Routes
Here are some good routes around Princeton campus and town. Click on the name to see a map of the run. If you know a run that’s not there, feel free to map it out and send it to zalmover@princeton.edu (Strava activity is preferred, but GPX format and Strava route both work).
Turn-by-turn navigation of these routes is supported natively by Strava’s app. To take advantage of this feature, get to this site on your mobile device and simply click the link of the route that you want to run. Provided that the route exists on Strava and you have the Strava app installed, the app should open, ready to begin navigation of your selected route.
The most popular routes among PRC training are
- Beans Fields
- Tow Path only
- Mountain Lakes Park
- Riverside-Prospect for tempos and fartlek workouts
- PRC Legends for long runs and claiming the title of PRC Legends!
- Pretty Brook
- Around the Lake
| Run | Distance |
|---|---|
| Harrison Street-Towpath Loop
A great starting route to explore Princeton! |
3.3 miles |
| 4-Mile Towpath Loop
Great loop for easy days. |
4.0 miles |
The course has been destroyed in October 2021 as new athletic fields are being constructed. |
4.2 miles |
| Mountain Lakes/Scary Pines The actual distance may be slightly longer than 4.2 miles (it’s difficult to trace the trails). Easy to use trail loops to make your run shorter or longer. Not supported on Strava. Trails are bumpy and narrow. Ground is not necessarily smooth. For the best experience, head into Mountain Lakes from Elm Rd, go to the main road inside the park, go around the lake, and head back southbound toward Princeton. |
4.2 miles |
| Riverside-Prospect Our favorite route for doing tempo workouts or fartleks. Do the loop as many times as you need to complete the workouts. The loop is ~ 1.4 miles (2.3 km). |
4.5 miles |
| Institute Woods Very nice trail system in the Institute Woods; they’re great for running on. Easy to make the run longer or shorter by creating your own loops with the trails. This one is not on Strava because it seems like the Institute Woods trails aren’t mapped in Strava’s maps. Institute Woods Trail Map |
4.9 miles |
| Hun School
There’s a path at the dead end of Edgerstoune Rd. (bottom of hill) to get to Rosedale Rd. When you get to Rosedale, the driveway for Johnson Park Elementary School will be visible across the street. At the end of the school driveway, there’s a path that leads to Elm Rd. (access the path near the dumpster and “Do Not Enter” signs). The path from Hun School toward Elm Rd has been newly paved in May 2021 and is perfect for strides or 200/400/800 m routines if the track is not available. |
5.1 miles |
| Terhune
We typically run this route on relatively easy days with 50 minutes run. |
5.7 miles |
| Snowden
Same as Terhune except when we need more hills to work our legs. |
5.7 miles |
| Endless Townhouses
Rarely run by PRC folks. A perfect, flat route for easy / recovery days. |
5.8 miles |
| Stuart
Rarely run by PRC folks. First half is up-hill to grind your legs then the rest of the route is downhill. You will run on the road. |
6.2 miles |
| New Path (legacy) (Strava v1) ( Strava v2)
Mapped on legacy website. Never ran by PRC in the past 4 years. Ran by Alik Zalmover on 20 November 2021. See Zalmover’s activity here. The route is 100% safe and you do not need to run on roads! The path along Stony Brook river is narrow and is difficult to run on. The safer route (v2) is run to Hun School then do the rest of the run as the Hun School route. |
6.4 miles 6.6 miles (v1 | v2) |
| Poor Farm
Occasionally run by PRC. Typically on recovery / easy 50-60 minutes run days if legs feel good for the hills. |
6.5 miles |
| Endless Townhouses v2
Second version of Endless Townhouses route. The difference is you head back along Canal Pointe Blvd on a curvy sidewalk path which is fun! |
6.6 miles |
| Snowden Mod
A slightly longer version of Snowden route. Rarely run by PRC. |
6.8 miles |
| Bean Fields
A favorite route of PRC! Often used for tempo runs. Not a Strava route, but here is a Strava segment that is 7.9 mi. long. |
7.3 miles |
| Around the Lake
A classic route perfect for a 60 minutes run especially on weekends. |
7.4 miles |
| Pretty Brook
Hilly route often used for fartleks. A favorite among PRC. |
7.8 miles |
| Cherry Valley
Never run by PRC. Relatively more dangerous due to 45 mph speed limit on Cherry Valley. |
8.0 miles |
| Herrontown
Largely uphill in the first half of the route then downhills afterwards. You can make it 10 miles by going back via Tow Path instead of Prospect Ave. Occasionally run by PRC. |
8.1 miles |
| Ten Mile Loop
Never run by PRC. |
10.0 miles |
| A Bridge Too Far | 12.0 miles |
| PRC Legends
A PR C favorite! Run this route to get the honor of being a PRC Legend! Per Strava, Gerry Angelatos currently holds the record time of 39:04 (6.5 miles) for the way back to Dillion Gym!
|
13.3 miles |
| Beden Brook
Somewhat more than a true half marathon. Difficult hills on Province Line Rd. |
13.8 miles |
| Rosedale Park – Lawrenceville
A long route that is also never run by PRC. |
16.1 miles |
| Mercer Park
A long route that is also never run by PRC; however this may be a good biking route. |
21.0 miles |
Connect with us
Many of us log runs on Strava. See our group page here and track your runs with us!
One thought on “Routes and Trails”
You must log in to post a comment.