+ 10
Van Cortland Park
Running Route
Easy
3.13 mi
108 ft
Most people don’t associate trail running with New York City but those people have never been to Van Cortlandt Park (VCP). An easy ride up the 1 train will take you to this treasure tucked away in the Bronx. Here you will find a runner’s haven complete with a running track, a legendary cross-country course, and wooded trails that extend for miles north of the Bronx. The cross-country course is famous for its high school and college races such as the massive Manhattan College Invitational. Runners of every caliber have cut their teeth at VCP including Olympians Alberto Salazar, Frank Shorter, Steve Prefontaine, and Ryan Hall. The course is broken into two loops – the flats and the back hills. The flats section circles the Parade Grounds and culminates in “Freshman Hill”, a short ascent before the demanding climbs of the back hills. Once you’ve knocked out a 5K, you can move on to exploring some of the other trails in the park. Both the Putnam trail and the Old Croton Aqueduct trail are beautiful trails through forests and wetlands that continue through VCP and onward to counties north of the Bronx.
Created By
Strava Athlete
