Off the Beaten Path: Sligo Creek Trail
For a number of years, I lived outside of downtown Silver Spring. I loved it because my house sat a block away from this wooded trail that ran along Sligo Creek. It was the perfect setup because I used the hill between my house and the trail for my hill workouts, and I could use the trail for strides and long runs.
As time went on, I explored more and more of this trail and stopped running anywhere else.
Sligo Creek Trail stretches about 10 miles from Wheaton to Hyattsville, following the creek through the stream valley parks that Montgomery and Prince George's counties began acquiring in the 1930s. The flood plain kept development out of the area and trees filled in, and now there is a narrow corridor of woods threading through the DC suburbs. It is quiet, and in the heat of summer, a wonderful reprieve from the sun. It is easy to forget you're only ever a few miles away from Georgia Avenue.
Living off the trail I started using it to connect to DC for my long runs. Push far enough south and Sligo meets the Northwest Branch Trail in Hyattsville, which follows the Anacostia River into the city. If you need the miles, you can run to the end of the Anacostia River Trail without leaving the paved path.
Alongside the trail, the Sligo Creek Parkway wends through the trees for much of the Montgomery County section. The two-lane road closes to vehicles on the weekends in two places: between Old Carroll Ave and Piney Branch Road in Takoma Park and from Forest Glen Road in Forest Glen to University Boulevard West in Wheaton. If you get out early on those weekend mornings, the entire park system is quiet.
There are plenty of stretches of the trail that you can do speedwork on, but with seven road crossings and Maryland drivers, you won't be running any training PRs. It is great for easy miles and long runs, and with some rolling hills throughout the northern sections of the trail, you will still get a good workout in.
No matter where you start along the trail, you will not be disappointed. Water and restrooms are available at various points along the way.
I do not live near the trail anymore, but I think about it every time I am looking for somewhere new to run.
Parking is available at:
Sligo-Dennis Avenue Local Park, 10200 Sligo Creek Pkwy (Silver Spring)
Sligo Creek Stream Valley Park, 8101 Sligo Creek Pkwy (Takoma Park)
Green Meadows Park, 6301 Sligo Pkwy (Hyattsville)
Learn more about the Sligo Creek Stream Valley Park here.
