SEPTEMBER 23-24, 2023
Generous cut-offs, unending trail beauty, rockin' aid station and sweet swag... Join us at Wawayanda State Park in Hewitt, NJ on Saturday September 23 and Sunday September 24, 2023 for the Squatchayanda Trail Festival! We have the Wild Goose 100 miler, 50 miler, Marathon or Half Marathon. We also have three timed events: 36 hours, 24 hours and 12 hours. Please check out the Runners Handbook for all of the deets! We are supporting our non-profit partner, Bigger Than The Trail with this Trail Party!
TRAIL PARTY DETAILS
SQUATCHAYANDA TRAIL FESITVAL
The 36 hour cutoff for our Wild Goose 100 miler (and 50 miler!) make this a squatchtastic event for those chasing after their first buckle. We will have several events running on Saturday and Sunday, camping at the beach plus local vendors to make this a true Trail Festival! Please check out the Runners Handbook for all of the deets!
CHARITY PARTNER
We are proud to partner with Bigger Than The Trail (BTTT). BTTT is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization that is using trail running as a platform to advocate for mental health. BTTT's mission is to enrich the lives of individuals struggling with mental health. Through their fundraising efforts, BTTT provides 3 months of free therapy to those in need! Please consider making a donation to BTTT when you register for this squatchy trail party.
**We do not want any runners/hikers/volunteers out on the course after 9pm. So please note that the Race Director and Squatchy Council reserves the right to pull participants if it is determined they will be unable to complete their final loop before 9pm.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
The Squatchayanda Trail Festival course has a little bit of everything - mellow doublewide trails, rolling singletracks, boardwalks and a bit of road. Here is the feedback we hear from runners who have gone on the course–if you live in Northern NJ or the Hudson Valley area, these trails are very mellow, not technical and relatively flat. For folks coming from NYC, Long Island, Brooklyn etc these trails would be considered moderate and much more technical than city-trails and rail trails. So in the context of the northern highlands of NJ - the Squatchayanda trails are mellow, rolling and not very technical. For anyone not used to running in the Jersey Highlands or Hudson Valley, you’ll likely find these trails to be more challenging than a tow path. There is an average of around 112 ft elevation gain per mile.
The course is made up of three different loops: Checkered 4.75M, Blue 6M and Pink 7.75M. Each event will follow a specific sequence of the loops in order to reach their distance. You will come back to Squatch HQ after each loop.
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Wild Goose 100 Miler: 11,275 ft gain and 11,239 ft loss. Start with the Pink. Then Checkered + Blue + Pink Loop x 5 times to reach 100.25 miles.
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50 Miler: 5,272 ft gain and 5,240 ft loss. Checkered + Blue + Pink repeated twice to total 37 miles and then complete Blue Loop + Pink to finish with 50.75 miles
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Marathon: 2,759 ft gain, 2,750 ft loss. Pink + Checkered + Blue + Pink = 26.25 miles
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Half Marathon: 1,440 ft gain, 1,414 ft loss. Blue + Pink = 13.75 miles
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36H, 24H and 12H participants will complete the course in the following order for the entire duration of the event: Checkered → Blue → Pink. When runners/hikers decide that they want to do one more loop, they get to choose which one they want. The final loop only counts if it is completed before time runs out.
Please check out the Runners Handbook for detailed loop descriptions including elevation profiles and maps.
AID STATIONS
The Volunteer Dream Team truly makes the Trail Magic happen at our Aid Stations! Squatch HQ (the Start/Finish at the Lake) - is where the 36 HOUR PARRTTYYY will be! This is the only aid station for the race (no other aid will be on the course). Squatch HQ will be rockin’ from 9am Saturday until 9pm Sunday night! Our Volunteers will be ready to assist you throughout the event. We work hard to have a variety of nutrition and hydration available at our events. We include many gluten-free and vegan options (upon request, we have separate cookware available to make hot vegan options on our stove). Check out the menu items below; if you don’t see something that you think would make a great addition to our aid stations, drop us a note and we’ll see what we can do!
Beverages: water, Skratch, Coke, Flât Coke, Coffee
Fruit: bananas, clementines, watermelon
Snacks: Chewy granola bars, GF Black Forest fruit snacks, bite size chocolate/candy, GF potato chips, GF tortilla chips, GF Oreos
Cold Food: GF rice cakes, pickles, peanut butter, jelly
Hot Food: pieroies, bacon, burgers, vegan veggie burgers, quesadillas (GF corn tortillas), Vegan veggie broth, salted potatoes
We want to give a big squatchtastic thank you to our friends at Skratch Labs! Skratch has been sponsoring our Trail Parties since 2022 and has stocked our aid station with their incredible hydration products. On top of that, Skratch has extended a 20% discount to all Sassquaders (just use the code SASSQUAD during online checkout). We’ll have Skratch Hydration at Squatch HQ for the duration of the event!
COURSE MARKINGS
The course will be well-marked with ribbons and large directional arrows + "wrong way" signs. The Checkered Loop will be marked with checkered ribbons, the Blue Loop will be marked with blue ribbons and the Pink Loop will be marked with pink ribbons. All of the markers and signs have reflective tape on them, so when you run at night, your headlamp will illuminate the markers/signs.
VOLUNTEER DREAM TEAM
Our Volunteer Dream Team is what makes all of the Trail Magic happen! Join us as a Volunteer at this trail party as we support our squatchtastic running community. We have many Volunteer opportunities available such as Check-In, Aid Station Crew, Course Sweepers etc. Click here to Volunteer!
PACERS
Wild Goose 100 mile runners/hikers can have a pacer join them after 72 miles.
36 Hour and 24 Hour runners/hikers can have a pacer with them starting at 12am on Sunday.
You can have multiple pacers on your team, but only one pacer with you at a time. Pacers need to pre-register with us (no charge) and wear a pacing bib while on the course. We welcome pacers to help themselves at the aid station but request that Crew bring their own supplies. Remember, pacers cannot mule for their runners. Pacers must start and finish at Squatch HQ. You cannot drop your pacer. You cannot switch pacers in the middle of a loop
CREW
All runners/hikers can have a Crew join them at the Trail Party for the duration of the event. Crew access is only available at Squatch HQ. Crew cannot aid their runner/hiker at any other spot on the course. Crews are encouraged to bring ice if they anticipate their runner/hiker needing ice during the event. Crew are welcome to set up their own pop-up tents at Squatch HQ.
CAMPING/LODGING
Wawayanda State Park is allowing camping throughout the duration of our event. Runners/hikers/volunteers/families can tent camp on the grass field in front of the Beach on Friday September 22 and Saturday September 23. This area will not be available for camping on Sunday September 24. Wawayanda State Park offers a limited number of campsites a mile away from the Start/Finish area; these sites must be reserved ahead of time via the online reservation system.
There are no shower facilities at Wawayanda.
The closest Hotel Chains are located in Mahwah, NJ - about 40 minutes from Wawayanda State Park.
There are AirBnB options in Vernon, NJ and Warwick, NY - about 20-30 minutes from Wawayanda State Park
GETTING TO THE RACE
Okay, here’s where you really need to read the fine print and pay attention. The address to the main entrance is 885 Warwick Turnpike, Hewitt, NJ. This will bring you to the entrance on Warwick Turnpike, where the park office is located. This entrance will always be open. This is the only way you can enter the park before 10am and after 6pm on Saturday and Sunday. PLEASE look at your phone GPS to make sure it is taking you to this entrance and not the Auxiliary Entrance. The Auxiliary Entrance is located at 120 Wawayanda Road, Highland Lakes, NJ. This entrance is ONLY open from 10am-6pm on Saturday and Sunday (the gate is not open during the week). When you enter the park through the main entrance on Warwick Turnpike, follow signs to Wawayanda Lake/The Beach. It will take about 5 minutes to get there from the entrance on Warwick Turnpike.
If you enter the park through the Auxiliary Entrance (remember, that’s only open from 10am-6pm on Saturday and Sunday), continue straight through the gate and then make your first right, following the signs to Wawayanda Lake/The Beach.
FAQS
CAN I HAVE A PACER?
Wild Goose 100 mile runners/hikers can have a pacer join them after 72 miles. 36 Hour and 24 Hour runners/hikers can have a pacer with them starting at 12am on Sunday. You can have multiple pacers on your team, but only one pacer with you at a time. Pacers need to pre-register with us (no charge) and wear a pacing bib while on the course. We welcome pacers to help themselves at the aid station but request that Crew bring their own supplies. Remember, pacers cannot mule for their runners. Pacers must start and finish at Squatch HQ. You cannot drop your pacer. You cannot switch pacers in the middle of a loop.
CAN I BRING MY DOG?
NO. Our insurance policy does not cover dogs at our races. Thanks for understanding.
WHAT IS THE VOLUNTEER REQUIREMENT?
Please fill out this form prior to arriving at the Squatchayanda Trail Festival on 9/23-24, 2023. All 100 mile, 36 hour and 24 hour participants are required to complete 8 hours of trail work or trail race volunteering. All 50 miler and 12 hour participants are required to complete 4 hours of trail work or trail race volunteering. Volunteering must be completed before our Trail Party on September 23, 2023. Please use this google form to submit your volunteer hours.
WILL THERE BE AN AID STATION?
YES! Our main aid station will have a wide variety of traditional ultra running food, as well as many vegan and gluten-free items. You are more than welcome to bring your own food/water and setup your own aid station in the parking lot and access it each time you come to the Squatch HQ.
ANY POWER OUTLETS AVAILABLE?
There are no power outlets at Wawayanda State Park other than the one at Squatch HQ that we will be using to power our Aid Station. We encourage all runners/hikers to pack their own charging supply such as an external battery pack.
CAN I HAVE A CREW?
All runners/hikers can have a Crew join them at the Trail Party for the duration of the event. Crew access is only available at Squatch HQ. Crew cannot aid their runner/hiker at any other spot on the course. Crews are encouraged to bring ice if they anticipate their runner/hiker needing ice during the event. Crew are welcome to set up their own pop-up tents at Squatch HQ.
WHAT IS THE WEATHER LIKE?
WILL I SEE SASQUATCH?
We sure hope you do! Make sure you take a selfie with him if you see Squatchy out there! There are bugs and there are black bears.
Hopefully we are going to have a nice fall day! But, it could be cold. Maybe. It could be warm. Check the weather before the race and dress appropriately. The zip code for the race is 07421.
WILL THE COURSE BE MARKED?
The course will be well-marked with ribbons and large directional arrows + "wrong way" signs.
WHAT ADDRESS SHOULD I USE TO GET TO THE PARK?
885 Warwick Turnpike, Hewitt-NJ
CAN I REGISTER MY KIDS FOR THIS RACE?
YES! We love having families join us. If you are registering 3 or more squatches, please email us for a discount code! trailpartydirector@sassquadtrailrunning.com
ME AND MY FRIEND AREN'T REGISTERED FOR THE RACE, BUT WE'RE STILL PLANNING ON COMING TO RUN. WE WON'T EAT FROM THE AID STATION OR TAKE A MEDAL OR SWAG. THIS IS OKAY, RIGHT?
ARE THERE ANY RESTROOMS?
YES, there are real restrooms at the start/finish area. There are changing stalls in these restrooms. These are the only restroom facilities on the course.
CAN I GET A REFUND?
Unfortunately we do not offer refunds on the nonrefundable registration fee.
NO THIS IS NOT OKAY. This is called being a "race bandit" and it is stealing. Not paying for a race and running the race is stealing from the race organization (even if you're not taking food or swag). Don't do this at a Sassquad trail party or ANY other race. It's not okay. And if you hear about someone else doing this, call them out. If you bandit a race, you will be banned from registering for any of our Sassquad events.