Runners deal with injuries (ugh), gastrointestinal distress (ick), and chafing (ew). But we also battle boredom. Luckily, there’s a solution: new routes. So in pursuit of my cardio goals — and in honor of runners Bay-wide — I tested some of San Francisco’s best running locations.
A key to decipher my ratings:
Scenery
1 = Pleasant but nothing to write home about
2 = I’d Snapchat it
3 = This shit will blow up your Instagram
Difficulty
1 = As flat as SF can be, so flat-ish
2 = You’ll need a motivational playlist for this one
3 = Jane Fonda would be so proud
Busyness
1 = I’m alone, so alone
2 = Eh, I can deal with dodging a few tourists
3 = Clusterfuck
Overall
1 = Yeah!
2 = HELL yeah!
3 = Mind blown
A note about distances: I did my best using Google Maps, my GPS, and/or blogs. If there was an official distance posted online, I went with that. Also, I didn’t include ugly runs because life is too short. Ditto with runs I felt “meh” about.
Flat routes for clocking your pace or taking a scenic jog
Golden Gate Promenade, 4.3-mile span
Scenery: 3
Difficulty: 1
Busyness: 2
Overall: 3
This route, one of my favorites, is technically part of the regional Bay Trail. There are birds! There’s the Golden Gate Bridge! There’s a salt marsh! There are a fuckload of tourists! (Basically, wherever there’s a bridge, there’s a fuckload of tourists). Luckily, the path is wide enough that I didn’t have a problem keeping pace, nor did I spend time zigzagging around people. The path is easy and flat with mostly gravel footing.
Ocean Beach, about a 3-mile span/variable
Scenery: 3
Difficulty: 1
Busyness: 2
Overall: 3
On a sunny day, nothing beats a run along the Great Highway. You’ll certainly see other people on this trail, but it’s not overwhelming. The ocean view is stellar, and you can stretch on the beach after your run. This is pretty flat by San Francisco standards, although there are some small inclines and declines.
The Embarcadero, about a 2-mile span
Scenery: 2
Difficulty: 1
Busyness: 3
Overall: 2
On this route, you’re guaranteed to have to navigate around tourists posing near Cupid’s Span or riding those horsey blue bike shares. But this path’s proximity to downtown makes it a prime choice for a lunchtime jog. There are long stretches without intersections, and the bay views on this flat, paved route are pretty excellent.
Golden Gate Park, about a 5-mile loop/variable
Scenery: 2
Difficulty: 2
Busyness: 2
Overall: 2
Where else can you see the shoreline, a waterfall, and buffalo? Nowhere, my friends. Golden Gate Park is a classic choice and a good place to bring an out-of-towner for a jog and some sightseeing. As expected, GGP can get packed, so you might want to check ahead to make sure there aren’t any big events à la — God forbid — Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, Outside Lands, or the like. The trails are mostly paved and flat-ish with some moderate hills, depending on your route.
Mountain Lake Trail, 2.6-mile trail
Scenery: 1
Difficulty: 2
Busyness: 2
Overall: 1
This trail runs along a Cyprus grove, the Presidio Golf Course, and Mountain Lake. If you want a detour, there’s the Merchant Marine Cemetery. This is an easy, paved route that’s mostly flat with one moderate hill.
Lake Merced, 4.5-mile loop
Scenery: 2
Difficulty: 2
Busyness: 2
Overall: 2
I ran this trail for the first time while working on this story and would definitely go again. Though it’s not as scenic as the nearby Ocean Beach run, it’s a solid path (minus the noise from people shooting skeet at the nearby Pacific Rod and Gun Club). I’m categorizing this as a flat run because that’s what it mostly is, although be warned that there are a couple of decent inclines. The trail is mostly paved, with an optional dirt/gravel inside track.
Bay Bridge Trail, 8 miles from IKEA to the end and back
Scenery: 2
Difficulty: 1
Busyness: 2
Overall: 2
Technically, this run starts in Oakland and ends just before Treasure Island, but running on the Bay Bridge is magical, so deal with it. The start isn’t promising — you go under a freeway and past some ugly buildings — but being on the bridge is unbeatable. Aside from some bikers, I was honestly surprised by how few people were here. Most of my local friends have never heard of it, so I think it’s still a bit of a hidden gem (until now). You’re guaranteed to feel pretty cool by the time you reach the cutoff near TI. The trail is paved and pretty flat with a long, slow incline up the bridge, which makes for easy running on the way back.
Hill training—if running up the hills in your neighborhood just isn’t enough
Twin Peaks, 0.7-mile ascent
Scenery: 3
Difficulty: 3
Busyness: 3
Overall: 2
The view is incredible, but expect lots of tourists snapping photos and giving your sweaty frame sideways glances. Still, come here for serious hill or stair work or to add a cardio boost to a longer routine. I’ve only been at Twin Peaks in the evening, but I’m making it a goal to come out for the sunrise someday soon because this.
California Coastal Trail, 2.7 miles
Scenery: 3
Difficulty: 2
Busyness: 3
Overall: 2
I ran on a sunny day and couldn’t believe how amazing this trail was. Unfortunately, everyone else agreed: there were tourists everywhere. People stopped dead in the middle of walkways, wandered in the middle of bike paths, and generally seemed unsure how to get out of anyone’s way. It felt like life was playing a bad joke on me. Another problem: part of the route was closed. After running down a dead end and looping through a parking lot, I asked a kindly park ranger where the heck to go for the detour and was on my way. Offering a combination of pavement, trails, and moderate hills, this trail still gets major points for the view, but I’m not sure I’d want to deal with it again.
Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail, 2.7 miles
Scenery: 1
Difficulty: 2
Busyness: 1
Overall: 1
This trail is historic, guys! You can tell because it says so in the name. The path is straightforward and has some scenic lookouts. A lot of it is paved, and there are some steep hills. If you’re looking to go easy on your knees, skip this one. But if you’re looking for gnarly hills to charge up, get to it.
Strictly trails
Lands End Coastal Trail, about 3 miles out and back
Difficulty: 2
Scenery: 3
Busyness: 2
Overall: 3
I arrived here with my boyfriend in the wee hours and we ran with our iPhones’ flashlights guiding the way, which is not entirely recommended. The trail starts out paved and then gets pretty rocky. We survived, which is nice because now I can officially say I’ve seen the sunrise over the Golden Gate Bridge. But be warned: there are quite a few stairs. I tried darting up them like a champ but ended up walking from exhaustion and a healthy fear of slipping and eating shit. This trail isn’t particularly long, but it’s a good for a casual jogger, easy training days, and hikes. Budget time to enjoy the view and take photos, because — trust me — it’ll happen. You can add to the distance by drifting onto smaller trails, including some that go down to Sutro Baths.
Mt. Sutro, about a 2-mile loop on the Historic Trail/variable
Scenery: 2
Difficulty: 2
Busyness: 2
Overall: 2
My friend and I set out to do the Historic Trail on Stanyan Street, ascending what we thought was a trail but was, in retrospect, a clearing next to someone’s backyard. After climbing over some fallen trees and getting tangled in bramble, we found ourselves at the top — a street that we followed to a real trailhead. Success! Or so we thought. We followed markers for the Historic Trail, which we took down and around and back to fucking Stanyan Street. It was like Groundhog Day. Annoyed, we ran to Tank Hill (a nice cherry on top for a run around that neighborhood) before returning and going the correct way up the Historic Trail to explore other routes. In short, the hilly paths are beautiful (and the closest thing you’ll get in San Francisco to the trails in the Berkeley and Oakland hills), but study some maps before you go, lest you suffer my fate.
Routes for medium to long runs
Golden Gate Park: Begin at the Botanical Gardens and run on the path parallel to Lincoln Way. Go past the polo fields to the windmill before heading back (about 5 miles). Or for a longer run, start on Grove and Clayton Streets and head into Golden Gate Park on Fell Street, near the Conservatory of Flowers. Loop through along JFK and MLK Drives, emerge on Lincoln Way, and head down 7th Avenue. That will turn into Laguna Honda Boulevard and then Woodside Avenue before you make your way toward Twin Peaks. Head up. On your way down, you’ll get spit back out on Twin Peaks Boulevard, which you can stay on, or detour through Tank Hill —either way, head back on Clayton Street to where you can link up with where you started. (About 10 miles)
Presidio: Park at Crissy Field and go up the Pacific Coast Trail. This links up to the Batteries to Bluffs Trail (I took the detour to get there), down to Baker Beach, and back up Lincoln Boulevard to Immigrant Point. There are lots of stairs, but there’s a nice view at the top. Immigrant Point connects to the De Anza Trail. Take that down to the Mountain Lake Trail until you get to the Ecology Trail. Head up to Inspiration Point and down along the road to the Golden Gate Promenade. That will lead you back to Crissy Field, where you can stretch out on the lawn and (required) get an insanely delicious hot chocolate at the Warming Hut Cafe. Admire the view before heading home. Or if you’re feeling masochistic, head over to the nearby Lyon Street Steps. (About 10 miles)
Ocean Beach to Lake Merced: This run is variable depending how far you want to go. For a long run, start at one of the intersections between Lincoln Way and Lawton Street, making your way down the pedestrian trail along the Great Highway. When you get to the main entrance for Ocean Beach, head out along Sloat Boulevard past the zoo and down to Lake Merced Boulevard. From there you can run a 4.5-mile loop around the lake, then head back on Sloat Boulevard to Ocean Beach and back to where you started. (About 10 miles/variable)
Want to give your favorite route a shoutout? Take to the comments to tell us where you like to run in the city!