Type: Trail, Loop
Difficulty: 1 / 10
Altitude: 50 ft
Dog Friendly: Yes, with leash
Jog-Stroller Friendly: Yes
Filed Under: Running
This is, of course, the most obvious place to run in Washington D.C. The National Mall sports a wide crushed gravel path that is one of the busiest places in the city. However, no matter how busy, there is plenty of room to run.
The basic course starts at the Washington Monument and runs past the Smithsonian Museum buildings to the Capital and back. You can easily join the run anywhere along the route, but parking your car is the hard part. If you are in the city for a while, I recommend taking the Metro as you can quickly get to several great running spots with ease.
If you want to hook up with some other runners, the Capitol Hill Runners meet in the vicinity for area runs several times each week.
Look for the Washington Monument, find a place to park and get started. It is pretty obvious. The route runs parallel with 14th Street (near the Washington Memorial), Madison Drive, 3rd Street (near the Capital) and Jefferson Drive.
Interstates 66 and 395 provide access to the National Mall from the south. Interstate 495, New York Avenue, Rock Creek Parkway, George Washington Memorial Parkway, provide access from the North. Interstate 66, Route 50 and 29 provide access from the West. Routes 50, 1, and 4 provide access from the East.
Two hour parking is available off of Constitution Avenue near 15th Street, but this is very limited. Parking is available on city streets during non-rush hour times (9:00 AM until 4:00 PM) during the week. Long term parking is available along Ohio Drive under the 14th Street bridge.
There are several metro train routes from the suburban areas surrounding the city. The Smithsonian Metro is the closest stop to the National Mall. Metrobus and subway schedules are available at 202-637-7000 or www.wmata.com.
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