You either love it or you hate it, but whatever your feelings are, you can’t deny that running is one of the best forms of exercise. It’s basically free, you can do it anywhere and just about anyone can do it—just start slow and build your way up.
While half the beauty of running is that you can do it anywhere, when you live in a place as beautiful as Perth, you might as well make the most of it. Here are nine of Perth’s best running routes.
The Coast
Anywhere Along The Coast
Nothing beats running next to the water, except maybe jumping into the water after you're done. Perth’s coast is built for runners and even if you hate running on sand you can stick to the footpaths and run for as much as 25 kilometres (or as little as one!) Our fave routes are from South Beach to Port Coogee (about six kilometres return), North Fremantle to Cottesloe (6 to 10 kilometres depending on where you turn around) and Scarborough to Trigg Heritage Trail (about seven kilometres).
Reabold Hill
City Beach
If you like a good hill run, then in Bold Park is the place for you. The Zamia Trail is five kilometres and gets to 85 metres above sea level, so you’ll feel like you just ran closer to 10 kilometres than five. Think of it as good bang for your buck, and the perfect excuse to treat yourself to a giant breakfast at or afterwards.
The Bridges
Around The Swan River Starting In Perth Or South Perth
If you prefer flat terrain run will suit you just fine. 10 kilometres paired with views of our beautiful city across the Swan River, that sounds pretty good to us. You can start anywhere and you can run in either direction—even though some people will tell you that the real runners only go anti-clockwise (don’t say we didn’t warn you). If you’re serious about your running and want to practice some intervals the section between Mends Street and the Swan River Trust has markings every 200 metres.
Lake Monger
Wembley
Lake Monger is perfect for running newbies at only 3.5 kilometres, plus it’s so pretty to run around that you might even find the motivation to run around it twice. There are some great views of the city and you’ll probably spot a swan or two, because anything that keeps your run interesting is a win in our books.
Kings Park
Perth
Your options are endless in , but if you’re after a good hill or two try running up Mount Street, down Jacobs ladder then over to Kokoda before passing by the DNA Tower and then heading back towards Jacobs Ladder. That will get you to close to seven kilometres, and more importantly, it will get you a couple of hundred metres from Mount Street Breakfast Bar, you know what to do from here.
Claisebrook Cove
East Perth
The run is so darn good they’ve organised a weekly fun run there. If you like the atmosphere a crowd brings, head down on Saturday mornings at 8am to run the five-kilometre course along the waterfront starting at Mardalup Park in East Perth and ending after Heartbreak Hill in Victoria Gardens.
Matilda Bay
Crawley
is a beautiful spot for a run—you get great views over the river and most of it is nice and shady so you can get some relief from the sun. You can make it as long or as short as you like, but if you start at Matilda Bay Restaurant and make it to Cooee and back you’ll have a solid seven kilometres under your belt, so you've well and truly earned your brunch at Bayside Kitchen.
Helena Valley
Helena Valley
The run isn’t for the faint-hearted. It’s 23 kilometres of hill running which sounds like torture to some, but ask any serious runner and they rave about it. We reckon we’ll leave this one to the pros.
Prefer walking? Check out Perth's Best Secret Walks And Hikes.
Image credit: Louise Coghill