Perfect for the rookie! Translated, Cheechako means tenderfoot or the new one. It is used chiefly among the resident eskimos of Alaska. Normally after spending one year in the state a person can shrug the shackles of this humble status and gain the stately title of sourdough. It all depends on how well he or she can adapt to their new environment. It should not take an entire year before a novice trail runner can adjust to their new surroundings. With light runs like this twice a week you will gain the fundemental skills required to execute any one of my circuits. It's how I ultimately earned my rank of sourdough. From the parking area along Edgewood Road or on Canada Road I take the Edgewood Trail (027) towards 280. Just under the overpass is the entrance to Edgewood County Park and the start of the Serpentine Loop (017). At this junction I move right and follow the trail past Clarkia (018) towards Sunset (019) and take a hard left. On hot days I have noticed that the smell of sage and other various forms of underbrush drench the air out here. It's a welcome respite from the cocktail of toxic fumes and chemicals that seethe over the freeway nearby. At the next union of trails (020) I stay on Sylvan by keeping to the right and avoid taking Ridgewood uphill. The paths that make up Sylvan are narrow and include some sharp hairpin turns as I move downwards. After negotiating these trails I soon end up in the main Edgewood Preserve parking lot and Old Stage picnic area off of Edgewood Road. Just ahead on the left I embark on Edgewood once more. This is the most difficult part of the run as it's mostly uphill, but only for about one mile. There is also one service road to cross (023) as I move closer to the peak of this drift. The trail opens up to a great view (024) of Skyline as I head down towards the western entrance of the park (025). From here it's back out along the paths I ran in on to start this enjoyable and cushy little circuit.

Distance and Elevation Profile