This 12-mile route takes runners from Crissy Area, beneath the Golden Gate Bridge, via the Presidio and alongside the Pacific coast earlier than ending at Fort Funston. Alongside the way in which, you’ll get to see a dozen, or twelve, beloved Nationwide Park websites.
There are many hills, a couple of stretches of unpaved path, and a few spectacular surroundings, however the actual attraction is how a lot of San Francisco you get to expertise by yourself two ft.
Plus, for runners planning to run the San Francisco Marathon, a lot of the primary third of the Golden Gate Dozen follows the race course.
Written by SFM Ambassador Scott Benbow
Edited by Pavlína Marek
Begin Simple, However Get Prepared to Climb
Begin on the East Beach Parking Lot at Crissy Area, the place the terrain is flat and the working is straightforward. The path winds via the marsh with the Golden Gate Bridge forward, and it’s a lovely place to settle into the run. Finally, although, the route sends you uphill towards the Presidio Tunnel Tops. Take into account that your first reminder that that is San Francisco, not a flat metropolis park.
Hopper’s Arms, a Cup of Espresso, and the Most Lovely Bridge
From there, make your method towards Fort Point and beneath the south aspect of the Golden Gate Bridge. That is a type of locations the place even runners who know San Francisco nicely are prone to cease for a second. Make sure you discover Hopper’s Arms beneath the bridge and provides them a excessive ten (two excessive fives). It’s a small ritual, however it makes the run really feel like an occasion. For those who look close to the bottom underneath Hopper’s Arms, you’ll see an identical signal meant for canines.
As soon as you allow the bridge behind, the route settles right into a extra acquainted rhythm for San Francisco Marathon runners. A lot of the working via the Presidio follows the identical course utilized by the Marathon and 1st Half Marathon.
This makes this part notably helpful when you’re coaching for the race. You get your miles in whereas seeing the course from a unique perspective, and you can begin to understand how the hills and turns match collectively while you’re not surrounded by 1000’s of different runners.
Working on the Fringe of the Continent
The character of the run adjustments dramatically while you attain Lands End. The paved streets give option to an unpaved path that follows the sting of the Bay, with the Pacific Ocean stretching out in entrance of you and the Marin Headlands seen throughout the water. This is without doubt one of the finest sections of the route for merely working and searching round. You could end up slowing down, not since you are drained, however as a result of there’s something price seeing round each flip.
At Sutro Baths, give your self permission to cease working for a couple of minutes. The ruins of the big nineteenth-century bathhouse are one in all San Francisco’s most uncommon landmarks, and scrambling across the stays is well worth the transient interruption. From there, climb towards Sutro Heights, which gives one other spectacular viewpoint.
Look Up. You’re at Fort Funston
The ultimate miles take you south alongside the coast towards Fort Funston. By this level, you have got crossed a lot of the western aspect of town, and the surroundings has modified once more. The ocean stays your fixed companion, however the city panorama steadily falls away.
Fort Funston is a becoming end, with cliffs, broad Pacific views, and dangle gliders hovering overhead. It’s a good place to cease, catch your breath and respect simply how a lot floor you have got coated.
The Golden Gate Dozen is a reminder of why working in San Francisco is so rewarding. In 12 miles, you see marshland, hills, the Golden Gate Bridge, the Presidio, coastal trails, historic ruins, and one of many metropolis’s nice seashores. You possibly can run it straight via when you’re centered on the mileage, or construct in a couple of brief stops and switch the day right into a tour of San Francisco at working tempo. Both method, end at Fort Funston, look out over the Pacific and provides your self a minute to benefit from the view.
About Scott
Scott Benbow is a San Francisco Marathon Ambassador, lawyer, nonprofit specialist, and passionate SFM runner. He lives in San Francisco and runs the hills of our extremely lovely metropolis with us yearly.
Finish of line
No extra posts
