Mina Guli

Water advocate & ultramarathon runner 💧🏃‍♀️
Running 2,000 miles in 100 days along the Colorado. #KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

🏃‍♀️ RUN ANNOUNCEMENT 🏃‍♀️

Next week, I’ll begin the longest and most challenging river run of my life.

A daunting 2,000 miles along the Colorado River from its source in the Rocky Mountains to the desert where it runs dry. In just 100 days. In summer!

The Colorado supports 40 million people and drives $1.4 trillion of economic activity. Yet after decades of drought, overuse and rising demand, it has reached breaking point.

Over the coming months, we’ll meet the people who depend on it, share the solutions already making a difference and drive collective action to build a more resilient future for the river and the communities it sustains.

Because to keep America running, we need to keep the river running.

And to keep the river running, we need to work together.

Learn more ➡️ https://t.co/djLU1IuoYF

#KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

Day 20/100 of running 2,000 miles down the Colorado River 🏃‍♀️✅

Another long, hot day out here, with a flat tyre thrown into the mix for good measure 😅🫠

It's been a challenging stretch, but today marks a pretty special milestone: we're officially one fifth of the way through!

On to the next 💙

#KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

I nearly didn’t share this.

I was determined for this 2,000-mile run to be continuous. Driving around an obstacle was the one thing I never wanted to do.

Yesterday, I had to let go of that.

#KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

Day 19/100 of running 2,000 miles along the Colorado River 🏃‍♀️✅

Another long day in the desert.

The reroute around the wildfires has made every day a little more unpredictable, but tomorrow we should finally reconnect with the route we planned months ago.

Today reminded me how much difference the little things make. Better feet. Better sleep. Good company. Somehow the kilometres pass a little quicker.

43 km tomorrow.

One step at a time. 💙

#KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

Day 18/100 of running 2,000 miles down the Colorado River 🏃‍♀️✅

Barely any miles today.

Not because I wanted to stop running, but because we reached a point where there was no safe way through.

It’s disappointing. There were only a few hundred metres between us and where we needed to be.

I’m trying to stay positive and keep laughing. As soon as I let myself dwell on the negative, everything becomes that much harder.

The smile is as much for me as it is for all of you 💙

#KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

Day 17/100 of running 2,000 miles down the Colorado River 🏃‍♀️✅

We rerouted... again.

I’ve been thinking a lot about how hard change can be. We spend so much time making plans, it’s never easy when they suddenly have to change.

Someone said recently that in life, it’s better to be a river than a rock.

A rock stands its ground. A river finds another way.

That’s exactly what this journey has demanded. Every reroute has brought uncertainty, extra miles and fresh challenges. But it’s also taken us to places we never would have seen otherwise.

Maybe that’s the lesson. Sometimes the path changes, but the purpose doesn’t 💙💧

#KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

I’ve always thought of myself as a race car 🏃‍♀️🏎️

If I want to keep moving, I have to keep the tank full.

On the biggest days, I’m aiming for around 5,000 calories just so I can get up and do it all again the next morning. That means at least three meals, two recovery shakes, and snacks pretty much the entire time I’m moving.

Sounds easy enough... until you’re 7 hours into a run and completely over chewing 😂

Huge thanks to Kelly for making sure I stay fuelled for whatever the Colorado throws at me 💙🤗

#KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

Day 16/100 of running 2,000 miles down the Colorado River 🏃‍♀️✅

It's been another super rough day.

I always try to stay positive in these updates, but the reality is today was really, really tough.

It was insanely hot. We spent hours climbing through the canyon, and my whole toe is basically one giant blister now. I think Instagram would probably ban me if I showed you the photos...

Here’s hoping tomorrow’s a little kinder 💙

#KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

Day 15/100 of running 2,000 miles along the Colorado River 🏃‍♀️✅

Today was a shorter run into Moab. A chance to reorganise, replace gear, study maps and prepare for what’s next.

The truth is... I’m scared.

The wildfires have forced us to reroute again, and after hours of planning, it’s becoming clear that the next stretch is going to be unlike anything we’ve faced so far.

Long days through remote desert. Packrafting. Temperatures over 40°C. Rugged, isolated terrain.

It’s daunting.

Tomorrow we head back into the desert. And while I know it’s going to be incredibly tough, we’ll keep adapting, keep moving forward and keep the bigger purpose in sight.

One step at a time 💙

#KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

Day 14/100 of running 2,000 miles along the Colorado River 🏃‍♀️✅

Today was one of those days where everything took a little longer than planned. Our original route was blocked, so we had to detour a few extra miles in the heat before stopping with 15 miles still to finish tomorrow morning.

One of the highlights was seeing dinosaur footprints. I know dinosaurs were real... but somehow seeing their tracks in the rock made it feel completely different. Standing there, you can’t help but think about just how much this landscape has been shaped by water over millions of years.

This afternoon has been less glamorous: cleaning the van, doing what feels like endless laundry, and enjoying our first proper shower in two weeks. Sometimes that’s the adventure too.

Now I’m staying awake just long enough to catch the Fourth of July fireworks... then it’s finally time to sleep.

#KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

Day 13/100 of running 2,000 miles along the Colorado River 🏃‍♀️✅

Today’s philosophy was simple: smile in the face of adversity 😊

A 1,000m climb, relentless heat, and plenty of moments where it would have been easy to focus on how far there was still to go.

Sometimes all you can do is keep smiling, keep climbing, and trust that one step at a time will get you there.

Ready for Day 14 💪

#KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

Day 12/100 of running 2,000 miles along the Colorado River 🏃‍♀️✅

Less than two weeks in, and our route has already been shaped by something I thought we’d encounter much later.

42km done. Onwards. 💙

#KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

Day 10/100 of running 2,000 miles along the Colorado River 🏃‍♀️✅

I’m starting to think this river enjoys throwing a new challenge at us every single day 😅

Today’s route was blocked by private land, so after a lot of map-reading and a few increasingly adventurous ideas, we realised the simplest solution was right in front of us...

The river itself.

So today we literally made our way downstream through the Colorado River, scrambling over rocks and mud because water levels are so low.

It turned into almost 12 hours on our feet. I was slow, overwhelmed, there were a few tears, and I couldn’t have got through it without Andrew and Damien patiently talking me through every crossing.

Safe to say this wasn’t in the training plan 😂🏃‍♀️

#KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

Day 9/100 of running 2,000 miles along the Colorado River 🏃‍♀️✅

After a last-minute scramble to find somewhere to stay, we ended up camping in a local park… 😅⛺️

It wasn't exactly the best night's sleep (public parks can be pretty noisy 😂), but I'm just so incredibly grateful. Everywhere we've gone, people have stepped in to help us, and I'm blown away by how much kindness we've been shown.

Feeling a bit blah with a sore throat and the sniffles, but that's another 27 miles in the bank and a whole new appreciation for beavers! 🦫💙

See you for Day 10 👋🏃‍♀️

#KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

Day 8/100 of running 2,000 miles along the Colorado River 🏃‍♀️✅

One week ago I was running through alpine trails in the Rocky Mountains.

Now I’m weaving through farmland, learning about water rights from local farmers, and wondering why nobody warned me about these hills! 😅

Here’s today’s little update from the road 💙

#KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

Day 7/100 🏃‍♀️✅ Nearly 200 miles along the Colorado River.

The wind was relentless today.

A few years ago, when I ran 200 marathons across 32 countries, I would have fought it. Every gust felt like something to overcome. But I’ve learnt that fighting the wind only drains your energy. Now, I run with it instead.

As we move downstream, the Colorado is changing too. It’s still breathtakingly beautiful, but it’s becoming more industrial. Every mile reminds me that this river means something different to everyone who depends on it.

The river keeps teaching me the same lesson: don’t waste energy fighting what you can’t control. Adapt. Keep moving.

Tomorrow, we run again! 💪💙

#KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

Day 5/100 of running the entire length of the Colorado River 🏃‍♀️✅

You can plan a 2,000-mile expedition down to the smallest detail…

…and then the car decides it has other ideas. 😅

Thankfully, Andrew and Damien had us back on the road before long!

The reality is that every mile of this journey depends on a lot more than just my legs. There’s an incredible team working behind the scenes to keep this expedition moving, even when things go wrong.

Run 5: 26.3 miles.
Total so far: 141 miles.

On to Day 6 💙

#KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

It’s actually 115 miles in total which is around 6% of the route… got a little ahead of myself there 😂 #KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

Day 4/100 of running 2,000 miles along the Colorado River 🏃‍♀️✅

26 miles today. That’s 188 miles in total, which is almost 10% of the route!

My foot is a bit swollen, the car had a minor meltdown, rain is on the way, and we’ve now gone several days without a shower 😅

But we’re fed, we’re (mostly) functioning, and tomorrow we do it all again.

See you later 💙

#KeepTheRiverRunning

[Mina Guli @minaguli]

Before my feet hit 2,000 miles of trail, we came together in Denver for the first #KeepTheRiverRunning summit.

Over the next 100 days, I’ll be learning from many more people who care deeply about the future of the Colorado River.

Thank you to every leader, advocate, water expert and dreamer who sat at the table and said, “let’s fix this together.” You’re the reason I run 🙏💙