That 50 mile mark I hit last weekend changed my whole route planning

I've always planned trips based on how many miles I could cover in a day, aiming for 15-20. But last weekend I did a 50 mile stretch in 3 days and realized my daily pace was way off. Turns out I was burning out by day 2 because I wasn't factoring in elevation gain correctly. Now I'm looking at contour lines on maps way more than distance numbers. Has anyone else found that switching to climb-focused planning made a big difference?

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christopher_craig4mo ago

Has anyone tried planning routes by water sources instead, that changed everything for me?

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reese_garcia4mo ago

Started reading contours and it rewired my whole brain. I was doing 12 miles in the Sierras feeling dead, couldn't figure out why till I saw it was 4,000 feet of gain. Now I aim for 1,500 feet per day max and suddenly 8 mile days feel great. Never going back to mileage-only planning.

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