Running at Gordon's Pond

One of the exciting things about traveling is getting to run in a new place! But I never get too excited to run at the beach. Running in the sand bothers my IT band and running on the busy, hard, flat road with the sun beating down isn't my cup of tea either. I know some runners like running on the boardwalk, but that usually requires weaving in and out of people so it's hard to zone out. So what was this picky runner to do?

Last week, I went to the beach with four of my girlfriends. Three out of the four mornings I was at the beach were spent running at Gordon's Pond in Lewes, DE. This state park was only about 11 minutes north of our Air BnB in Dewey Beach. Parking was $10 per day for out of state vehicles, but it was worth it to me to pay and have a beautiful place to run. I mean, just look!

I took the same route each day. The Gordon's Pond trail is about 2.6 miles one way to Cape Henlopen State Park. Then I would do a short out and back on one of the trails at Henlopen and run back to Gordon's Pond to get me 6 miles total.

The first morning I ran, I took my time and stopped to take a lot of pictures. The trail was busy with bikers, walkers, and the occasional runner. But it wasn't so busy that I didn't have alone time. I could easily zone out.

The second morning I was Miss Speedy Pants, even though it was scorching hot! I ran the first half of my run in 23:08. I decided to try to get a negative split for the second half. Mission accomplished! But this run was an effort!

The third morning, despite it being 92 degrees, I had quite a pep in my step. Even though I was a teeny bit slower than the day before, this run felt like much less of an effort.

I'm so glad I didn't have to pound it out on the pavement each morning and got to run on the crushed gravel trail. If you are ever staying at one of the DE beaches, I highly recommend checking out Gordon's Pond or Cape Henlopen for your running, walking, or biking needs!