Can you cross a whole USA state in under a day on foot without any support or help?

In my latest adventure with Rat Racer Jimmy Mac we discover why you have to wear an orange hat in Rhode Island, accidentally invent ‘coffee beef’ and cross Rhode Island in under 2 days setting a Fastest Known Time (and first ever) to complete the North-South Trail with no support. We also have a self induced ‘worst snowshoe holiday ever’ and realize that Rhode Island has so much more to offer than just its famous sandy beaches.

The North-South (RI) Trail

The North-South Trail runs for 77 miles through the whole of the state of Rhode Island in the North East of the USA. It starts in the ‘top left’ corner of Rhode Island where Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island meet and runs southwards through various scenic nature preserves and state parks to the finish in Charlestown on the Long Island coastline.

Once you get an idea in your head (in this case a rare two days during winter break when Jimmy and I could ‘ do something stupid on trail’) its hard to give up. As CT residents the current COVID restrictions meant we couldn’t travel far and having had a COVID test result the day before the ‘socially distanced’ trail within the COVID travel rules gave us the chance for an adventure that was socially responsible and a 77 mile trail with a record up for grabs.

A few days before our planned start a major storm dumped over a foot of snow across New England but we did not abandon the plan and simply resided ourselves that it ‘might take more than one day’ and we would probably need a hat….and snowshoes. In great British spirit we would ‘buck up’….keep calm…carry on.

Supply, demand and COVID conspired against us and we found that it was impossible to buy snowshoes in the days leading up to our snowshoe adventure. Wisely we chose to ignore this small issue and pushed on with our plan for an amazing snowshoe adventure ‘sans snowshoe’.

The Race Is On

We chose Valentine’s Day to start our adventure as this has the maximum negative impact on literally everything. If you are going to have a bad idea you might as well make it a REALLY bad idea and be away from our wives on the most romantic day of the year.

With over a foot of snow on the ground and no snowshoes we were in for a tough time, so adding disgruntled partners abandoned for a few days seemed the cherry on top. Our first few miles through the Buck Hill Management Area made us realize how few layers of clothing we needed given how hard we were working and settled us in to the realization that just over 2mph was the likely pace for the rest of the trip if the snow remained as challenging as it was.

Rhode Island requires people on trail to have bright orange clothing so Jimmy and I had bright orange hats from Jimmy’s Pachaug Race. Our ‘lockdown beards’ and hats made us look like Grateful Dead Parking Cones. We settled into a pattern of moving for roughly 3 hours, being horribly disappointed with our progress, having a break to moan about the state of our feet and then setting off again for more of the same. Although the going was hard the scenery was wonderful and our poor life choices had the advantage that literally no one else was as stupid as we were to venture out so we had the trail to ourselves.

Dancing in the Street

You might think that a trail with a large amount of road sections isn’t ideal. Rhode Island is known for having a large portion of roads in poor condition, but for this trail we welcomed the ‘road breaks’ we got. Moving through virgin snow a foot deep would sometimes mean we would only travel just over a mile in an hour so the breaks on the road gave us a chance to make progress and take a break from the slog. The trail avoids any major roads and meanders through various small towns giving us a unique insight into how friendly and chatty the locals were we passed and how much more Rhode Island is than just is famous sandy beaches.

On our first full day out on the trail we set a new personal worst record….a staggering 12 hrs 30 mins to complete a marathon distance. Hilariously we went on to beat this record the next day with a 26.2 mile time of over 13 hours. The lack of snowshoes kept our feet fully immersed in the wet snow which quickly took its toll on the state of our feet. No amount of waterproof footwear would stop the inevitable and by nightfall my feet looked like Yodas Head. All we could do was apply desitin every few hours and try and ignore how bad the trenchfoot was. Mercifully the cold meant our feet got numb so we couldn’t feel how bad they were.

A Quick Nap

We kept moving for 15 hours through the night and found shelter behind a brace of dense fir trees around 5am and had a 90 minute sleep. As the sun rose we heated up some noodles and coffee and prepared ourselves for another grueling day on a beautiful trail. We didn’t know it at the time but this was to be the only time we stopped to sleep on the whole trip.

Sitting on Top of the World

The North South Trail passes through the highest point in the State. A lofty 810 feet above sea level at Jerimoth Hill. One of the lowest points for me came at one of the highest points of the state. The realization that we were only half way through and a tough few hours slog through deep snow had me close to quitting. We sensibly took the time to sit for 15 mins and heat up some food and have a moan and the warm meal quickly lifted our spirits. Jimmy took a call from Rat Race HQ and I tried to not cry.

Arcadia Management Area

One of the largest recreational areas in the state is the 14,000 acre Arcadia Management Area. The trail took a diagonal route through it for a grueling 20 miles of snow on our second day. Despite being tired the trail is beautiful through this area and because it was daylight we made good time. We stopped at flowing streams to get water and used our mini stoves to heat up snow when we weren’t near a stream and needed a drink.

Fire on the Mountain

As night fell on day 2 on the eastern part of Arcadia near the I95 we settled by a large rock for a brief heated meal before our last push through the night. A combination of laziness meant everything I cooked up in my single travel pot now tasted of ‘coffee beef’ and I didn’t care. Anything warm tasted great. Stopping even for 15 minutes meant we cooled down so I usually threw my sleeping bag round me to stop me getting too cold.

Just before the crossing of the I95 we went through an insane boulder field that was a huge scramble. The combination of snow ( and hidden streams) and lack of footprints made it very hard going and at one point my legs went through the snow and left me comically up to my waist wedged between rocks shouting ‘ Rhode Island is EATING ME’.

Rain and Snow

Since leaving Arcadia we noticed the thick deep snow gave way to patches of visible ground. The greens and browns seemed odd after the ‘snow blindness’ of the landscape up until now. As the snow got mushier our feet got worse. We spent a lot of effort trying to maintain our feet but by that point they were swollen and blistered and stopping to tend them made little difference. Our feet hurt a lot and we were very very tired.

In the Midnight hour

As we pushed on into the night we passed through the Carolina Management Area which included crossing a vast wide field at night with wind and snowfall but was rewarded with a break we took at midnight to cook up some hot food. I was so tired I got in about 4 minutes of sleep and actually snored while Jimmy cooked terrible ( but amazing) pasta.

This is a Faith No More – Mike Patton situation …..

The next few miles through the woods and Shumunkanuc Hill were terribly tough for me. I deliberately took off layers to wake me up by shocking myself cold and played Faith no More at full volume to keep me awake. I have never in my life dug so mentally deep to keep going. I began hallucinating voices in the distance in the woods and noticed the snow was ‘swaying slightly’ beneath me. We were so close to the finish at that point it seemed worth simply pushing on but I begged liked a junkie to stop and sleep for an hour. We knew a huge rain storm was forecast to start shortly and we didn’t want to be caught in torrential rain for more than necessary and Jimmy drove me on.

Around and Around

The Buckeye Boulders is a feature about 7 miles from the finish that is well worth a visit in its own right. I cant find a lot about it online but its a loop of the NS Trail just off Buckeye Brook Road. We passed through it literally hallucinating and tired but it was clear the structures of boulders and overhangs and woods makes for a stunning place to visit. I made a mental note to come back here another time to give it the attention it deserves. That night at 3am I was livid we had such an insane dog leg so close to the finish.

It Hurts me too

The final few miles through Burlingame State Park were an absolute mess. Both of us were imagining voices in the woods that weren’t there. The trail seemed to go on forever and both of us stumbled along waiting for the sun to rise and heavy rain to start. We were spat out on the road as the torrential rain started and the sun rose.

Stagger Lee

As we finally left trail for the last time and staggered into Charlestown we were met with a ferocious winter rain storm and flooded streets. We literally walked through a few inches of flood water wearing almost all the clothing we had. Like many FKTs we arrived at the finish with no fan fare, no medals or clapping. The car park and beach was empty. The irony of starting in deep snow and finishing in deep water wasn’t lost on us and we were so tired we barely acknowledged our achievement other than to jump in the car and try to get warm and dry. Jimmy looked for a toilet that wasn’t there. I took my shoes and socks off and tried not to vomit at the sight.

Jimmy’s car broke down on the way home too. So that was nice.

Third Time Lucky

This is now the third state I’ve crossed entirely on foot and was by far one of the toughest things I’ve ever done. Jimmy and I have tried to do other trails this year and failed so we were acutely aware that failure is always an option on any long trail.

Any trail is a different experience for every person. What we lost in loitering time and tiredness we gained in seeing it covered in snow and with memories enhanced by the record we set. Nothing we did on this adventure was sensible, we chose ridiculously tough conditions and I shouldn’t really make light of the level of skill and equipment needed to prevent our adventure from being a disaster. I’m sure the record we set will be beaten at some point soon and I urge anyone to go and enjoy this trail in better weather. I will certainly be returning to some sections to give this trail the attention it rightly deserves.

If you are asking about what time we did it in you are kind of missing the point. We were both focused on ‘finish lines not finish times’ which is something Jimmy encourages with his Live Loud Running and Rat Race events. Needless to say we did it in a roughly a Day….Day and Half. Whereas supported trail record times focus entirely on the time the unsupported trail records are a more holistic adventure with self reliance and outdoor skills being just as important as the ability to simply run fast and get a coke and a hug every 6 miles. I’m also literally not good enough to ever be a contender with some of the elite runners in New England who set incredibly impressive supported times on log trails.

I also find living on trail rather cathartic and this was to be no exception. With your needs stripped down to food, water, navigation and a goal its a mental reset from everyday life that leaves you grateful for everything you have when you return to the real world…..a term I’ve come to call ‘ Leecompression’. With the challenges of COVID this year it was refreshing to be reminded of the comforts we all have and to take a socially distanced and responsible break from everyday life to be enthralled by the landscape that Rhode Island is proud of.

An Unsupported Fastest Known Time

There are impressive women’s and men’s times for completing the North South Trail already but no one had ever traversed the entire trail unsupported (with no crew or help, carrying everything you need for the whole trip on your back). In the right conditions we think it might be possible to do this in under 24 hours.

Kit List and Tactics

You may also be interested in my articles about Stealth/Wild Camping, Multi Day Adventure Kit List and the other times I crossed a whole state on foot during the Leatherman Loop FKT or when I was the first person to traverse the New England Trail in one go.

Rat Race, Live Loud Running and the CULTRA podcast

You can find out more about Jimmy, Live Loud Running and Rat Race Adventures here. Jimmy is also a ‘presenter’ on the CULTRA Trail running podcast here.

Garmin GPX Files

You can download the GPX files and data for our record here. Day 1 and Day 2.