Running trails in Salem, VA
Salem has 6 trails in the directory — 1 paved and 2 on crushed gravel or dirt, 1 with a stated distance, and 1 open 24 hours. 4 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 2,393 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.
Green Hill Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 1,236 reviews
Expansive park with an open field, riverfront area, walking trails, picnic shelters & playgrounds.
Longwood Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 680 reviews
Scenic city park with play structures, trails, covered picnic tables & outdoor performances.
Salem Rotary Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 271 reviews
Peaceful recreation area offering swimming, fishing, a walking trail and picnics.
Carvins Cove Natural Reserve - Bennett Springs Access
4.7 ★★★★★ 175 reviews
Clean, popular, well-maintained outdoor space with an extensive network of trails for hiking and bicycling, plus horseback riding.
Riverside Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 26 reviews
Pawpaw Trail
5 ★★★★★ 5 reviews
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Salem
- Match the surface to your legs. Salem gives you a choice: 2 natural surface and 1 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 natural surface 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 Salem is Carvins Cove Natural Reserve - Bennett Springs Access at 60 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 Salem is open 24 hours — the rest can sit inside a park that gates at dusk and doesn't unlock until well after sunrise. 4 of the 6 listings carry posted opening hours — worth a look before you set an alarm.
- Long run? Check water and restrooms first. 4 have trailhead parking, 4 have restrooms, and 1 has a water fountain in Salem. 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, 3 that runners describe as quiet, 2 dog-friendly, and 3 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 Salem trails by type
Running trails near Salem
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.