Minnesota Voyageur Trail Ultramarathon
50 mi • 27 July 2024

Minnesota Voyageur Trail Ultramarathon

  • Date: 27 July 2024
  • Distance: 50 mi
  • Start/finish: Carlton High School, Carlton, MN
  • Ascent: 5,000 ft
  • Descent: 5,000 ft

Founded in 1982, the Minnesota Voyageur 50 Mile Trail Ultramarathon is one of the oldest trail ultras in the nation. The race follows a rugged, varied, out-and-back course that takes runners on a journey from Carlton, MN, through Jay Cooke State Park, and heads northeast over difficult, rough woodland trails to Duluth, MN—and back. Enjoy scenic overlooks of Lake Superior and cross the iconic Swinging Bridge over the dalles of the St. Louis River.

Carlton High School hosts the start, finish, and race-day festivities. Weather for the Minnesota Voyageur can be extreme. There have been several years when it was hot and humid—including 2003 when it was brutally hot with 90 percent humidity. In other years it has been cool, in the mid-50’s, and wet. Plan for everything except snow—at least not so far!

Course map

Aid stations

0.0 mi
Start: Carlton High School
Crew
Bags
Prev aid: 0.0 mi
Next aid: 7.1 mi
Crew access: Yes
Drop bags: Yes – deposit bags here
Parking: A good amount of parking is available in the lots behind and near the school. Some parking is also available on the streets surrounding the school.
7.1 mi
Peterson's
Crew
Bags
Prev aid: 7.1 mi
Next aid: 6.6 mi
Crew access: No
Drop bags: Yes
13.7 mi
Hwy 210 (water only)
Crew
Bags
Prev aid: 6.6 mi
Next aid: 3.3 mi
Crew access: No
Drop bags: No
17.0 mi
Becks Road
Crew
Bags
Prev aid: 3.3 mi
Next aid: 7.1 mi
Crew access: Yes
Drop bags: Yes
Parking: To prevent crowding, spectators can park on the road and spectate from the designated area at aid station or further down the trail towards the bridge.
24.1 mi
Turnaround: Zoo
Crew
Bags
Prev aid: 7.1 mi
Next aid: 7.1 mi
Crew access: Yes
Drop bags: Yes
Parking: Fairmont Park gravel parking lot (adjacent to the Lake Superior Zoo).
31.2 mi
Becks Road
Crew
Bags
Prev aid: 7.1 mi
Next aid: 3.3 mi
Crew access: Yes
Drop bags: Yes
34.5 mi
Hwy 210 (water only)
Crew
Bags
Prev aid: 3.3 mi
Next aid: 6.6 mi
Crew access: No
Drop bags: No
41.1 mi
Peterson's
Crew
Bags
Prev aid: 6.6 mi
Next aid: 5.4 mi
Crew access: No
Drop bags: Yes
46.5 mi
Jay Cooke
Crew
Bags
Prev aid: 5.4 mi
Next aid: 3.5 mi
Crew access: Yes
Drop bags: No
50.0 mi
Finish: Carlton High School
Crew
Bags
Prev aid: 3.5 mi
Next aid: 0.0 mi
Crew access: No
Drop bags: Yes — collect bags here
Parking: ¡ USE CAUTION ! If possible, use 5th or 6th St to approach the start/finish area on Walnut Ave—4th St is the final sprint to the finish line for our runners. A good amount of parking is available in the lots behind and near the school. Some parking is also available on the streets surrounding the school.

Course data:

We make data available with the cautionary note that race courses are subject to change based on trail conditions and other factors. Race directors may share changes by email and/or during the prerace briefing.

Runner support

Aid station items:

  • Drinks include water, electrolyte drink, and various sodas.
  • Food includes fruit, cookies, potato chips, and other sweet/salty options.
  • We do *not* supply electrolyte supplement capsules, such as Endurolytes or S-Caps.
  • We do *not* supply cups. We strongly recommend you carry water during the race in a bottle or other hydration system.

Crew access:

¡ ATTENTION ! Runners’ crews and spectators are *not* allowed at Hwy 210 or Peterson’s aid stations due to limited parking. We have to disqualify runners who ignore this rule. As a runner participant, you are responsible for your crew and fans understanding this limitation.

To prevent crowding at Becks Rd aid station, spectators can park on the road and spectate from the designated area at aid station or further down the trail towards the bridge.

Drop bags:

  • Note available drop bag locations on the aid station chart.
  • Please keep your drop bags reasonable in size.
  • You must label drop bags with your name and race number. Do this at home so you don’t have to worry about it on race morning. Duct tape and a Sharpie marker work well. Unmarked bags will not be delivered to the aid station.
  • At the race start location, place your clearly marked bags by the signs for each aid station, and we will deliver them to those aid stations.
  • We will return your drop bags to the finish.

Schedule

5:00 AM-5:45 AM: Check-in and bib pick-up for runners at Carlton High School.

5:45 AM: Pre-race briefing. Attendance is mandatory.

6:00 AM: Race starts promptly to ensure accurate splits.

12:40 PM: Front runner close to finish.

Runners receive awards as they finish.

Mid-afternoon: Dinner will be provided by Magnolia Cafe at the school, runners free. A small charge for “extra eaters” can be paid at the door. Includes a variety of meat, vegetarian, and vegan / gluten-free sandwiches, pasta salad, and ice cream.

8:00 PM: Final cutoff.

Getting to the start

Address: Carlton High School 405 School Ave, Carlton, MN 55718

GPS: 46.6651196,-92.4226923

Parking at start/finish: A good amount of parking is available in the lots behind and near the school. Some parking is also available on the streets surrounding the school.

¡ USE CAUTION ! Approaching the start/finish area on Walnut Ave intersects with 4th St, which is the final sprint to the finish line for our runners. If you can, please use a different route to School Ave, such as 5th or 6th St.

Details

Trail markings: Follow the hot orange pin flags with “NMTC” on them. If you don’t see one in about 0.1 miles, you are off course! Turns are marked with a series of pin flags a few feet apart on the side to which you’ll be turning—for example, a right-hand turn marked with three pin flags on the runner’s right hand side. For more, see course marking.

Traffic warning: Use care on bike paths and roads. Runners must yield to traffic when crossing roads! A race is just a run; a road crossing is life and death!

Footing warning: Many race courses feature rugged woodland singletrack with roots, rocks, and other potential hazards. Watch footing on the bridges; they can be slippery, especially when wet, and some may have boards missing.

Cupless: NMTC races are cup-free races. We will not provide paper cups at aid stations, and runners will need to carry their own cups (for example, collapsible cups, bottles, or other hydration vessels) for use at aid stations.

Cutoffs: Voyageur aid stations enforce cutoffs (with the exception of the water-only Hwy 210 aid station, which is uncrewed). Please see the aid station chart for specific cutoff times. Runners must reach the finish in 14 hours, by 8:00 PM.

Results: Results are posted on Ultrasignup and MTEC.

Photos: Photos are often uploaded to the Voyageur Facebook page.

Awards: Top 10 men and women receive a pottery mug; all finishers receive a medal.

Area events: Coinciding with Voyageur race weekend, the city of Carlton, MN will be putting on their annual Carlton Daze festivities, including a 5k Run/Walk, kids fun races, a spaghetti feed, and much more. Organizers really appreciate support on Friday evening, when volunteer help is always appreciated.

Race rules

Please review the Minnesota Voyageur Trail Ultramarathon race rules at nmtc.run/rules.

Register or view results

Registration via Ultrasignup typically opens in March. In addition to the info on this page, runners should review the race rules, and the registration and refund policies before registering.

Volunteer

NMTC is a nonprofit grassroots trail running organization. We rely on volunteers to create an outstanding experience for runners. If you know someone who might be interested supporting the race, please encourage them to sign up at nmtc.run/volunteer.

As a reminder, volunteers of the Voyageur enjoy discounted race registration fees for the Curnow Trail Marathon (and vice-versa). See the volunteer page for more information.