Running and biking the Tammany Trace trail - Covington, Louisiana
As part of my quest to travel to all 50 states, I heavily research running options in each state. My searches start by looking for ultramarathons, 3 day or longer backpacking trips, and scanning All Trails and GAIA GPS maps. Unfortunately, these search methods didn’t turn up anything in Louisiana that either fit my schedule or my interest for an ultrarunning destination weekend. However, one of my lesser used searches, looking for rails-to-trails paths, led me to find the Tammany Trace.
The Tammany Trace is 31 mile (50k) paved trail that runs just north of the Lake Pontchartrain shore from Covington, LA to Slidell, LA. It is shaded by the trees that line it on both sides and runs though a few quaint towns such as Abita Springs, LA. What caught my attention is the 31 mile (50k) distance as I thought it’d be perfect to get in a full ultramarathon distance for an ultrarunning destination weekend.
The western trailhead is in the city of Covington, LA. I started here as I found a nice hotel just blocks from the start, The Southern Hotel. My plans for an ultra distance day were dashed when the weather forecast showed temperatures in the mid-90s and humidity in the 50-75% range. While I’m confident in my abilities to work through most any conditions, that high temperature and humidity results in extreme sweating, so it is tough to keep hydrated. The “feels like” temperature ended up being 104 degrees Fahrenheit (40 degrees celsius).
I decided to temper my ambitions and go for a 13 mile (20k) out and back run from the hotel rather than take an Uber to Slidell and run back to the hotel. I also broke the day up by running in the morning, having lunch locally, and then driving down to Mandeville, LA to rent a bike at Brooks’ Bicycle Co-op and explore another part of the trail by bike. All in all, I spent most of the day on the trail, at the Fontainebleau State Park and beach, and had dinner outside, just a block from Lake Pontchartrain. One of the best things about my run is having an icee at Southern Snowballs, located just a mile from Covington. The icee was a perfect way to cool down after a couple hours on the trail.
New Orleans can make for an excellent ultrarunning destination weekend, but I suggest planning your trip for a much cooler month, where you can enjoy the city and nature without sweating constantly. If you are looking to do your first solo 50k distance, the Tammany Trace trail is an excellent choice since there are many stops along the way where you can get food and water. If things are not going well, a quick cab ride, or a bike rental, can get you back to the start quickly. It’s also an option to stop for a beer at the Abita Brewery, located right on the trail in Abita Springs.
