Red rock gravel slipping under rubber soles. Left across the rackety wooden bridge. Wind through the park over concrete trails. Return to red rock, under another bridge, around another park. Repeat the same routine again and again. The Tiger Trail, a sectioned-off part of the Santa Fe Trail, is repetitive to the seasoned Colorado College trail runner: full of the same old sights, sparse hills, and monotonous footsteps.
While trail running options are limited in downtown Colorado Springs, trail running salvation can be reached in a 30-minute drive or less.
Fox Run Park
Distance from CC: 20 minutes
Difficulty: Hard
Training Distance Available: 10K or less
Specialty: Hill-work
Fox Run Park is a popular destination for locals. Nestled in the trees, the park caters to interests of both young and old, entertaining children with woodchip-ridden playgrounds and hosting weddings and family gatherings in painted gazebos. The park is also home to an intricate web of trails that trickle through the forest across hills and streams. Due to the steep, rolling hills, a rule of thumb for the park is that you can run half of the distance you normally run before getting fatigued. This park is great for the trail runners yearning for some intense hill work and forest views.
Mt. Herman Trail Head
Distance from CC: 26 minutes
Difficulty: Easy
Training Distance Available: Half-marathon
Specialty: Thick gravel deposits
The Mount Herman Recreation area is a densely thicketed wood home to numerous attractions. The trails wind through the trees and past spectacles such as the local wildfire station, an old, caved-in well, and Mount Herman itself. Full of breathtaking views and moderate rolling hills, the park is the perfect place for trail running all year round. Make Mount Herman Trail Head a stop for your next moderate-distance day for fun sights and secluded mountain fun.
Greenland Open Space
Distance from CC: 30 minutes
Difficulty: Moderate
Training Distance Available: 20 miles
Specialty: Endurance
With a trailhead in Palmer Lake Park, Greenland Open Space allows runners to run from Palmer Lake all the way to Greenland,through wild grass pastures. A dusty road winding up through pasture hills, Greenland Open Space trails provide beautiful views of Colorado’s eastern plains. Full of cows, steady inclines, and small abandoned graveyards, Greenland Open Space is an ideal distance day for the runner in search of a break from the norm.
Sometimes a change of scenery is not only desired, but needed. Use these locations to explore running beyond the Tiger Trail.