pine forests at higher elevations, along with some Douglas fir, southwestern white pine, white fir, and aspen. The terrain includes steep foothills, mountains, and deeply dissected high plateaus, with elevations ranging from 4,265 to over 12,400 feet. The region's hydrology is marked by many ephemeral and intermittent streams, some perennial streams, and few lakes, providing water resources to adjacent lower elevation ecoregions. Wildlife sightings may include mule deer, bighorn sheep, cougars, Mexican gray wolves, coyotes, bobcats, and a variety of birds and reptiles, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
Trail runners in the Southern Florida Coastal Plain ecoregion will experience a diverse and scenic environment stretching from Lake Okeechobee to Key West. The region's nearly frost-free, humid subtropical to tropical savanna climate features hot summers and warm winters. Runners will traverse extensive sawgrass marshes in the Everglades, tree-islands with slash pine, gumbo limbo, live oak, strangler fig, and royal palm, and cypress in wet areas of the Big Cypress region. The eastern coastal strip features slash pine, sand pine, scrub oak, and saw palmetto, while mangrove swamps are common on the southern coast and islands. The terrain includes flat, weakly dissected alluvial plains with wet soils, marshland, and swampy land cover. The region's hydrology is marked by poorly defined drainage patterns, numerous drainage canals, and abundant wetlands. Wildlife sightings may include alligators, American crocodiles, Florida panthers, Key deer, white-tailed deer, manatees, and a variety of birds, making for an adventurous and picturesque trail running experience.
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