The Marmot Recovery Foundation was founded in 1999. (Jeannie Lin / CHLY 101.7FM)

More than 200 people took part in the inaugural Monster Marmot Trail Run at Mount Washington on Sunday morning, with the event raising money for the Marmot Recovery Foundation.

Nick Thornton, marketing manager at Mount Washington, said organizers were excited by the strong turnout for the first-ever trail run, which featured two different courses.

A display table at the event included brochures and stickers for participants. It also featured a marmot trail cam, and other marmot merchandise. (Jeannie Lin / CHLY 101.7 FM)

“So we've got two courses set up. One's a 10-kilometre and one's a 5-kilometre. Right off the bat, we're sending the runners up the mountain, so it's a steep trail called the Gibber Trail that takes you to the top of the resort. Very scenic, very rugged, and steep. It's a challenging kind of entry to this race and it's a good way to kinda get people up the mountain,” said Thorton.

According to Thorton, of the 218 runners, 111 took part in the 10-kilometre race and 107 ran the five-kilometre course.

“The 10 kilometer then loops over the West Summit Ridge and down towards the Nordic area, where there's gonna be a loop through the Finger Trail, and then eventually winds all the way back to the base. And the 5K loop will go down some of the ski runs on the side of the mountain, and again, end back at the base,” said Thorton.

Thornton said they came up with the idea for the fundraiser after hosting the Cumberland Frontrunners, a running club based in Cumberland.

“We invited them last year for a few evenings in August where they have their run club come up and we dubbed it the Alpine August, and that was very successful. People loved being up in Mount Washington for trail running. That was basically an attempt to kind of bring more awareness to our trails and encourage people to get out and start running, especially in the Alpine where you're subjected to some cooler conditions, some different scenery. Those first few nights last summer were very successful and we basically wanted to expand on that and we came up with the idea to host a race,” said Thorton.

The run raised money for the Marmot Recovery Foundation, supporting efforts to recover the endangered Vancouver Island marmot species.

According to the Fish and Wildlife Compensation Program, the Vancouver Island marmot is recognized as an endangered species under the B.C. Wildlife Act and is on the B.C. Red List of species at risk.

The Marmot Recovery Foundation’s physical centre is located on Mount Washington, where the foundation breeds marmots and releases them onto the mountain.

Thornton said Mount Washington provides suitable alpine habitat for the species.

“So our terrain offers optimal alpine scenery for the marmots to thrive in. And there's been a longstanding relationship with the foundation. And so what happens is they breed marmots, the endangered marmots, and they release them into the Mount Washington terrain to get accustomed to alpine life, amongst other marmots. And then eventually those then get released into the wild of Strathcona and Vancouver Island,” said Thorton.

Thornton said the mountain also provides protection from some potential predators.

“It's an optimal environment for these marmots, partly because there is traffic on the mountain that kind of wards away potential predators for the marmots. So they feel a lot safer on here and the foundation just continues to grow. They've been seeing some really good numbers lately with their species numbers. So they're thriving, doing well and anytime we can help them to continue with their conservational work is a positive,” said Thorton.

According to the Marmot Recovery Foundation, the wild population has grown from fewer than 30 marmots in the early 2000s to 427 observed marmots in winter of 2025 to 2026.

The foundation also said more than 685 captive-bred marmots have been released into the wild since 2003.

Organizers said the trail run gives participants a way to support the recovery foundation while enjoying the mountain scenery.

“Just excited to be doing this for the Marmots and encouraging all the trail runners to be essentially running for the Marmots. The goal is just to continue supporting the Marmot Foundation. We wanna see how this one goes first, but the hope is to make this bigger and better in the coming years,” said Thorton.

Thornton said organizers plan to bring the race back next year and hope to continue growing the event, potentially with longer courses.

Funding Note: This story was produced with funding support from the Local Journalism Initiative, administered by the Community Radio Fund of Canada.

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