Adrian Lambert
Easy-to-access routes within the city keep you off the pavement and offer plenty of variety
Adrian Lambert is a lawyer and the president of the Canadian Trail and Mountain Running Association. He grew up in Edmonton and currently lives in Toronto. He represented the University of Alberta and University of Toronto in cross-country and track and field and competed for the Canadian mountain running national team.
In many cities, if you want to go for a trail run, your first step will be to get in your car and drive outside the city limits. In Edmonton, your first step is to put on your shoes and run towards the River Valley. The extensive network of trails that run along the North Saskatchewan River form one of the largest areas of urban parkland in North America. There are numerous running trails on a variety of surfaces including woodchips, dirt and gravel. Unlike most runs in the middle of an urban centre, the River Valley features hundreds of kilometres of trails on soft surfaces that neither backtrack nor cross roads or traffic lights. If you plan your route carefully, you can do a long run without feeling like you are in a city at all.
The only drawback to the trails in Edmonton is that they are only free of snow from mid-April until late-October. However, during the summer months, you’d be hard pressed to find a nicer place to do a long run in any other major city in Canada. The city’s best trail options are outlined below. Each of the routes can be combined depending on the length of the run.
Kinsmen Sports Centre to Sir Wilfrid Laurier Park
Distance: 8K (one-way) This is one of the classic runs in the Edmonton River Valley. The majority of the trail is a wide, woodchipped path that rolls gently along the banks of the North Saskatchewan River. The soft woodchips provide an excellent surface for those trying to avoid injuries. The middle section of the run goes through the popular William Hawrelak Park before crossing a footbridge to the north side of the river where a gravel trail leads to Sir Wilfrid Laurier Park.
Goldbar/Goldstick Park
Distance: 10K (loop) Goldbar Park is the site of the city’s high school cross-country championships. The trails are challenging doubletrack dirt paths that meander up and down the full height of the river’s banks. If you want a challenging hill workout, try doing repeats up the steep hill between Goldbar and Goldstick Parks, known to locals as “Esso Hill.”
Whitemud Ravine
Distance: 5K (one-way) The Whitemud Ravine is one of the many ravines that feed into the North Saskatchewan River that has extensive trails along its length. A large gravel multiuse trail winds up beside Whitemud creek from Fort Edmonton Park and past the Snow Valley Ski Hill. If you are adventurous when you reach the end of the trail, there are a number of well-worn singletrack trails that continue beyond the official routes.
Mill Creek Ravine
Distance: 5K (one-way) The Mill Creek Ravine is another ravine that branches off from the valley. This route is perfect for adding distance to a long run, because you can run up the gravel trail on the east side of the ravine and return on the more adventurous singletracked west side.
Races
For ultramarathoners, you can run the 2013 Fast Trax Ultra on June 15, which features the trails at Goldbar Park for distances of 30k, 50k, 50 miles and 100k – each run on 10k loops. Visit their website at ultra.fasttraxskishop.com/trail_info.php.
Another popular trail run is the Moose is Loose 10k and half-marathon on July 21. Find more information at events.runningroom.com/site/?raceId=8706.
A quintessential trail running experience in Edmonton can be found in the Frank McNamara Wednesday Night Cross-Country Running Series. This is a no-frills race series that is competitive, inexpensive and features excellent courses. The races are between 4k and 8k along different parts of the Edmonton River Valley in t he spring and t he fa ll . For more information, visit resultscanada.com/wed_xc.shtml.
You’d be hard pressed to find a nicer place to do a long run in any other major city in Canada.