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Running trails in Olympia, WA
Olympia has 23 trails in the directory — 4 on crushed gravel or dirt, 2 boardwalk, 11 loops that return to the trailhead, 6 with a stated distance, and 2 shaded. 15 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 19,409 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.
Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge
4.8 ★★★★★ 4,486 reviews
762-acre protected estuary with trails, an education center, & bird- & whale-watching opportunities.
Percival Landing Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 2,200 reviews
Bayfront public space with a boardwalk, playground, picnic areas & access to nearby restaurants.
Squaxin Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 2,144 reviews
314-acre park with saltwater shoreline, hiking trails, ball courts, a playground & a rose garden.
Capitol State Forest
4.6 ★★★★★ 1,836 reviews
Working forest & recreation area for camping, hiking, hunting, horse-riding & off-road vehicles.
Tolmie State Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 1,634 reviews
State park with a beach & saltwater marsh, popular for scuba diving, swimming, fishing & hikes.
Heritage Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 1,438 reviews
The start/finish line for the 1984 US trials for the first Women’s Olympic Marathon started here.
Watershed Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 996 reviews
Steep stepped trails run through this scenic 153-acre park with a rainforest canopy & creek.
LBA Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 843 reviews
Venue with baseball fields, basketball & tennis courts, a playground & picnic areas.
Woodard Bay Conservation Area
4.7 ★★★★★ 706 reviews
Bayfront preserve known for its hiking trails, bird watching and seal watching.
West Bay Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 720 reviews
Simple 17 acres on the shore of West Bay with a beach, walking trail, seating areas & public art.
Marathon Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 563 reviews
Park with lakefront trails & the site of the U.S. trials for the first women’s Olympic marathon.
McLane Creek Nature Trail Pond Loop Trailhead
4.8 ★★★★★ 286 reviews
Peaceful trail system looping through forest and wetlands, with a pond and boardwalks.
Chambers Lake Trailhead Park
4.4 ★★★★☆ 260 reviews
Park featuring a boat launch and fishing, plus trails, picnic areas, and a public restroom.
Garfield Nature Trail Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 224 reviews
Short, pretty trail through a lush ravine, featuring a foot-friendly stream.
Grass Lake Nature Park
4.4 ★★★★☆ 213 reviews
Wetlands wildlife preserve & education center with hundreds of species of native plants & animals.
Mission Creek Nature Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 173 reviews
Neighborhood green space with trails through young and old-growth forests, plus an open area with benches.
Billy Frank Jr. Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 76 reviews
Park offering picnic and hiking opportunities, and facilities for bird-watching.
Squaxin Park Trailhead
4.9 ★★★★★ 68 reviews
Kid-friendly hiking area with a playground and picnic facilities.
Black Lake Meadows Reserve
4.5 ★★★★★ 72 reviews
Simple 1 mi loop for walking and jogging, with a creek, birds and beavers.
Woodland Trail / Frederick Street Crossing
4 ★★★★☆ 48 reviews
Chehalis - Western Trail Trailhead - Fir Tree Road
4.8 ★★★★★ 26 reviews
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Olympia
- Match the surface to your legs. Olympia gives you a choice: 10 mixed, 4 natural surface, 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 mixed trails →
- Loop or out-and-back? 11 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 Olympia is Capitol State Forest at 150 mi. 4 trails are 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. 15 of the 23 listings carry posted opening hours — worth a look before you set an alarm. 3 are lit, which is what you want for winter evenings.
- Long run? Check water and restrooms first. 22 have trailhead parking, 16 have restrooms, and 12 have a water fountain in Olympia. 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, 1 with mile markers, 14 that runners describe as quiet, 17 dog-friendly, and 17 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 Olympia trails by type
- Mixed trails
- Natural surface trails
- Boardwalk trails
- Loop trails
- Long-run trails (5+ mi)
- Shaded trails
- Lit for early & night runs
- Flat & fast
- Hilly trails
- Scenic trails
- Trails with restrooms
- Trails with water fountains
- Trailhead parking
- Trails with mile markers
- Quiet, uncrowded trails
- Dog-friendly
- Stroller & wheelchair-accessible
Running trails near Olympia
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.