Wellness
Dallas' best running follows the Katy Trail, built on the former MKT Railroad corridor, loops the 9 mile perimeter of White Rock Lake, and takes in skyline views from the Trinity Skyline Trail below the levees.
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Updated 36 min ago
Dallas has built its running culture around a repurposed rail line and a large lake loop, with a genuine skyline trail threading the Trinity River floodway. Here are the best running routes in Dallas for 2026.
The Katy Trail runs about 3.5 developed miles north to south from Victory Park near the American Airlines Center to the Southern Methodist University area, on a 12-foot-wide concrete path with a separate soft rubber lane reserved for runners. It is built on the former Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad corridor, nicknamed the "Katy", which was abandoned in the late 1980s and donated to the City of Dallas by Union Pacific in 1993, with trail construction beginning in 2000. It is the city's most iconic linear running route, heavily used by Uptown and Highland Park locals.
The White Rock Lake loop runs roughly 9.2 to 9.4 miles on a fully paved perimeter path around the 1,015 acre reservoir about 5 miles northeast of downtown. It is flat and scenic, well served with water fountains, restrooms and lake overlooks, and is widely cited as Dallas's most popular running loop.
The Trinity Skyline Trail runs 4.6 miles of paved path below grade inside the Trinity River floodway and levee system near downtown, with skyline views of Dallas. It can be extended to the W. Commerce Bridge, the Ronald Kirk Pedestrian Bridge, or up to 7 miles to Inwood Road, with connecting levee trails on gravel and crushed stone.
Klyde Warren Park, a 5.4 acre deck park built directly over the Woodall Rodgers Freeway and opened in 2012, links Uptown and the Dallas Arts District. It is not a distance route itself but a popular short-loop and warm-up spot connecting the Katy Trail to downtown running routes.
The BMW Dallas Marathon, next run on 13 December 2026, starts and finishes at City Hall Plaza downtown, with the rolling-hills course looping around White Rock Lake through several Dallas neighbourhoods, alongside a half marathon, 5K, 10K, relay and a 50K ultra the same weekend.
The Katy Trail and White Rock Lake are the most reliable, well-used choices for a straightforward run; the Trinity Skyline Trail is worth the trip for anyone wanting skyline views away from traffic.
This article was compiled by AI and screened before publishing. See our editorial standards.
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