Running trails in Bristol, VA
Bristol has 1 trail in the directory — 1 with a stated distance. Every one posts opening hours, so you can check the gate before an early start. They're ranked here by rating weighted by review volume, across 174 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.
Mendota Trail
4.4 ★★★★☆ 174 reviews
11 miMixedScenicDog-friendly
Long trail used for mountain biking and hiking, with scenic views.
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Bristol
- Match the surface to your legs. Most of what's here is mixed (1 of 1). 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? A loop finishes back at the car with no backtracking; on an out-and-back you simply turn round at half your distance. The longest stated distance in Bristol is Mendota Trail at 11 mi. 1 trail is long enough for a 5-mile-plus run without repeating yourself.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. Plenty of trails sit inside parks that gate at dusk and don't unlock until well after sunrise, so a trail that's perfect at lunchtime can be locked at 6am. 1 of the 1 listing carries posted opening hours — worth a look before you set an alarm.
- Long run? Check water and restrooms first. 1 has trailhead parking, 1 has restrooms, and 1 has a water fountain in Bristol. Anything over an hour and those stop being nice-to-haves — and in summer, shade counts double.
- The small things that decide it. 1 with mile markers, 1 that runners describe as quiet, and 1 dog-friendly. 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 Bristol trails by type
Running trails near Bristol
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.