Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Favorite Trails 2: B'more Landmark Run




Baltimore is an amazingly beautiful city once you get the chance to look closely at it. It's an old port city dating back to the colonial era and is grand in its tragedy. I'm a big fan of The Wire which tells the story of the city's ills in such a great literary fashion that is as moving as a Greek tragedy and as pretty as it is Gothic. On that show, the beauty of the Inner Harbor and the architecture of downtown are just as pretty as the vacant rowhomes that litter the inner-city. So, my favorite run is one that I've constructed for myself over the months I've lived in this city.

Distance: 10.45 miles (good for Half and Full Marathon Training)

Narrative: You start at Federal Hill Park and run through the Inner Harbor. After going through historic Fells Point, you see the gentrifying Canton area. Run past some empty and some gentrifying homes in East Baltimore, as you run back to downtown and past City Hall and up to the Washington Monument (elevation challenge). Come back down and pass Camden Yards before heading back to the starting point.

Positives: Lots of ground covered and beautiful for a city run. Pretty compact area. Good elevation challenge at the end going up to Washington Monument, but mostly flat other than that.

Negatives: Depending on time of day, may run into foot traffic. Also some sidewalks are poorly managed and may be injury-hazards.



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