MCKENZIE BRIDGE: Just short of 240 runners took to the McKenzie River Trail last Saturday for the annual McKenzie River Trail Run, filling almost all of the event’s permitted capacity and continuing a tradition that’s made the race Oregon’s oldest continuously held ultramarathon.
Now in its 36th year, the 50-kilometer (31-mile) race sends competitors through some of the most scenic and challenging terrain in the Willamette National Forest. The point-to-point course winds through old-growth forests, rough rock lava flows, waterfalls and lakes while showcasing many of the McKenzie River corridor’s most iconic landmarks.
The race began near Carmen Reservoir and sent runners upstream past Koosah and Sahalie Falls. Participants then circled Clear Lake before crossing Highway 126 and continuing along the nationally designated Recreation Trail…