Running trails in Evanston, IL
Evanston has 15 trails in the directory — 2 on crushed gravel or dirt, 1 shaded, and 3 open 24 hours. 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 4,187 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.
Arrington Lagoon at Dawes Park
4.8 ★★★★★ 875 reviews
This park pond features fountains & ducks & turns into an ice-skating rink in the winter.
James Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 602 reviews
Urban recreation area offering a playground, athletic fields, basketball & tennis courts & gardens.
Lovelace Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 446 reviews
Park of flowering pear trees & open spaces, with tennis courts, sports fields & a playground.
The Lakefill
4.9 ★★★★★ 413 reviews
Park near Northwestern University on the shores of Lake Michigan offering lake views, biking and jogging trails.
Dawes Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 402 reviews
Relaxing green space with walking trails, a beach and a pond, plus views of Lake Michigan and Northwestern campus.
South Boulevard Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 299 reviews
Park featuring a beach and a public restroom, popular for sunrise views.
Burnham Shores Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 298 reviews
Family-friendly park featuring playgrounds, swings, slides and other play pieces.
Elliott Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 270 reviews
Park with a lakeside trail, picnic areas, and playground, plus opportunities for biking and jogging.
Centennial Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 156 reviews
Tree-lined lakefront park including a beach with volleyball courts & tranquil walking paths.
Garden Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 155 reviews
City park offering a playground, picnic areas, and walking paths, plus beach access.
Bent Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 103 reviews
Shaded park with an open playground, a soccer field and tennis courts.
Mt. Trashmore
4.7 ★★★★★ 86 reviews
Park known for sledding on snowy nights, with some reviews referring to it as "Mount Trashmore".
Jacqueline B. Gorell Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 23 reviews
McCormick Park
4.4 ★★★★☆ 18 reviews
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Evanston
- Match the surface to your legs. Most of what's here is natural surface (2 of 15). 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 natural surface 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.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. 3 trails in Evanston are open 24 hours — the rest can sit inside a park that gates at dusk and doesn't unlock until well after sunrise. 15 of the 15 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. 7 have trailhead parking, 7 have restrooms, and 3 have a water fountain in Evanston. 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, 4 dog-friendly, and 2 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 Evanston trails by type
Running trails near Evanston
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.