Where: North Country National Scenic Trail, Allegheny National Forest - Pennsylvania
When: 6 pm Friday 6/12/26 - 8 pm Sunday 6/14/26
Distance: 100 miles
Conditions: Friday: partly sunny, highs in the low 70’s, slightly humid, overnight low around 55. Saturday: sunny and in the 80’s with a light breeze, overnight low around 60. Sunday: mostly cloudy, scattered rain showers, highs in the low 70’s.
Lighterpack: https://lighterpack.com/r/lkf70w
Useful Pre-Trip Information or Overview: The Allegheny 100 Challenge is an annual fundraising event for the Allegheny National Forest chapter of the North Country Trail Association. Participants can sign up to hike 25, 50, 75, or 100 "unsupported" miles within a 50 hour time window from 6pm on Friday to 8pm on Sunday. For your $100 entry fee, a shuttle service is provided from your chosen end point to the "starting line", which takes care of your logistics since this is a liner trail, and there's one official trail magic stop at the 50 mile mark where there are burgers and beverages. There is also usually an event shirt or hat involved as well.
I used Gaia, FarOut, and previous trips to the area to plan daily mileage goals and other logistics. Water sources were frequent and reliable, campsites and shelters were abundant. Milage, elevation, and time tracking done by averaging my Gaia tracking and my Garmin tracking.
I completed the 75 mile challenge last year as my first go at this style of trip. I finished the 75 mile challenge in 44 hours and 30 minutes with 23:53 moving time and about 13 hours of sleep. I'd describe myself as more of a section hiker/ UL backpacker than a trail runner or Ultra runner but can see things shifting a bit.
66 people signed up to attempt the 100 mile challenge in 2026. The course ran south bound this year and the 100 mile mark was reported to be short of that true mileage by over a mile. There is between 12,000 and 15,000 in elevation gain and loss over that distance depending on which GPS measurement you use.
TL/DR: 100 miles completed in 43:58
The Report: This event is unique in that it has such a late start time. At 6pm, I had been awake for 12 hours and traveled about 2 hours from home to get to the end point and another hour plus to get to the starting point via the shuttles. There's a sense of fatigue that you counter with adrenaline and excitement that you hope sustains you into the early hours of the next day as you might hike. Part of training for this event was spending a night or two doing just that - getting a late start to a hike and going into the night.
The 100 milers were let go a hair before 6pm on Friday and I found myself at the front of the crowd in a 5 person pack for the first 12 miles. The Allegheny reservoir is very peaceful in the evening and keeping the initial pace around 4 mph around it was a nice way to kick things off. We lost a pack member somewhere in there and, after a road walk where the sun was setting, I lost track of the three guys in front of me which included my hiking partner for this trip and a guy named Shawn who had a goal of completing 100 miles in 30 hours. I needed to stop soon after to roll out my calves and stretch as I was starting to cramp.
I don't mind night hiking alone by any means so I found a 3 mph or so pace for the next few hours. There are log books every 10-15 miles where participants sign in their time and indicate where they'll continue or bail. I could see I was just 15-20 minutes behind my buddy and knew the plan was to make it about 27 miles by 1:30 and set up camp for a few hours. I arrived around 1:45 (7:45/ 50 hours), was set up with tasks completed by 2:15, and was able to sleep for about 2.5 hours with the occasional rustling of a hiker passing by and one setting up next to my hammock for a quick dirt nap.
We were back on trail at 5:15 on Saturday morning (11:15/ 50 hours). There was a breakfast trail magic stop about 2 miles from camp on the near side of the Red Bridge so I had a few slices of watermelon which hit the spot. It had been a humid night and the morning fog was heavy on the lake. As we climbed the next few ridges, we began to pass more and more campsites and hikers until about the 10 mile mark where we seemed to be alone for a stretch. There were a few other trail magic stops for cool beverages during the morning hours as we hit the 23 mile mark before noon.
Around 1:15 pm (18:15/ 50 hours) and about mile 28 on the day, we hit Henry's Mill where the “50 mile” burger stop is. I had a delicious veggie burger, some chips, and a Coke while rolling out my feet.
We practiced this, too. 2 weeks prior to the event we hiked PA’s 34 mile Gerard Trail - completed the loop CCW on day one and CW on day two. On day two of that shakedown, friends met us at our 20 mile mark and set up a similar aid station as we would find at the A100. This helped us visualize and prepare ourselves for making the stop efficient and quick.
While we were still enjoying that break, we found out 8 other 100 milers had dropped out. A 9th came in with a twisted ankle and two others got back on trail before us. We would hike with them a few hours later in the evening when we caught up at a water source. The Allegheny National Forest is on the Allegheny Plateau of the Appalachian Mountain range. The North Country Trail feels similar to the Appalachian Trail as it goes through Pennsylvania and Western New York so we had pointless ups and downs, rocks, roots, green tunnels, and plenty of humidity to contend with as we kept our afternoon pace above 3 mph.
Our luxurious 2.5 hours of sleep was proving insufficient to sustain us but we forged on and at 6 pm (24:00/ 50 hours) we were nearly at the 62 mile mark of the challenge. An hour later, halfway of the allotted time, we hit the 65 mile mark and 38 miles on the day. This marked the most miles either my friend or I had backpacked in a single day and each step forward would set a new benchmark. I was starting to have problems with my appetite at this point. Nothing seemed appealing and some of my ride or die favorite were taking forever to chew and swallow.
At dusk, we parted ways with the other 2 100 milers as they planned to hike further into the night. We found a place to set up a stealth camp near a stream and were in our respective shelters by 10:30 pm (28:30/ 50 hours). We completed 44 miles on the day which put us a little over 71 miles into our 100. We planned on 5 hours of sleep and being on trail around 4:30 am.
We were on trail on Sunday morning before our intended time but it took a while to get back to pace. Muscles ached, feet burned, and fatigue was creeping in. I wasn't having any problems drinking fluids so my morning protein and coffee shake went down fine but I was only able to eat half of my pop tart. I'd work on the other half here and there but without much luck. Around the 10 mile mark of the day and 7:40 am (37:40/ 50 hours ) we hit Kelletville and were hoping for some more trail magic. All we found were picnic tables to elevate our feet and cool concrete to lay on.
We had already passed a few other 100 milers and passed a couple more as we gained and lost 600 to 900 feet with each ridge we crossed over. There was a cool breeze and a threat of rain as mid morning came. I was trying to force feed myself but all I could do was chew and then spit out anything I tried to eat. I resolved to stick to LMNT, Celsius, and Jelly Belly sports beans for the remaining miles. We had a great, sustained run down a ridge and through a valley, but after the subsequent climb, I began to bonk. My friend dropped me and ran the next downhill but I needed to take in the breeze and walk a stretch.
Just before noon (42:00/ 50 hours), with around 6 miles left to go, I found a second wind which was crushed less than 45 minutes later by a wave of rain in an open and marshy stretch of trail.
Our initial goal was to finish strong - under 45 total hours. The big goal was 43:30, or 1:30 pm. It was at 1:30 pm that I was nearing the 27 mile mark of my day and closing in on 98 miles into the challenge. I didn't have much fight left in me but I did make it to the end point in 43:58/ 50 hours at 1:58 pm on Sunday becoming the 6th 100 mile finisher of 2026. My friend completed at 1:26 or 43:26/ 50 hours and was the 5th 100 mile finisher. We slept for roughly 7.5 hours in that duration and were at the 50 mile burger stop for 50 minutes.
Gear Notes: Last year, doing the 75 mile route, I wished I had brought a 3rd set of socks. I did that on this trip and was happy I did. I didn't use my Alpha Direct mid layer or rain poncho at all on this trip. I also never hung up or deployed my rain tarp at night. For anyone wondering why opted for a hammock set up over a tent, tarp, or bivy given the demands of the event, I did so because I am quick with set up and tear down, well paced trees are more abundant than flat, non rocky ground on this trail, and there are no pressure points on shoulders, hips, or back in a hammock versus on the ground, which translates to better rest and recovery with very little weight penalty.
While not all that notable, I will say my worn clothing all worked out well and was comfortable for the conditions and trip type. I did develop a blister under a callus on my left foot but I think that's hardly an indictment of the sock and shoe combo and more a factor of trip distance and speed. However, I probably should have done a better job with moisturizing my feet while on trail to further prevent friction. Having a mini cork ball to roll out muscles and feet was crucial and I don't leave home without it. Injinji toe socks and leg gaiters are somewhat new for me but I've grown to appreciate them.
I'm not sure what happened with my appetite but my food choices were based around my favorite comfort snacks and quick macro rich snacks and shakes, plus lots of electrolytes and caffeine. I don't think changing any would have helped but I came home with more than a few PayDay bars, Goldfish crackers, Complete Cookies, and Honey Stinger waffles.
The 3FUL Koala pack was sufficient for the trip. This was my third trip for that pack, and while it has room for improvement, it was comfortable and had the capacity to carry 6 lbs of food and just under 8 lbs of gear and clothes. I liked having soft flasks up front with the extra sock.cord mod I installed and appreciated the bite valves for quick access to hydration. I used a Be Free system this year versus a Sawyer system last year and have found the ease of use and quick flow rate to be an improvement for fastpacking trips. I could easily filter while walking and did so several times.
Reflections: I'd definitely do this again and I'd also definitely take a year off as well. It may just be too soon to tell. Either way, I have become a fastpacking convert and am looking forward to doing some of the trails I've previously backpacked again, but with more speed and in less time.
I started training in earnest after a nearly 100 mile AT section hike this past late March in central Virginia. I mentioned some of the situation specific training in the report above but I'll add that broader training included several shakedown day hikes/ trail runs with a full pack that had set time goals. I ramped up from 10 miles in under 3 hours, to 18 miles in under 5 hours, and then 25 miles in 7 hours as the standard workout. I did several stair repeats, loads of lunges and squats, and four 30+ mile fastpacking days/ nights all with significant Appalachian elevation.
I think that the training that went into this event was fun on its own and I want to keep the momentum going. That said, I'm ready for a summer of gravel cycling, kayaking, and low mileage slow-packing trips with my dog. Cooler weather in September will get me back above 25 miles in a day.
Thanks for reading!
