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Running trails in Marina, CA
Marina has 4 trails in the directory — 2 paved and 1 with a stated distance. Every one post opening hours, so you can check the gate before an early start. They're ranked here by rating weighted by review volume, across 2,577 Google reviews. Filter by surface, loop, distance, shade or lighting to get to the run you're actually planning — no made-up difficulty score, just the facts you'd check before driving out.
Fort Ord Dunes State Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 1,398 reviews
A trail leads to the beach in this park with a bluff-top platform offering views of Monterey Bay.
Fort Ord National Monument
4.7 ★★★★★ 786 reviews
Home to 35 species of rare flora & fauna, this undeveloped wildland offers over 80 miles of trails.
Locke-Paddon Park
4.3 ★★★★☆ 228 reviews
Park featuring a pond (a.k.a. “The Duck Pond”), plus wetlands, trails and picnic tables.
Glorya Jean Tate Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 165 reviews
Recreation area featuring a pump track, a playground, a skateboarding area, and a restroom.
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Marina
- Match the surface to your legs. Marina gives you a choice: 2 paved and 1 mixed. Asphalt and concrete are fast, predictable and runnable year-round but the least forgiving; crushed limestone and dirt take the sting out of high mileage; boardwalk is flat and scenic but slick in the wet. If your shins or knees are complaining, the fix that actually works is varying the surface you run on rather than chasing one "best" one. More paved trails →
- Loop or out-and-back? A loop finishes back at the car with no backtracking; on an out-and-back you simply turn round at half your distance. The longest stated distance in Marina is Fort Ord National Monument at 86 mi. 1 trail is long enough for a 5-mile-plus run without repeating yourself.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. Plenty of trails sit inside parks that gate at dusk and don't unlock until well after sunrise, so a trail that's perfect at lunchtime can be locked at 6am. 4 of the 4 listings carry posted opening hours — worth a look before you set an alarm. 1 is lit, which is what you want for winter evenings.
- Long run? Check water and restrooms first. 2 have trailhead parking, 4 have restrooms, and 1 has a water fountain in Marina. Anything over an hour and those stop being nice-to-haves — and in summer, shade counts double.
- The small things that decide it. 2 that runners describe as quiet, 3 dog-friendly, and 1 smooth and wide enough for a stroller or a wheelchair. Busy or quiet isn't a good-or-bad thing here: a busy path is the safer choice for a solo run at dawn, a quiet one is better for intervals.
More on all of this in the trail-running guides.
Browse Marina trails by type
Running trails near Marina
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.