UPDATE 2021: We have a slightly updated Fairmount Park 10-Mile run AND added a new South Philly 10-mile route! Check out the new running routes here.
With the 2020 Broad Street Run going virtual this year, Fairmount Park Conservancy charted a course that takes runners (and walkers!) on a 10-mile journey to see some of Fairmount Park’s best views and hidden gems. Whether you’re on our awesome team of Park Champions, or even if you aren’t officially signed up for Broad Street, anyone can give the course a go. It is marked with orange tree tape, orange spray chalk and homemade mile markers- all of which will be up* through October 4th; the final day to submit your results to the race organizers. Note that trail markers are approximate — trust your run-tracking device. And please note that the Fairmount Park Horticulture Center gates do not open until 9am (sometimes 9:30am) and our route does go through there.
Safety tips:
- Runners should follow public health guidelines related to COVID-19. That includes wearing a face covering and keeping six feet (or more) distance between anyone else you see along the way.
- Run or walk with a buddy (in a socially distant way) if you can. If you are alone, please avoid using the park after dark.
- Be alert and go headphone free, at least on the trail segments! Headphones leave you vulnerable to physical injury and crime. On the Trolley Trail, keep an eye out for mountain bikers.
- Wear bright, reflective colors and be extremely cautious crossing streets.
- When parking your car, lock doors, carry keys with you, and never leave valuables in plain sight in the car.
- Check thoroughly for ticks after leaving the woods.
- While the Broad Street Run is famously flat, please note that this course takes you on some rocky terrain and a fair amount of hills.
- *Trail markers are temporary and we cannot guarantee that they will not wander off over the next few weeks. We’ll check in on the marked route every few days. Most of the trail segments run alongside park roads, and the Trolley Trail segments regularly intersect with park roads, so don’t be discouraged if you miss a turn or need to adjust the route.
Fun tips:
- If you have Broad Street swag (past or present) or Fairmount Park Conservancy swag, we encourage you to wear it! If not, a homemade shirt can be fun, too.
- Think of the Strawberry Mansion Bridge as your lap around City Hall. When you return over the bridge after a brief visit to East Fairmount Park, you’re about halfway done!
- Envision the sounds of I-76 traffic (during miles 1, 2, 6, and 10) as the roar of the cheering crowd along Broad Street.
- The Smith Memorial Arch serves as your Navy Yard entryway and its fake-out finish line. When you cross under the Arch (since there’s no cameras, take a selfie!), you still have about a half-mile to go.
- Tag @myphillypark on Facebook, Instagram and/or Twitter with your selfie to be included in our Virtual Broad Street Run Hall of Fame (AKA a special email blast after the October 4th deadline).
The full “Broader Street Run” route map can be found here. The general turn by turns in a nutshell:
- Start at our Centennial District Park Hub complete with a portable restroom, hand sanitizer and a park map.
- Follow the path along the back of the Please Touch Museum and through the Fairmount Park Horticulture Center and out along Belmont Avenue.
- Turn right off of Belmont Avenue and down the stairs, cutting through the woods towards the Belmont Mansion Drive, where you will *carefully cross* to the other side.
- Continue along Belmont Mansion Drive, up to the Belmont Plateau where you can take in a beautiful view of the skyline (run in the grass here if you can; that’s what the cross country runners do!).
- As you pass the Belmont Mansion, follow the markings to turn into the Belmont Plateau trails.You’ll run by the Belmont Station Pedestrian Bridge, following the switchbacks, intersecting with (and crossing over) the cross country gravel path and continuing along the Trolley Trail parallel to I-76.
- Make your way up onto Greenland Drive and turn right and follow along the Strawberry Mansion Bridge
- After the bridge, stay straight on Woodford Drive and turn right onto Greenland Drive toward the new Boxers’ Trail Pergola and the Park Hub there (if you need a pit stop).
- Turn back on Greenland Drive back towards the bridge, but this time staying on Strawberry Mansion Bridge Drive.
- Follow along and cross the bridge, this time turning right after the bridge and back onto the Trolley Trail, following the trail all the waay up the hill to Chamounix Hostel.
- Follow the markings and continue to the other side of Chamounix Road and continue on the Trolley Trail, again hugging I76, and through the Skew Arch Bridge and along the Chamounix Creek.
- At Ford Road turn left and then find your way up the stairs and over the bridge that crosses Ford Road.
- Continue along the Trolley Trail, running mostly parallel to Chamounix Drive, until you emerge at Belmont Avenue and make your way to the crosswalk at Belmont Mansion Drive.
- Turn right again to catch the trail along Georges Hill Drive and follow all the way along until you reach the back of the Mann Center.
- Turn left on South Georges Hill Drive and continue down hill (there is a rugged path to the right of the road) to the back of the Ohio House where you’ll turn right onto States Drive.
- Follow States Drive to the Catholic Total Abstinence Fountain where you’ll turn left and make your way onto the Avenue of the Republic, leading you back past the Please Touch Museum and towards the Smith Memorial Arch.
- Follow the circle past the Smith Memorial Arch and catch Sweetbriar Lane which provides a side path that follows around to the left towards Cedar Grove Mansion after you turn right on Cedar Grove Drive.
- Follow around and head back towards your starting point by Lansdowne Drive where you will see your finish markers.