Cayuga Trails

Date:

Saturday, June 5, 2027

06:00 (50 Mile) / 07:00 (50k)

Lodging:

Lodging Partners Here

Registration:

Registration opens here on October 17th with a cap of 400

Whatchya Get?

Race, Cotton Hoodie, finisher’s Medal from Ragged Cuts in CT, post-race food from Fitnell Farms.

Location:

Old Y Camp, Robert Treman State Park, Ithaca, NY

Metrics:

50K: 31.6 miles / ~ 6,882’ elevation gain

50M: 50 miles / ~ 10,203’ elevation gain

  • Friday, June 4

  • 14:00 - 19:00: Early packet pick-up at Y Camp Staging Area

  • Saturday, June 5

  • 05:00: 50 Mile Check-In / Race Day Packet Pickup at the Y Camp Staging area

  • 06:00: Cayuga Trails 50 Mile Start

  • 06:00: 50k Check-in / Race Day Packet Pickup at the Y Camp Staging area

  • 07:00: Cayuga Trails 50k Start

  • 13:00: 50 Mile - 25 Mile Point Soft Cut

  • 15:45: 50K 25 Mile Split Hard Cut

  • 16:15: 50 Mile - 35 Mile Point Hard Cut

  • 17:50: 50 Mile - 40 Mile Point Soft Cut

  • 18:00: 50K Final Finish Cut-Off

  • 19:30: 50 Mile - 45 Mile Point Hard Cut

  • 21:00: 50 Mile Final Finish Cut-off / All runners must be off course

Timeline

The Course

Cayuga Trails has often been referred to or named as one of the most scenic courses in the country. It offers miles of singletrack, the pasing of dozens of waterfalls as it winds through gorges, signature historic stone stairs, and mixed eastern forests. It's roughly 95% trail, 5% paved, and only a few miles where you'll overlap in out/back format with other entrants. Roughly 10k gain for the 50 Mile, 6,800 for the 50k.

50K Course Beta
50K Course GPX
50M Course Beta
50M Course GPX

Aid Stations, Sections, Cut Offs

Aid Station Intervals

Treman Meadows: 4, 29 (50M)

Y Camp (Staging, can leave drop bags): 10, 25, 35, 50

Buttermilk (Drop Bags transported): 15, 20.5, 40, 45.5

Drop Bags

Entrants will be able to leave a drop bag at the Y Camp staging area (miles 10, 25, 35) and have one shuttled to Buttermilk (miles 15, 20, 40, 45). Note: Buttermilk Drop bags will not be returned to the staging area until that aid station closes in the evening, though participants can go and retreive bags when they finish. Drop bags left behind will not be returned.

Aid Stations will have water, an E-Drink such as Tailwind, Coke, and assorted foods such as PB&J, Bacon, Potatoes, Soup, Fruit, etc… We try to have gluten free options.

Parking

50 Mile Parking will be along the access Rd serving the staging area to the right / off of Rt. 13 South approximately 1/2 mile up from the split from Rt. 34. Proceed forward to be parked by parking volunteers. Map pin location is here: https://maps.app.goo.gl/pw2JZHX3Kq6N1nqj8

50k entrants will park along the Lower Park Rd inside of Lower Robert H. Treman. Enter the Park’s main lower entrance, and proceed past the park office and across the bridge. A volunteer will be there to provide you your race packet. From there proceed to the end of the Park Road and park according to Parking Volunteers directions. You’ll then walk in return fashion back the park road, taking a left through the cabins area and uphill through the woods to the Y Camp staging area. The distance from parking to the start / finish will be around a mile. Consider it a warmup and bonus miles. Map location pin is here: https://maps.app.goo.gl/ouf7AXcm2HT4x8rVA

Note: Arriving early / Friday night? Gate may be closed but should just be “dummy-locked” Please return it as it was behind you.

 FAQs

  • We realize things come up, whether injury or family plans. While we have a no-refund policy, we will roll entries into another RNR event this or next year if notified no less than 30 days out from the race. No refunds or rollovers if notified within 30 days of the event for any reason.

  • Lodging Partner info here.

    You can also check local NYS Parks Camping at ReserveAmerica.

    You may “car-camp” along the staging access road or at staging Friday night. If the latter, please be quiet on arrival and in setting up if after 9pm as other entrants are on site trying to catch some sleep. Please also note that it’s also possible that we’ll still be setting up late and might be noisy.

  • Yes you can use poles. However, our climbs are not that long and only a couple steep in parts. It's not the greatest fitting course for poles.

    No to pacers.

    Yes to crews though parking is limited so no additional crew cars permitted. Also note that the entry road to the staging area is tight and can get jammed, so if you'll have a crew in action have them park in the lower Park main lot, walking to / from the staging Pavilion (they need a workout too).

  • We’re grateful to have many returners and new individuals each year. We cap the event based on a target starting of 400 runners. Based on a typical cancel or no-show rate of the past few years, most on the waitlist have ended up pulling through, though possibility not until the week of.

Course Records

The course at Cayuga Trails has been reconfigured at least a handful of times over the years. In our early years, as the US 50 Mile Trail Championship, and with a substantial prize purse, we drew some of the fastest ultra runners in the country. Not only did that bring fast times, but it was also an easier course in technicality and elevation gain / loss than the courses in 2019 and after. So take these records with that considered, and know that because of that the 50 Mile record will be very tough if not impossible to break. The 50k distance is more recent and will thus be on the breaking table.

Men’s 50M: Tyler Sigl, 6:44, 2016

Women’s 50M: Sabrina Little, 8:06, 2018

Men’s 50k: Justin Scheid, 4:31, 2021

Women’s 50K: Riley Brady, 5:12, 2022

Note on Other Results: You can check out the results history on UltraSignUp.

In the Reels

Race Photos 2026

Many On The Genny

Enjoy the trails of and Cayuga Trails vibe, and want some more? Or acted a little too late and missed the registration cap? Check out the works of #TrailsRoc, a crew who has been an integral part of making Cayuga what it is. Another course of trails, gorges, stairs, waterfalls, good people…Many On The Genny checks all those boxes.

Saturday, June 28, 2025

Letchworth State Park, Castile, NY

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