Shorefire Trail Races

The 25K starts and finishes at the Beach Pavilion. The first 0.2 miles heads up the main parking lot and along the road, giving runners room to spread out before turning right at the Playground parking lot and settling into a flat, runnable section of trail.

Overall, the 25K is fast and mostly nontechnical, with just over 1800 feet of elevation gain across rolling hills. The biggest challenge may not be the terrain—it’s resisting distraction from the lake views along the way.

As a general rule of thumb, most (though not all) turns are right turns, and runners will spend much of the course with Smith Mountain Lake on their right-hand side.

Because the park has an extensive trail network with multiple connectors, the course includes several turns and a few lollipop sections. The route will be clearly marked with blue flagging and directional arrows, and an official GPX file will be available for runners who prefer to follow the course on a GPS watch:
https://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/6673167949

Note: Elevation gain shown on some platforms may appear lower due to GPS smoothing. Official course elevation gain is approximately 1,800 feet for the 25K and 700 feet for the 10K, based on barometric data from on-course recordings.

Aid Stations

Several aid stations will be placed along the 25K route. The first is an unmanned, water-only stop; all others will offer runner-friendly fuel including Tailwind, water, bananas, oranges, PB&J, chips, candy, and more.

25K Aid Stations

Mile 3.5: Unmanned water stop
Mile 4.85: Campfire Amphitheater (gorgeous lake views)
Mile 10: Campground
Mile 12: Five Oaks Trail loop
Mile 15: Unmanned water stop

The 10K also starts and finishes at the Beach Pavilion and includes about 700 feet of elevation gain. The first 0.2 miles heads up the main parking lot and along the road before turning left across from the Playground parking lot and dropping into Walton Creek Trail.

This early section includes the only technical portion of the 10K, but it’s short-lived. Once runners reach the bottom of the hill, the course opens into flat, runnable doubletrack. The route passes behind the Visitor Center, connects to Five Oaks Trail, and then heads into a 3-mile lollipop loop before returning the same way and climbing back up Walton Creek Trail to the finish.

The 10K course will be marked with pink flagging and directional arrows, and a GPX file will be available for GPS users.

Note: Elevation gain shown on some platforms may appear lower due to GPS smoothing. Official course elevation gain is approximately 1,800 feet for the 25K and 700 feet for the 10K, based on barometric data from on-course recordings.

10K Aid Stations

Mile 2.75: Five Oaks Trail aid station
Mile 1.5 and 5: Unmanned water stop where Walton Creek Trail meets the Visitor Center parking lot