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⏵ Course guide · Colorado ultra

Creede 50 & 100 Course Guide

The Creede 50 and 100 is a remote, adventure-style ultra in the San Juan Mountains out of the old mining town of Creede, Colorado, near the headwaters of the Rio Grande. It sends you up onto the Continental Divide for something like 25 miles of running above 12,000 feet, and the altitude, the weather, and the long gaps between aid are what make it. I will walk you through the course first, then give you pacing and fueling strategy built for thin air and a big alpine day, plus free tools to dial in your own numbers.

⏵ Quick facts

Creede 50 & 100 at a glance

Date
Sat, July 25, 2026 (race weekend Jul 25 to 26)
Location
Creede, CO, San Juan Mountains (start at Basham Park, town sits near 8,800 ft)
Distances
100 miler (about 106.5 mi) and 50 miler
Elevation gain
100M: about 20,822 ft · high point 13,261 ft, low point 8,786 ft
Start
8:00 AM
Cutoff
100M: 40 hours · 50M: 18 hours
Highlight
About 25 miles along the Continental Divide, mostly above 12,000 ft
Qualifier
No Western States, Hardrock, or UTMB qualifier status listed by the race

These facts come from the official race site and UltraSignup. The race itself calls its distances approximate, and weather, the exact route, and cutoffs change year to year, so confirm the current date, course, cutoffs, and aid stations with the official race before you commit.

The course: where Creede is won and lost

The 100 miler is an out-and-back, roughly 106.5 miles with about 20,822 feet of climbing, that starts in Basham Park down in Creede near 8,800 feet and immediately heads up into the high country. The high point is 13,261 feet and the low is 8,786 feet, so almost the whole thing lives above 11,000 feet, including a long stretch on the Continental Divide above 12,000. The aid stations run out and back: Oso Creek, Spring Creek, Jarosa, and Bent on the way to the Lost Trail turnaround, then back through the same stations and out to Willow Creek and McKenzie before the drop into town. The 50 covers the same high alpine character on a shorter piece of the course.

Up onto the Divide: thin air and the long traverse

The day starts with a climb out of Creede and never really lets you back down. Once you top out you are on the Continental Divide for something like 25 miles, running across open tundra with the whole San Juan range laid out around you, and that is the part people remember. It is also where the race is decided. Up at 12,000 and 13,000 feet your flat-ground fitness barely matters, your legs feel fine but you cannot breathe, and the runners who go out hard up here because the grade looks runnable are the ones who fall apart later.

Pace this by effort and by your breathing, not by your watch. Hike the climbs without guilt and keep your output even and easy. The footing swings between smooth singletrack, jeep road, and rocky open tundra, and the exposure is total, so you want to be moving steady and paying attention, not redlining and stumbling.

The turnaround and the second pass on tired legs

Because the 100 is an out-and-back, you run a lot of this terrain twice. You drop to the Lost Trail area around the midpoint, near mile 46, turn around, and climb back up to do the high country again, this time on legs that already have a long day in them. That second pass over the Divide, often deep into the night, is the real test of the race. The climbs that felt manageable on the way out feel a lot bigger coming home.

There is a notably wet, muddy section in the Bent to Lost Trail area, so expect soaked feet and plan your shoes and socks around it. If you can keep eating and keep your effort honest through the turnaround, you set yourself up for the back half. Blow up out there and the remoteness makes it a long, cold walk back.

Weather and exposure above treeline

The thing that can flip this race from hard to dangerous is the weather. Late July in the San Juans means warm sun in the morning and very real afternoon thunderstorms, and you are exposed above treeline with nowhere to hide when one rolls in. Lightning up on the Divide is a serious risk, the temperature can drop fast, and you can get hail, wind, or even snow up high in a bad year. The nights at altitude get genuinely cold.

Treat layers and a real jacket as part of your kit, not an afterthought, and watch the sky on the high traverse. This is a remote, self-reliant race, so being ready for fast-changing mountain weather is not optional. The aid stations are spread out across big country, so carry what you need to take care of yourself between them.

Aid, drop bags, crew, and pacers

The aid stations sit at Oso Creek, Spring Creek, Jarosa, Bent, and the Lost Trail turnaround on the out-and-back, then Willow Creek and McKenzie on the way home. Drop bags are allowed at designated stations (Spring Creek, Lost Trail, and Willow Creek are the usual ones), so stage warm layers, a headlamp, batteries, and food you know you can stomach for the night and the second pass up high.

Pacers are allowed from the Lost Trail aid station at the turnaround, which is exactly where you want a second set of legs and eyes for the long night across the Divide. Crew access is limited to specific stations and the directions out there are long and rough, so brief your crew and pacer carefully ahead of time. Confirm the current crew-accessible stations, the pacer rules, and any required safety gear (a CORSAR card comes up for pacers) with the race.

Pacing strategy for a high-altitude 50 / 100

With roughly 20,822 feet of climbing and most of the course parked above 11,000 feet, Creede is about managing effort and altitude, not chasing a pace chart. Run the high country by feel and save something for the second pass and the night.

Pace the climbs by grade, not by the watch

Your flat-ground pace is meaningless up on the Divide, so do not chase splits. What matters is grade-adjusted effort: hold a steady output you can actually sustain in thin air and power-hike the steep pitches without feeling bad about it. The classic Creede mistake is running the early high country too hard because the grade looks gentle and the views are pulling you along, then paying for it on the second pass. A grade-adjusted pace turns your real fitness into honest climbing targets at altitude so you do not torch the first half.

Build a vert-aware, altitude-honest finish prediction

Do not guess your Creede finish off a lower-elevation 100 time. The 20,822 feet of gain, the out-and-back double climb, and the hours above 12,000 feet all add real time, and altitude slows almost everyone more than they expect. A vert-aware finish prediction gives you a realistic window and lets you work backward into the 40 hour cutoff (or 18 hours for the 50) and the intermediate cutoffs, so you actually know your buffer at each checkpoint instead of hoping.

Respect the second pass and the night

Run this in halves. Get to the Lost Trail turnaround with your legs and your stomach intact, then grind the climbs back up onto the Divide through the cold and the dark on tired legs. Slowing down a touch up high to keep breathing and keep eating is faster over 100 miles than forcing a pace you cannot hold at 12,000 feet. Bank nothing early that costs you the back half.

If you want to reality-check your goal before you commit, our race equivalent calculator turns a recent race into an honest target for an effort like this.

Fueling strategy for thin air and a long day

Altitude quietly kills your appetite and slows your gut, and the aid is spread thin across remote terrain. That makes carbohydrate, sodium, and fluid every bit as important as fitness at Creede.

Carbs: steady, simple, and trained for altitude

Aim for around 60 to 90 grams of carbohydrate per hour, and know that up high your stomach handles less than it does at home. So lean on simple, easy-to-swallow carbs and keep them coming in a steady drip instead of gambling on big late doses your gut will reject. A glucose-plus-fructose blend helps you absorb more. Rehearse your exact hourly carb number on long climbs at the highest elevation you can reach, so eating on the move at 12,000 feet feels normal and not like an experiment on race day.

Sodium and fluid: cold does not mean you can skip it

It can be cold up on the Divide, which fools people into under-drinking, but thin dry mountain air pulls water out of you fast and you are still sweating on the climbs. Keep drinking, and bias sodium toward 500 to 700 milligrams per liter of fluid, more if you run salty. Just as important, carry enough food and fluid to cover the long gaps between aid stations, because out there the next one is not close. Weigh yourself before and after a long high-altitude run to find your real sweat rate, then build the plan around your own number.

⏵ Build your fueling plan

Get a carb, sodium, fluid, and caffeine plan per hour built for your weight, your goal time, and the Creede altitude with the free ultra fueling calculator. Browse the rest of the free running tools at the tools hub.

⏵ Free calculators for this race

Run your Creede numbers with our free, no-signup tools, then let Summit Line tie them all together with your real fitness and this exact course.

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⏵ Train for it with Summit Line

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Creede 50 & 100 FAQ

How hard is the Creede 50 & 100?

This is a hard, remote, high-altitude race, and the altitude is the whole story. The 100 miler covers about 106.5 miles with roughly 20,822 feet of climbing, a high point of 13,261 feet, and something like 25 miles strung along the Continental Divide where you basically never drop below 12,000 feet. The air is thin, the weather changes on you fast, and the aid is spread out, so it asks for patience and self-reliance more than leg speed. The 100 has a generous 40 hour cutoff and the 50 gets 18 hours, but do not let the long clock fool you. Time up high at altitude is the thing that breaks people here.

How much climbing is in the Creede 100?

The 100 miler has about 20,822 feet of total gain across roughly 106.5 miles, per the official course numbers. The high point is 13,261 feet and the low is 8,786 feet down in Creede, so almost the entire course lives above 11,000 feet with a long stretch on the Continental Divide above 12,000. It is built as an out-and-back, so you climb a chunk of it twice, once on the way out and again coming home on tired legs. The 50 miler shares the same high alpine character on a shorter loop of the course, with the same thin air and the same big climbs.

How should I fuel for the Creede 50 & 100?

Fuel it like a long alpine day where altitude is quietly wrecking your appetite and your gut. Most runners do well on roughly 60 to 90 grams of carbohydrate per hour, but up high your stomach tolerates less, so lean on simple, easy-to-swallow carbs and keep them coming steadily instead of forcing big late doses. Sodium still matters even when it is cold, often in the 500 to 700 mg per liter of fluid range and more if you sweat salty, and you have to keep drinking because thin dry air dehydrates you faster than you notice. The aid stations are spread out across remote terrain, so carry enough food and fluid to cover the long gaps. Run your own numbers with the free ultra fueling calculator.

What are the cutoff times for the Creede 50 & 100?

The 100 miler has a 40 hour overall cutoff and the 50 miler has an 18 hour cutoff, both off the 8:00 AM start. There are also intermediate cutoffs at aid stations along the way, which matter on a course this remote because if you miss one you are pulled. The published intermediate times can shift year to year, so pull the current cutoff sheet from the official race before you build your plan. Forty hours sounds roomy, but altitude, weather, and the out-and-back climbing eat into it fast, so keep a real buffer at every checkpoint.

What is the terrain and weather like at the Creede 50 & 100?

The footing is a mix of smooth dirt singletrack, jeep road, and rugged open alpine tundra, with a long high traverse on the Continental Divide. Late July in the San Juan Mountains means warm sun by day, genuinely cold nights up high, and very real afternoon thunderstorm risk, which is dangerous when you are exposed above treeline with nowhere to hide. You can get hail, wind, and even snow up there in a bad year. Plan for fast-changing mountain weather and carry layers and a real jacket. This is a remote, self-reliant course, so being ready for the conditions is part of the race.

Is the Creede 100 a good first 100 miler?

It can be a great goal race, but it is not a gentle place to learn the distance. The altitude is the catch: spending most of a day and night above 11,000 feet, with a long stretch over 12,000, is a different animal than a lower mountain 100, and it punishes anyone who has not spent time up high. If you live at altitude or you can get there to acclimate in the days before, and you have trained the climbs and rehearsed your fueling, the 40 hour cutoff gives a prepared runner room to finish. If you live at sea level and cannot acclimate, go in with your eyes open and respect the thin air.

This guide is independent and for planning and training only, and it reflects publicly available information about the Creede 50 and 100. The race calls its distances approximate, and the date, course, weather, aid stations, cutoffs, and crew and pacer rules can change year to year. So always confirm the current specifics with the official race before you register, train, or travel. The fueling and pacing advice is general and not medical advice.