Rock Creek Park is a treat on a hot summer day.
Is there any better escape on a hot summer DC day than Rock Creek Park?
The thick tree canopy, cool creek and cushy trails provide a perfect antidote for too much pavement. But the 3,100-acre park can be hard to wrap one's brain around.
Pacers Silver Spring Fun Runners favor this 5.5-mile loop, which includes a jaunt through some of the city's loveliest parkside neighborhoods and a few miles on the trails themselves.
A few general tips for runners familiarizing themselves with Rock Creek Park:
Beach Drive is closed to automobile traffic on weekends, when it becomes the closest thing DC has to offer to a freeway for runners and cyclists.
The trail network includes a blue-blazed trail that follows the east side of the creek, a green-blazed trail that follows the western ridge of the park and tan-blazed connector trails.
Try the paved, 14-mile Rock Creek Hiker Biker Trail through Montgomery County.
Need tips on getting started on the trails? Bone up on the trail-running basics before heading out.
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