Eugene is Oregon’s second largest city, nestled in the Willamette Valley at the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers. Dubbed “Emerald City” due to its verdant landscape and “Track Town USA” because of its rich running history, I found both monikers accurately described the experience of spending time there.
Eugene is built around an outdoor culture, much like Durango, with over 250 miles of paths, many in parks within the city limits that include paved as well as soft surfaces for cycling, running or hiking.
It also is the birthplace of the American jogging movement, which began in earnest in the 1970s, sparked by some of the great runners of that era: Steve Prefontaine, Frank Shorter, Jim Ryun and Bill Rodgers, to name a few. It is home to historic Hayward Field, Nike and the University of Oregon, which attracts some of the nations elite track and field athletes.
Historic Alton Baker Park adjacent to the University of Oregon campus is home to “Pre’s Trail” – named after Prefontaine, who was a standout middle- and long-distance runner for the University of Oregon in the 1970s and competed in the 1972 Olympics.
“Pre’s Trail” is a relatively flat soft-surface bark-chip trail that winds through six miles of the park. Offering up beautiful views of the Willamette River along the way, it was one of “Pre’s” favorite places to run while he was a student there.
On the other side of the river is Hendricks Park, a thickly forested enclave with miles of gravel trails that link together to make a loop. This is the oldest park in the city, dating back to 1951, and contains a native plant area and a beautiful rhododendron garden along its hilly vortex of trails.
At the north end of the park is “Pre’s” rock, which marks the location where he died in a car accident in 1975. During noteworthy running events in Eugene, fans often will leave running memorabilia at the site to honor his memory.
The Ridgeline and Spencer Butte trail system covers a total of 14 miles of cool, gravel-covered paths shared by runners, cyclists and hikers and offers up a great view of Eugene from the summit.
On the southeastern edge of the city is the 1,541-foot Mount Pisgah trail, part of the Howard Buford Recreation Area that contains both well-maintained gravel trails and wilder single track.
Less than an hour outside the city limits lies the Willamette National Forest, which is part of the Cascade Range and boasts 100 square miles of outdoor bliss, including the seven major mountain peaks of Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Washington, Three Finger Jack, Diamond Peak and North, Middle and South Sisters.
Closest to Eugene’s city center is the Oakridge wilderness area, with over 300 miles of mountain biking and hiking trails of varying distances and difficulty, offering access to reservoirs, lakes, breathtaking waterfalls and natural hot springs.
The choices seem endless for the outdoor enthusiast and I relish my return to explore more of what Eugene has to offer.
Reach Marjorie Brinton at runswim55@gmail.com
