Running trails in Cambridge, MN
Cambridge has 7 trails in the directory — 2 paved and 1 on crushed gravel or dirt and 1 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 902 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.
Cambridge City Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 486 reviews
City space for disc golf, swimming and fishing, as well as playgrounds and picnic tables.
Springvale County Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 172 reviews
Woodsy park with paths, trails and an 18-hole disc golf course for frisbee enthusiasts.
Spirit River Nature Area
4.6 ★★★★★ 84 reviews
Park featuring trails, picnic tables, and opportunities for fishing and swimming.
Becklin Homestead County Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 75 reviews
Tranquil park featuring a pavilion, picnic tables and a playground, along with river access and forest trails.
Peterson Park
4.2 ★★★★☆ 72 reviews
Popular spot for baseball, walking and stargazing featuring a pond.
Wood Duck Preserve
3.6 ★★★★☆ 5 reviews
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Cambridge
- Match the surface to your legs. Cambridge gives you a choice: 2 paved, 1 crushed gravel, 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.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. 1 trail in Cambridge is open 24 hours — the rest can sit inside a park that gates at dusk and doesn't unlock until well after sunrise. 7 of the 7 listings carry posted opening hours — worth a look before you set an alarm.
- Long run? Check water and restrooms first. 1 has trailhead parking, 3 have restrooms, and 1 has a water fountain in Cambridge. Anything over an hour and those stop being nice-to-haves — and in summer, shade counts double.
- The small things that decide it. 1 that runners describe as quiet 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 Cambridge trails by type
Running trails near Cambridge
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.