The best running routes in SF that are not the Marina

The Marina path is fine. It is also crowded, flat, and the entire reason this post exists is that you have already done it and want something else. Here are the five SF runs I actually rotate through. Skip the Marina.

If you want to find an organised group run, the SF events feed tags running clubs.

1. Battery to Bluffs Trail (Presidio)

The good one. Start at Crissy Field warming hut, run west along the bay, peel up into the trail above the cliffs, drop back down to Baker Beach. About 5km one way, more if you loop back through the Presidio interior. The views are a bit much honestly. Mornings before 9 are quiet enough to feel like you found something.

2. Twin Peaks loop from Cole Valley

A real climb. Start at Cole and Carl, head up Stanyan, climb Tank Hill first as a warmup, then push up to Twin Peaks. Loop the summit, descend through Forest Hill. About 8km with ~280m of elevation. The reward is the view of half the city, the punishment is the wind.

3. Lake Merced full loop

Flat, predictable, 7.2km exactly. The honest "I want to clock kilometres" run. Park at the boathouse, run clockwise. Less crowded than the Marina, the lake is actually pretty in spring, and there are two coffee carts on the route now.

4. Embarcadero -> Pier 39 -> Fort Mason climb

The Embarcadero portion is touristy but fine before 8am. The trick is to keep going past Pier 39, climb up through Fort Mason, and drop into the Marina from the east. About 6km. You get the bay views without the Marina-path congestion.

5. Glen Canyon Park trails

The hidden gem. Glen Park BART, walk into the canyon, run the Islais Creek trail loops. Single-track, occasionally muddy, completely empty most mornings. About 4-5km depending on which loops you take. Feels like you are not in the city anymore which is the entire point.

What I'm skipping

The Marina path. Not because it is bad — it is genuinely fine — but because if you live here long enough you have run it 200 times and your knees deserve a break from flat concrete and the same five dogs. Mix it up.

If you want to find a running club, the SF events feed lists most of them.