A new trail run - Darri / Gwydir / Warrimoo Tracks

On council from El Coyote, I tried the Darri track for the first time. This track links up with Warrimoo track and then Gwydir track. This is a fantastic 22.3km run almost entirely on trails. It has 622m of elevation gain and some challenging river crossings. The Darri & Warrimoo tracks are also very technical trails. I saw the usual fauna (wallabies / bush turkeys / lyre birds / cockatoos) however this time I also saw a giant owl in the middle of the track. I did some research and due to the huge size of this animal, I believe that it could have been a Powerful Owl.....   http://www.warringah.nsw.gov.au/environment/documents/factpowerfulowl_003.pdf
It was about 5:30am and so the light was not the best, however I think it was this species - pretty daunting to see this only a few meters away.

 An image of the Darri track map.

 Signage make the links between trails easy to follow.

The first creek crossing, Cowan Creek that feeds into Bobbin Head. 

An interesting overview of the way Bobbin Head would have looked 20,000 years ago.

The ever beautiful halfway mark at Bobbin Head. 

An image of the Gwydir Track map.

Does downhill skiing improve your running...?

Just to be specific, I am speaking about downhill and not X-country skiing and by running I mean trail / long distance running.

The experiences I am drawing on are from our recent trip to Snowmass, Colorado.
Most of the skiing was done between 3000m to 4000m asl. For perspective, Australia's highest peak is 2,228m or 7,310ft.

The Oxygen levels are obviously less at this altitude, but did it make a difference to my training...?
Because I am not a performance athlete, I can say that I do not believe that it made a material difference, at least none to speak of. I do believe that if I was training for 1 month or more at this altitude that when I returned to sea level, my bodies ability to use Oxygen more efficiently would be improved.

What I do believe has made a difference to my running fitness level is the constant use of my quads whilst skiing.  So, skiing has increased my leg muscles ability to store glycogen and this is evident now when I am running hills.