Running routes in Liverpool

I'll be in Liverpool for a few days next month for a conference, and am looking for ideas for a route to run while I am there. Normally I would use the gym when I stay somewhere I don't know, but I've been booked into one with no gym so need to venture outside.

I am staying around the Albert Dock area. I'm aiming for a run of 5-6 miles, but don't care if it's out/back, a loop, or several smaller loops. Needs to be somewhere safe as I'll probably be going out alone (and am a laydee) and either early or after dark.

Any suggestions welcome - thanks!

have a look on the RW route finder??

see if you can hook up with a club one evening?

or wait for someone on here to suggest a route.....

The easiest and one of the nicest routes in Liverpool is all along the waterfront. It starts behind the Albert Dock (next to the river) and winds its way through the Marina area, past the Echo Arena and all the way (about 5 miles) to Otterspool Prom. All of it is next to the Mersey and I run it all the time.

Enjoy it!

That sounds like the one for me Blisters, thanks. I will work it out on a map and go for it.

Nick - thought about a club, but I am not really sure what time i'll get out to run, so can't really commit to it. And I didn't even know RW had a route finder.....can't find a link either...and the search facility is rubbish.

freemers - i cant find the rw run thingy now....there was a map and everyfink!!!!!

Soudns like you have a route now anyways

Hi Freemers,

Just to echo what Blisters said.

The waterfront is a nice run as it's out & back, so you'd have to really try to get lost.  As a fellow laydee, I can reassure you that I've ran along there a number of times.  It's v.popular for walkers, cyclists & runners.  It's a nice route as there's plenty to see, plus it's mostly pedestrianised so not much in the way of traffic/crossings.

I thought it might be helpful to give you a couple of landmarks.  If you're at The Albert Dock, Otterspool is in the left direction or away from The Liver Building.  Otterspool Prom starts at The Britannia Inn.  This whole stretch is nice and flat but obviously can get very windy.

If you're only here for a few days, I think you could run this stretch a couple of times without getting bored.  At The Britannia Inn, you can stay on Otterspool Prom or if you fancy getting off the flat, you can follow the road left which will take you up a long gradual incline.

Ickle Legs wrote (see)

  This whole stretch is nice and flat but obviously can get very windy.

That's an understatement today, eh? It's a flipping hurricane out there. Did you do the Liverpool HM? That was a pretty windy day too.

Thanks for adding which direction to run Ickle, I forgot that bit!

And another echo....from the Albert Dock and out-and-back to Otterspool is your best bet. I'd do it early rather than after dark though as there are some sections where you'd feel unsafe in the dark.

South Liverpool is very green and leafy and there are quite a few parks you can take in, if you've ventured out of the city centre: Sefton Park, Calderstones Park, Princes Park, the golf club at Woolton....etc. etc.

If you're running in the early evening, you'll usually find other runners doing circuits of the road that loops around the outside of Sefton Park (but watch out for tree stumps on some sections).

This walkjogrun route shows you how you'd get there running from the Albert Dock. It's about 2 miles or so around the outside of the park. Not my route btw but if you plug "L1" into walkjogrun.net, you'll get a few coming up that start from the Albert Dock.

http://www.walkjogrun.net/routes/current_route.cfm?rid=0AB1F986-AE5B-5703-BD22779BAA6C0FC2

ps. There is (or used to be) a private gym on the Albert Dock. Your hotel should be able to tell you the name of it. There are also some hotels there (like the Holiday Inn and the Hilton) that have gyms you might be able to use. If you happen to be a Greens member, Greens Liverpool is about 10 minutes jog from the dock and easily accessible from Brunswick station on the Merseyrail network. http://www.greensonline.co.uk/club_liverpool/index.php#0

I'd also recommend running along the Mersey towards Otterspool Prom. When I lived in Liverpool I used to run along there a lot in afternoons/evenings and never had any problems (am also female). Laps of Sefton park another route I used to do a lot though think there, loop back would be more than 5/6 miles.

 I'm a southerner who moved to Liverpool for university. Found it generally a very friendly place. I love any excuse to pop back so hope you have a good time

Blisters and beer wrote (see)

Ickle Legs wrote (see)

  This whole stretch is nice and flat but obviously can get very windy.

That's an understatement today, eh? It's a flipping hurricane out there. Did you do the Liverpool HM? That was a pretty windy day too.

Thanks for adding which direction to run Ickle, I forgot that bit!

B&B - you're not wrong   I'm doing the HM for the first time this March & am bracing myself, that section could be a killer.  I do most of my running on the prom Seacombe - Leasowe, so I'm hoping it won't be too much of a shock to the legs.

OJO - hadn't thought of gyms, good thought.  The Gym is the new one in Liverpool One.  It's dirt cheap, alledgedly.