I’ve dabbled in trail running but never fully dived into it. Over the last couple of months, I’ve had more time (and phenomenal trails) to focus on improving my running.

It was nearing the end of our two months living in Freycinet National Park I wanted to do something big, something that challenged me before we left. Recently I turned 38 and had been mulling over the idea of running 38km (23.6mi) to celebrate. The idea was a bit crazy since my longest run to date was 12km, a run I did in the last few weeks.

I was studying the trail maps to see what hikes I left to do on the peninsula. The only trail left to do was the farthest beach from our house, Bryan's beach. It was exactly a 38km round trip. I had my challenge.

Up to the night before I wasn’t sure I was going to do it. But when I woke before dawn, I figured it was now or never.

The run started with a climb to the Wineglass Bay lookout. I had done this run several times, but starting in the dark gave my mind something new to focus on.

The crisp morning air at the top had me feeling good. I flew down the other side of the saddle and across the peninsula to Hazards Beach. The next 1.25 miles was on the beach. Thankfully the sand was hard-packed. Around this point, a switch was flipped in my head. I went from maybe to 100% laser-focused on doing the whole thing.

I stashed my day pack on Cooks Beach and ran the remaining 3 miles to the end of Bryan’s Beach, my halfway point.

On the return trip, the tide was starting to come in. The sand higher up on the beach was less firm. A slog. Back at my pack, I took a 5-minute break to eat all my snacks. The tide was even higher now on Hazards Beach. My legs were starting to burn.

I took the Hazards Beach Track, a slightly longer way back, to make my route 38km. This track is also more scrabbly with small ups and downs. It was starting to get hard to control my speed on downhills, which was freaking me out a little. But I had done this route many times and thankfully knew the terrain.

The last half mile on this trail stretched on for eternity. It was feeling like days. My lungs were burning along with my legs. Then the meticulously groomed Wineglass Bay Track appeared. All downhill to home. I was glad the parking lot was clear cause I was too exhausted to stop for traffic.

I got home and collapsed on the floor.

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