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Running trails in Dover, NH
Dover has 15 trails in the directory — 2 paved, 2 loops that return to the trailhead, 2 with a stated distance, 2 shaded, and 3 open 24 hours. 9 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 2,172 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.
Henry Law Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 985 reviews
Riverside park with a playground, a splash pad and a skate park.
Hilton Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 528 reviews
Waterfront green space featuring a play area, fishing dock, boat launch & picnic tables.
Willand Pond Trail
4.6 ★★★★★ 176 reviews
Scenic area for hiking, swimming, boating and fishing the pond, along with a boat launch and rope course.
Bellamy River Wildlife Management Area
4.7 ★★★★★ 86 reviews
Well-maintained park with wooded, waterfront trails ideal for hikers.
Bellamy Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 87 reviews
Park featuring a disc golf course with multiple obstacles, plus ample parking.
Dover Community Trail - Watson Road Trailhead
4.6 ★★★★★ 79 reviews
Riverside hiking and biking trail with paved sections and informational exhibits.
Long Hill Memorial Park
4.4 ★★★★☆ 81 reviews
Big fenced-in park featuring playground equipment and a dog run, plus basketball and tennis courts.
Dover Community Trail - Fisher St. Trailhead
4.5 ★★★★★ 55 reviews
Popular nature trail for walking and biking as well as dog-walking and jogging.
Bellamy River Access Wildlife Preserve
4.3 ★★★★☆ 11 reviews
Dover Community Trail - Washington St. Trailhead
4 ★★★★☆ 3 reviews
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Dover
- Match the surface to your legs. Dover gives you a choice: 3 mixed and 2 paved. 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? 2 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 Dover is Willand Pond Trail at 2 mi.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. 3 trails in Dover are open 24 hours — the rest can sit inside a park that gates at dusk and doesn't unlock until well after sunrise. 9 of the 15 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. 12 have trailhead parking, 2 have restrooms, and 1 has a water fountain in Dover. Anything over an hour and those stop being nice-to-haves — and in summer, shade counts double.
- The small things that decide it. 2 shaded, 2 with mile markers, 2 that runners describe as quiet, 6 dog-friendly, and 4 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 Dover trails by type
Running trails near Dover
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.