Monday 18 September – Hyde Park 5, 6, 6.5 or 8 milesWe start from Barclays and run down Circus Road and turn left on Grove End/ Lisson Grove. Cross diagonally at the light to be on the west side of the street. Cross over Marylebone Rd (now you’re on Seymour Pl) and run until the road ends. Turn right on Seymour St, cross Edgware Rd, and turn left at the next street (Stanhope Pl). Cross into Hyde Park, cross over the Carriage Rd and you’re ready to go.
Hyde Park 5 miles
With this route, you run straight when you enter the park and turn left when the path ends. Turn left again at Hyde Park Corner and head back up along the eastern edge of the park before exiting at the Upper Brook St/Animals of War exit.
Hyde Park 6 miles
Here, you turn right at the silver sphere after entering the park. Turn left when you get to N Carriage Rd and run down to the Serpentine. Turn right and then left to run over the bridge. Turn left to run along the Serpentine Turn left again at the end of the Serpentine and head back up along the eastern edge of the park before exiting at the Upper Brook St/Animals of War exit.
Hyde Park 6.5 miles
Like the 6 miler above, you turn right at the silver sphere after entering the park. Cross over N Carriage Rd and turn left just after the Italian Gardens. Run along the water (it turns into the Serpentine) and turn right at the end to run along the southern edge of the park. Then turn left and head back up along the eastern edge of the park before exiting at the Upper Brook St/Animals of War exit.
Hyde Park 8 miles
This run takes you around the periphery of the park. As before, you turn right at the silver sphere after entering the park. Cross over N Carriage Rd and keep going until the end of the park. Turn left to run along the edge. Just keep turning left until you’re heading back up along the eastern edge of the park. Exit at Upper Brook St/Animals of War Memorial.
Wednesday 20 September – The Wall (6 miles)
We head down towards Regents Park, then enter the canal at the Charlbert entrance and run east [left] cutting through Camden Lock Market until we run out of canal path at Islington. Touch the canal boat tunnel wall—this is The Wall!—then turn around and re-trace your steps back to SJW. You can turn around before the Wall if you want to have a shorter run.
Friday 22 September – Heath Pergola (6.3 miles)
This is a new and improved version of the run we did in April. It is slightly longer but clearer and provides a full “run” of the Pergola. Enjoy!
Head out from Barclays to Avenue Road, then up Fitzjohn’s per all the Heath routes.
Continue past Hampstead Tube Station all the way to the roundabout just beyond Whitestone Pond. At the roundabout, use the pedestrian crossings to cross counterclockwise over to New End Way to Jack Straws Castle (now a personal training gym) and continue past the parking lot entrance and past the bus stop to turn left onto a small street called Inverforth Close. A short way down, there is a trail to the right with a green barrier gate and a sign that says “The Hill Garden.” Here are pictures of the trail:
Follow this trail until you come to an entrance on the left for “The Hill Garden and Pergola”, enter it and go to the right around the big bushes. You will see a beautiful reflecting pool. Run alongside it and up the stairs-you are on the Pergola! Run or walk the length of the Pergola. Don’t forget to look at the beautiful views, admire the flowers and take a pic or two. Please be considerate and don’t run if others are walking the Pergola as it isn’t very cool to run the Pergola if others are also viewing from it (you’ll understand when you see it).
When you have are finished with your Pergola time and reached the far end, take the stairs down and turn left to run on the wide trail back to New End Road, turning right to run by Jack Straws Castle (the gym) and then crossing left at the pedestrian crosswalks by the roundabout to put you back on the standard Heath route. Turn left from the crosswalk and then right to enter the Heath. Run the wide path as usual but don’t turn left to run up Parliament Hill. Instead, veer right at that juncture and follow the trail across the ponds. After the ponds, the trail veers left and shortly after there is an opportunity to take a right turn on the intersecting trail that heads towards E. Heath Rd (taking you next to the fields used for the Art Fair, parking etc at different times of the year.). Cross E. Heath Rd at the pedestrian crossing, then run on Downshire Hill Rd to Haverstock Hill Rd. Turn Left on Haverstock Hill, running home the usual way (turn right on Belsize Ave, left on Lancaster Grove, right on Crossfield, right on Adamson, then cut through the Swiss Cottage public area by the Hampstead Theatre, turning onto Fitzjohns to St Johns Wood Park Rd to St Johns Wood Terrace and then to Starbucks).
NOTES: 1. You can lengthen this run by choosing to run up Parliament Hill and then run by the usual Royal Free route. 2. You can always take Belsize Ave directly to Fitzjohns and bypass the several turns though this route has more traffic fumes.
If you are not up for a hill run yet, no problem, just let us know. Every week there are a group of women who prefer to do a flat run. We can help make sure that you find each other.
4 miles: A great way to ease into running the hill. Run up to the Hampstead tube station and back.
5 miles: The Betsy Route
6-7miles: The partial Heath route OR the Reverse Heath Route
7.5 miles: The Highgate route
8 miles: The full Heath route