Running trails in Charlottesville, VA

How to pick a trail in Charlottesville

• Match the surface to your legs. Charlottesville gives you a choice: 4 natural surface, 3 paved, and 3 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 natural surface trails →
• Loop or out-and-back? 1 trail here is a loop, 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 Charlottesville is John Warner Parkway Trailhead at 6 mi. 1 trail is long enough for a 5-mile-plus run without repeating yourself.
• Check the hours before a 6am run. 1 trail in Charlottesville is open 24 hours — the rest can sit inside a park that gates at dusk and doesn't unlock until well after sunrise. 11 of the 18 listings carry posted opening hours — worth a look before you set an alarm.
• Long run? Check water and restrooms first. 10 have trailhead parking, 7 have restrooms, and 1 has a water fountain in Charlottesville. Anything over an hour and those stop being nice-to-haves — and in summer, shade counts double.
• The small things that decide it. 3 shaded, 2 with mile markers, 2 that runners describe as quiet, 11 dog-friendly, and 8 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 Charlottesville trails by type

• Natural surface trails (4 in Charlottesville)
• Paved trails (3 in Charlottesville)
• Mixed trails (3 in Charlottesville)
• Loop trails (1 in Charlottesville)
• Long-run trails (5+ mi) (1 in Charlottesville)
• Shaded trails (3 in Charlottesville)
• Flat & fast (2 in Charlottesville)
• Hilly trails (2 in Charlottesville)
• Scenic trails (8 in Charlottesville)
• Trails with restrooms (7 in Charlottesville)
• Trails with water fountains (1 in Charlottesville)
• Trailhead parking (10 in Charlottesville)
• Trails with mile markers (2 in Charlottesville)
• Quiet, uncrowded trails (2 in Charlottesville)
• Dog-friendly (11 in Charlottesville)
• Stroller & wheelchair-accessible (8 in Charlottesville)

Running trails near Charlottesville

Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.

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