Girdwood Marathon 2026

Giddy up! 

This trail marathon covers some of the amazing trails in Girdwood, Alaska. Our town is known for over 30 plus meandering trails through the beautiful temperate rain forest. This is NOT the race to run if it's your first marathon. "This marathon feels like an ultra run" say marathon finishers, so perhaps volunteer to sweep race course, or work at an Aid Station your first year. Volunteers are guaranteed a spot the following year! OR...sign up for the 5K Family-Friendly Race and then volunteer and cheer on the finishers!

The route includes the infamous Winner Creek Trail, the Upper, Middle, and Lower Iditarod Trails, Nordic 5K Loop, Tiny Trail, Athabascan Trail, California Creek Trail, Abe's Trail, Beaver Pond Trail, Bird-to-Gird Trail, Winner Creek Extension Trail, Alyeska Bike Path, and various Alyeska Resort mountain trails including the newest Kettle Pond Trail.

This Marathon is the brain-child of Brian Burnett who is constantly connecting trails for a fun day outside. He ran a solid 26 miles one day and thought, "More people should experience this fun...we should have a trails marathon." So if you love soggy October runs through Alaskan forests and perhaps losing the feeling in your toes running through glacial creeks...come join us on OCTOBER 3rd, 9:00AM for Full Marathon, and 10:00AM for Half Marathon (fewer cold toes), or 10:30am for a 5K trot.  If you have someone coming to watch, or if you both want to check out the course and have unlimited access to Aid Station Gummy Bears - then volunteer your first year...or "volun-tell" your cheerleader to help out.  (leave dogs at home)  Seriously - even spectators - leave dogs at home.

AID STATIONS:  1) Alyeska Daylodge, 2) Bird-to-Gird Path Trailhead, 3) Crow Creek Rd at California Creek Trailhead, 4) Middle Iditarod Trail at USFS parking lot, and 5) Nordic 5K Loop / Winner Creek Trail connection.

Choose the full 26.2 (ish) mile marathon or 13.1 (ish) mile half-marathon, or - the 5K Race. The races start and end at the Alyeska Daylodge in Girdwood.  Aid stations? Yes, we will have FIVE stations stocked with snacks and water! WE have listened...more water. Got it. But we will have pitchers to fill YOUR hydration packs or bottles. Carry your H2O! Carry your food!

This is also a BYOBS race (Bring Your Own Bear Spray), so along with your OWN hydration, snacks, and a smile, be prepared for wildlife encounters.  We will start each race with ONE WAVE from the Alyeska Daylodge. Parking is available, as well as bathrooms, and a place to store warm gear. 

THERE ARE NO REFUNDS OFFERED. (Yes, even if the race is cancelled due to weather)

THERE ARE NO BIB TRANSFERS. 

PLEASE leave your dogs at home. You can tell them about the race later. Thanks.

AGAIN THIS YEAR!  There will be a time cut off for the Marathon. Marathon ONLY - not half marathon. The marathon cutoff time will be 3.0 hours at the USFS Middle Iditarod Trail Aid Station / Parking Lot (approximately 12 mile mark). This cut off time will be in place for the safety of runners and sanity of volunteers who help create a fun day for all participants. Really, it's safety. These are wet trails in October and we encourage you to budget time navigating a few areas.  If you are interested in walking the course, then sign up as a volunteer course sweep instead of racing. 

AIRPODS are discouraged: BE alert of wildlife and other runners.

PLEASE LEAVE YOUR DOGS AT HOME. If you missed it the first three times, this applies to racers AND spectators since they tend to stand & cheer close to the finish line and food tables. 

Race Day schedule and updated maps will be emailed to all Race Participants and Wait List Participants. If you are on the Wait List, you have a 51% chance of running, so keep that Saturday open.  We will notify you as space opens.

We will decide if Marathon Racers are running across Glacier Creek 5 days prior to the race. If the water level is too dangerous, we will choose Plan B.

After the race will feature yummy Bake Shop sweet rolls, cookies, and Bake Shop soup to reward your efforts and keep you warm for the awards!! Keep cheering finishers!

This is a fundraiser for the Girdwood Nordic Ski Club. We use the funds to maintain our snow machines for winter grooming, maintain trails, and create trail signage.  We will also dedicate funds to help maintain trails on this marathon course.  We do not offer refunds unless you have a really really good reason like being deployed, or volunteering instead of racing. EVEN DUE TO WEATHER. We appreciate all of you coming to play outside in Girdwood and sharing our love for the Girdwood trail system.  We will have three categories for each race: Men's, Women's, and Non-Binary Divisions.

See you soon!