Running trails in Westerville, OH
Westerville has 18 trails in the directory — 3 paved, 2 boardwalk, 4 loops that return to the trailhead, 2 with a stated distance, 4 shaded, and 3 open 24 hours. 17 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 13,827 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.
Sharon Woods
4.7 ★★★★★ 3,685 reviews
Lake, jogging trails, nature walks & playground featured in 761-acre preserve with forests & fields.
Inniswood Metro Gardens
4.8 ★★★★★ 3,541 reviews
Nature preserve featuring formal gardens & lawns, a trail, with a center for workshops & a library.
Hoover Reservoir Dam, Park & Dock
4.6 ★★★★★ 3,571 reviews
Large natural space with a lake offering boating, fishing & bird-watching including bald eagles.
Alum Creek Park North
4.7 ★★★★★ 834 reviews
Spacious community park featuring playgrounds with padded floors and baseball fields as well as picnic tables.
Hoff Woods Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 501 reviews
Laid-back park featuring a playground, picnic shelter, and a lake for relaxed fishing as well as trails.
Hoover Dam Nature Trail
4.7 ★★★★★ 443 reviews
Popular park featuring a lake and trails, plus picnicking and a disc golf course.
Alum Creek Park South
4.6 ★★★★★ 206 reviews
Park featuring BMX courses, hiking trails and a skate park as well as soccer fields.
Boyer Nature Preserve
4.6 ★★★★★ 147 reviews
Ponds, wetlands, a stream, and boardwalk highlight this small nature preserve surrounded by a neighborhood.
Spring Grove North Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 133 reviews
Public green space featuring a basketball court, playground, picnic tables, and restrooms.
Heritage Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 96 reviews
Relaxed park with picnic shelters, a trail for walking and a playground.
Olde Town Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 95 reviews
Local park featuring a safe playground, benches and picnic tables, plus a trail through woodland.
Blendon Ravines Metro Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 80 reviews
Hidden natural area featuring woodland ravines as well as hiking trails, some rugged and unpaved.
Johnston-McVay Park
4.8 ★★★★★ 66 reviews
Public park featuring 3 playgrounds, a story trail, hammocks and a stream.
Towers Trail
5 ★★★★★ 2 reviews
Sycamore Trail Park
5 ★★★★★ 2 reviews
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Westerville
- Match the surface to your legs. Westerville gives you a choice: 3 paved, 3 mixed, and 2 boardwalk. 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? 4 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 Westerville is Sharon Woods at 3.8 mi.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. 3 trails in Westerville are open 24 hours — the rest can sit inside a park that gates at dusk and doesn't unlock until well after sunrise. 17 of the 18 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. 12 have trailhead parking, 9 have restrooms, and 5 have a water fountain in Westerville. Anything over an hour and those stop being nice-to-haves — and in summer, shade counts double.
- The small things that decide it. 4 shaded, 7 that runners describe as quiet, 7 dog-friendly, and 7 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 Westerville trails by type
Running trails near Westerville
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.