Don't underestimate the hills on this course. It's a tough one, but beautiful. The first 2.2 miles set the tone for the remainder. It starts off deceivingly gentle, sloping downhill, and then you get an uphill walker pretty quickly. After popping back out of the woods, you go by the starting line again and begin the 3 loops on Otter Creek Trail. It starts off in a relatively flat wooded area. The trail then sweeps around the creek and the hills pick up. We followed the creek until the mid-point aid station, after which we continued until the course brought us up a large hill, where we got a jaw-dropping view of the bend in the Ohio River. There are ups and downs until you go by the starting line and then you continue to do the loop twice more. The folks that run the race are wonderful and encouraging the entire way. Don't expect throngs of people cheering you down the trail... it's not a big-city marathon.

At the finish, they had the world's best spaghetti and chili, just what's needed after a run in December. The ground was frozen when we started off, but by the end, it was getting muddy. They had Gatorade and snacks at both of the aid stations that were situated at the starting line and at the halfway point on the loop. I would highly recommend this race to anybody looking for some good trail running.

The good news: Cynthia and Todd are excellent race directors. They are very accommodating hosts, the course is well marked, the water stops are well stocked, and the after-race chili and soup hit the spot.

However, although the dirt course is beautiful, it is also tough. Both the starting 2-mile out-and-back and the three 8-mile loops have many steep and slippery climbs (especially as the temperature goes up and the frozen earth turns to mud). Expect a PW, but also expect to have fun.

Cynthia and her extended family treated us to a very memorable running experience, an experience that I will fondly remember. Cynthia (race director) and Todd (Cynthia's husband) are avid marathoners who enjoy trail running. My daughter and I, along with several other runners were guests for dinner Saturday night in Cynthia's cabin. We enjoyed feasting on the tastiest homemade pasta dinner, worthy of a MarathonGuide.com award for "The Best Pre-Race Meal."

The weather this day was perfect for marathon running (30-40's, partly cloudy and no wind). This very scenic course located on the Ohio River snaked up and down through the Otter Creek Park. The views overlooking the Ohio River and Otter Creek were breathtaking, which more than made up for the challenge of climbing the hills and staying upright. I managed to trip and fall twice. I made the mistake of taking my eyes off of the path to take in the panoramic views.

Running with several fellow members of the 50 States Marathon Club helped ease the pain in my thighs. Several memorable Otter Creek Marathon experiences included observing a gentleman fly-fishing in the middle of Otter Creek and stopping for a group picture atop a ridge overlooking the Ohio River. The highlight of the run was meeting my daughter at the park road crossings for Gatorade and munchies.

The Otter Creek Marathon is very similar in level of difficulty and breathtaking scenery to the Michigan Trail Marathon. Expect a challenge, unless you've trained on hilly, narrow and rustic trails.

I am grateful to MarathonGuide.com for posting this little known marathon. I enjoyed this marathon experience and plan to participate in next year's event. I also plan to train on trails next year.

Cynthia and Todd, thank you and have a merry Christmas.

A special thanks to my daughter Megan who was our number one fan and spectator.

Like the other gentleman, I ran this marathon with Dean as part of the endurance 50. It was my first marathon. It was my first trail run. I finished somewhere in the range of 4:30 to 4:40 (there was no time and my GPS konked out at mile 20!) It was muddy, filled with challenging footing, and slippery. Many folks fell several times. I feel like since I have finished this one, ANY marathon will be a piece of cake!

That said, it is a beautiful tract and well organized. I will go back simply for Cynthia Head's chili and blue cheese tomato soup!

I will go back and run this in the future, purely for nostalgic (and masochistic) reasons.

As it happens, I ran this marathon as part of Dean Karnazes' Endurance50. So I can't speak about things like the typical weather conditions on the real race date in December. That's what you have Weather.com for. But I can tell you about the course.

This was my first trail marathon and second overall. If you've never run a trail marathon before, this isn't a bad one to start with, but be advised, it's a challenging course. The trail itself is an 8-mile loop, which is run three times. A 2.2-mile out-and-back is added in the first lap to bring the mile count to its proper total. The trail is really a hiking trail that snakes around a small mountain that is bordered by both the Otter Creek and the Ohio River. There is a total of 2,700 feet of elevation to scale along the north half of the loop. Most of the trail is a narrow single-file track. We often lept streams, gullies and fallen trees across the path. At one point we even left a lower portion of the trail to scale a short section of the hill up to a higher section of the trail and kept going. There are flat sections, but it seemed like the majority of the loop is either up or down the side of the hills. The night before our race, it had rained steadily throughout the night and the trail was covered in fresh mud. There were a lot of times when I found it necessary to slow to a near walk simply to take extra care with my foot placement.

But, really, the setting is absolutly beautiful. There's something fresh about the mountain air. The course is tough, but far from impossible. You might think that a thrice-run loop would get repetitive, but it never, ever did.

Many runners (at least where I come from) never venture off the road for their runs, and certainly not for their marathons. But an urban marathon doesn't require you to be as engaged in what you are doing as a trail run does. Those who've been there, know. For those who haven't, you should give it a try.

One nice feature about the venue: If you plan far enough in advance, you can rent one of the cabins on site maintained by the park service. They are somewhat spartan and are meant as "rustic" cabins, but they are climate-controlled and have all the basic amenities. They are very affordable, each has a spectacular view overlooking the Ohio River, and (not least) they put you oh so close to the Trail Head of the race.

I learned that the course record is 4:10, and the average time is closer to six hours. There are generally 100 entrants every year and the field often gets very spread out on the course. There are many stretches where you will find yourself running alone through the woods. Oh, yes, there are no course spectators or mile markers. (Except, perhaps near the start area which you pass through three times.) If you want all the perks and support of an urban marathon, stay in the cities - you'll have plenty to choose from. If you want a unique trail run experience with an extremely friendly and hands-on local event staff (look for Cynthia, the race director, to pull out the family receipes and whip something up for before or after the race), then head to Otter Creek.