Best Running Routes in Nashville 2026

Nashville offers a genuine mix of hilly forested parks and flat riverside greenways within a short radius of downtown. Here are the best running routes in Nashville for 2026.

Percy Warner Park

About 9 miles southwest of downtown, Percy Warner Park's paved Main Drive offers two classic loops of 5.8 and 11.2 miles through 2,058 acres of forested hills, genuinely rolling with grades exceeding 5 percent in places, a longtime local training staple. The park hosts the Iroquois Steeplechase, run every May since 1941, missing only 1945 for the war and 2020.

Edwin Warner Park

Adjacent Edwin Warner Park offers about 12 miles of dirt hiking trails plus paved multi-use pathway, part of the combined Warner Parks colour-coded trail system of nine trails, on shaded, soft-surface, moderate terrain.

Shelby Bottoms Greenway

In East Nashville, the Shelby Bottoms Greenway is a flat, shaded paved greenway through a 950-acre Cumberland River floodplain, connecting via the Cumberland River Pedestrian Bridge to the Stones River Greenway for effectively unlimited mileage, best for long, steady, flat runs with river views.

Radnor Lake and Centennial Park

Radnor Lake State Natural Area in South Nashville offers seven trails totalling 6.2 miles, primarily dirt with moderate elevation, wildlife-rich and easier on the joints than pavement. Centennial Park in Midtown offers a gentle 1.5 mile paved loop past a lake and the full-scale replica of the Athenian Parthenon, which houses an art museum, good for easy runs and speed loops.

Running the Rock 'n' Roll Nashville Route

The St. Jude Rock 'n' Roll Nashville Marathon returns on 25 to 26 April 2026, with the course running past Broadway's honky-tonks, across the Cumberland River, through Music Row and past the Parthenon.

Practical Guide to Running in Nashville

Shelby Bottoms and Centennial Park are the most reliable flat choices; the Warner Parks are the pick for anyone wanting genuine hills and forest trails.

This article was compiled by AI and screened before publishing. See our editorial standards.