Double-knot your shoelaces and follow along The Rut Mountain Journal for the story leading up to Montana’s most demanding 50-kilometer (30-mile) trail race – The Rut Mountain Run. Catch up with me on the trail between the full-time jobs and household chores, the social media posts and streaming channels, and the rhythm of life that doesn’t always allow for cutting-edge training (just a lot of running). 

The Rut – The Route – The Event – September 13, 2026

Welcome to Big Sky Country — The Rut Mountain Run (better known as “The Rut” (elk emoji) traverses the mountainous terrain of Western Montana in rugged fashion. Centered around the 11,166-foot-tall Lone Peak and Big Sky Resort, and now entering its 16th year of pushing ultra-distance runners to its limits, The Rut is emerging as the nation’s premiere mountain trail running challenges.   

It’s not the 30-miles of trail running that gives The Rut its teeth — the drastic elevation gains and sharp elevation cut The Rut above your average 50K mountain run. The route gains over 10,500 feet in elevation, or roughly eight Empire State Buildings, or something like walking up to the 850th floor of an office building (while traversing thirty miles).

Perhaps the most difficult park, however, is the terrain. We’re not talking about moving skywalks or well-trodden dirt. Much of the route ascends beyond tree-line, including a lunatical climb up Lone Peak, leaving sharp and jagged shale to hop, skip and carefully maneuver with the world sloping down on either side. A fall in this type of environment cannot happen. But the time cut-offs wait for no man or woman on September 13 – making each step count.

Read More: The Rut – The Route

My Goal for The Rut: 30,000 Trees Planted  

The goal for The Rut Mountain Journal is to 1. Finish the Race & 2. Plant 30,000 trees while doing it. 

No, I won’t be Johnny Appleseeding the route (it’d slow me down too much) — but with your help, and through the National Forest Foundation, let’s accomplish this goal together.