This race is tiny! There are no hotels in Groveton. I stayed about 45 minutes away in a very nice B&B in Kennard. There are usually close to 100 finishers in the marathon, but there were only 38 finishers when I ran. I'm not sure what happened. It did rain BIG Time the night before, but I can't imagine registered runners would skip out due to the rain. The course starts on the high school track and is a double out-and-back. There are significant portions on dirt/gravel roads both in town and in the forest. The portion in between is on an asphalt highway. The scenery in the forest is great. Unfortunately, because of the downpour the night before, the dirt road portion inside the forest, itself was pretty treacherous for a "road" race. There was a lot of hopping and some tough footing. The aid stations and volunteers were amazing though, and Steve, the RD , is super helpful. Parking is easy and there's a shower at the stadium you can use afterward. I showed up 10 minutes before gun and still had time to use the restroom! I will definitely do this race again. Can't beat the price either at just $65.