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Running trails in Richmond, CA
Richmond has 21 trails in the directory — 3 paved and 2 on crushed gravel or dirt, 3 loops that return to the trailhead, 3 with a stated distance, 1 shaded, and 1 open 24 hours. 19 of them post opening hours, so you can check the gate before an early start. They're ranked here by rating weighted by review volume, across 9,047 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.
Point Isabel Regional Shoreline
4.8 ★★★★★ 2,055 reviews
This large park with trails plus birdwatching, picnicking & bay fishing allows off-leash dogs.
Miller/Knox Regional Shoreline
4.6 ★★★★★ 2,072 reviews
Waterfront space with a picnic area, beach, fishing pier, panoramic views & a model railroad museum.
Point Pinole Regional Shoreline
4.7 ★★★★★ 1,901 reviews
Sprawling park with scenic, multi-use trails through meadows, eucalyptus woods, bluffs & beaches.
Wildcat Canyon Regional Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 1,266 reviews
Spacious park offering miles of multi-use trails plus a children's playground & picnicking areas.
Alvarado Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 687 reviews
Part of Wildcat Canyon Regional Park, this area has a playground, picnic sites & historic stonework.
Barbara and Jay Vincent Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 270 reviews
Waterfront park featuring a playground and grills for picnics and barbecues.
Point Pinole Regional Shoreline
4.7 ★★★★★ 119 reviews
Natural setting featuring an old black-powder-storage area, hiking trails and a fishing pier.
Dirt World Bike Skills Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 100 reviews
Dirt-course park offering trails, ramps and jumps for mountain biking.
Wildcat Canyon Upper Entrance
4.7 ★★★★★ 96 reviews
Neighborhood park featuring kid-friendly hikes and scenic views of San Francisco.
Bay Vista Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 63 reviews
Clean park featuring climbing equipment, swings and a padded playground.
Sobrante Ridge Regional Preserve Coach Staging Area
4.5 ★★★★★ 33 reviews
Richmond Greenway
3.8 ★★★★☆ 21 reviews
Observation Point Trailhead
5 ★★★★★ 3 reviews
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Richmond
- Match the surface to your legs. Richmond gives you a choice: 4 mixed, 3 paved, and 2 natural surface. 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 mixed trails →
- Loop or out-and-back? 3 trails here are loops, so you finish back at the car with no backtracking — the easiest way to run a set distance without thinking about it. On an out-and-back you turn round at half your target distance, which makes any trail fit any run. The longest stated distance in Richmond is Wildcat Canyon Regional Park at 25 mi. 3 trails are long enough for a 5-mile-plus run without repeating yourself.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. 1 trail in Richmond is open 24 hours — the rest can sit inside a park that gates at dusk and doesn't unlock until well after sunrise. 19 of the 21 listings carry posted opening hours — worth a look before you set an alarm. 2 are lit, which is what you want for winter evenings.
- Long run? Check water and restrooms first. 13 have trailhead parking, 9 have restrooms, and 9 have a water fountain in Richmond. Anything over an hour and those stop being nice-to-haves — and in summer, shade counts double.
- The small things that decide it. 1 shaded, 5 that runners describe as quiet, 14 dog-friendly, and 11 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 Richmond trails by type
- Mixed trails
- Paved trails
- Natural surface trails
- Loop trails
- Long-run trails (5+ mi)
- Shaded trails
- Lit for early & night runs
- Flat & fast
- Hilly trails
- Scenic trails
- Trails with restrooms
- Trails with water fountains
- Trailhead parking
- Quiet, uncrowded trails
- Dog-friendly
- Stroller & wheelchair-accessible
Running trails near Richmond
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.