Running and Friendly Links
Buffalo Bayou trail, Allen Parkway, Eleanor Tinsley Jogging trail
Whatever You Call it, it’s Great Running in Downtown Houston
If you look at the Google Earth screen capture above, you'll see that the trail loop is a long, skinny oval with Buffalo Bayou in the center. The right-hand of the image is the edge of downtown Houston. The roads that surround the trail? Allen Parkway on the south and Memorial Drive on the north. Everything in between makes for a nice loop run.
Too short? You can extend your run easily. When you're running in the direction away from downtown, simply stay on the Memorial sidewalk instead of turning around. Soon you’ll be at the Memorial Park loop. What’s the distance? HARRA estimates the Buffalo Bayou loop to be 4.84 miles.
So, from the west end of the loop to Memorial Park is almost a mile, and the park loop is about 2.9 miles. So a total for the entire run would be about 9.84 miles, give or take. Whatever.
The benefits of this route? In the first place, there’s a lot of grass along the bayou and crushed granite on Memorial loop so it’s easy on my much-abused knees.
In the second place, there’s a generous supply of small hills; a welcome treat for Houston runners.
Many races use this general area of the city and in particular, the Cross Country 4 X 2 Relay, hosted by the awesome Tornados running club, which is always a great opportunity to load up on points for your HARRA-associated running club.
Do you have any tips or experiences regarding the Buffalo Bayou route. Please share with our other readers in the comment section below!
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