Madison

Hiking

Hiking:

On the west side of Madison, Blue Mound State Park has the best system of technical trails - great for a weekend day. Closer in to town, hiking options are a little more limited - the best places are the UW Arboretum and Elver Park.

Trails:

University of Wisconsin Lakeshore Path

The University of Wisconsin Lakeshore Path (also known as the UW Lakeshore Path) runs along Lake Mendota in Madison near the University. The most used part of the trail connects the tip of Picnic Point to the UW Memorial Union and the Union Terrace. The round trip is about 4 miles. Most of the trail is on a wide crushed gravel surface, but there are also segments of paved trail with soft shoulders that are separated for bike and pedestrian traffic.

3.00miles

http://www.lakeshorepreserve.wisc.edu/map/imap.htm

Glacial Drumlin Trail

The Glacial Drumlin Trail is a 52-mile trail that connects Cottage Grove, just east of Madison, with Waukesha, west of Milwaukee. The western 39 miles of the trail are wide, crushed limestone - the eastern 13 miles are paved and suitable for road bikes or inline skating.

Like many Wisconsin rail trails, you will need to purchase a state trail day use or annual pass if you plan to bike, cross country ski, or inline skate. Hiking the trail does not require a trail pass.

52.00miles

http://dnr.wi.gov/org/land/parks/specific/glacialdrumlin/glacialdrumlinm...

Blue Mound State Park

Description:

Blue Mound State Park is 25 miles west of Madison, Wisconsin, and is one of the best open spaces in the area for trail running, mountain biking, and running on singletrack and doubletrack. The park is out Highway 151 from Madison.

There are miles of trails, and more added all the time. You can make a 15-20 mile loop on the trails without a lot of repeats. Unlike a lot of Wisconsin trail, this is technical, not just dirt roads or cross-country ski trail.

The park is home to the Blue Mound Trail Run in June, and the 12 Hours of Blue Mound Mountain Bike Race in August.

There is a swimming pool in the park for cooling off after your adventure.

University of Wisconsin Arboretum

Description:

The UW Arboretum is a great place to exercise outdoors in Madison. The arboretum's main road does not cut through the arboretum, except for bicycles, making it perfect for road bike training.

The 1200-acre Arboretum is laced with hiking trails, open from 7am to 10pm. They do get pretty muddy in wet weather, but you can access over 20 miles of trails through the Arboretum.

The visitor center makes for a nice introduction to the nature center side of the Arboretum, if you are interested.

Running

Running Routes:

University of Wisconsin Lakeshore Path

3.00miles

http://www.lakeshorepreserve.wisc.edu/map/imap.htm

When is the major marathon?:

The major marathon is the Mad-City marathon on Memorial Day Weekend. This race has had issues in the past, including being unprepared for the heat in 2010, forcing the cancellation of the race at the 4 hour mark.

Running Races:

Dances with Dirt Devil's Lake Wisconsin

Dances with Dirt Devil's Lake Wisconsin is a 100K five person relay, 50-mile and 50-kilometer ultramarathon, marathon, and half marathon held in July near Madison, Wisconsin.

Date:

Sat, 2010-07-10

Length:

50.00miles

Pictures:

Lengths:

50.00miles

31.00miles

26.20miles

13.10miles

Race Types:

Running race

Half Marathon

Marathon

50K Ultramarathon

50 Mile Ultramarathon

Trail Run

Lake Monona 20K Run

The Lake Monona 20K Run is a great way to turn one of your favorite training runs into a supported run, or an excuse to go all out. The race is usually four weeks before the Madison Marathon, which isn't ideal for timing, but if you did an extra six or seven miles before the race, it would be a great long run.

Date:

Sat, 2010-05-01

Length:

12.50miles

Race Types:

Running race

Other short

Blue Mound Trail Run

The Blue Mound Trail Run is an 18K and 11K event held out at Blue Mound State Park west of Madison in June of every year. This race only allows 300 participants, and it does sell out!

Blue Mound State Park has some of the most technical trails in the Madison area, making this a great workout.

Date:

Sat, 2010-06-05

Length:

11.00miles

Lengths:

11.00miles

8.00miles

Race Types:

Running race

Other short

Trail Run

Where can I get a running event schedule?:

Movin' Shoes keeps a Google Calendar of running events on their web site at http://www.movinshoesmadison.com/index.php?option=com_gcalendar&view=goo...

Fleet Feet Madison's event calendar also includes triathlon and duathlon events in addition to running - http://www.fleetfeetmadison.com/calendar

Many local races are listed in the Madison Area Running Series - http://www.madisonseries.com/Events/

Triathlon

Where can I get a triathlon/duathlon event schedule?:

Fleet Feet Madison keeps a pretty nice running, duathlon, and triathlon calendar - http://www.fleetfeetmadison.com/calendar

Triathlon Races:

Ironman Wisconsin

Ironman Wisconsin in Madison is one of the tougher Ironman courses in North America. The swim is two loops in Lake Monona in downtown Madison, in front of Monona Terrace. The bike makes two loops west of Madison through some pretty hilly sections. The run is two loops and includes the bike path along the lake and a loop of the University of Wisconsin Camp Randall Stadium.

Date:

Sun, 2010-09-12

Length:

140.60miles

Race Types:

Triathlon

Full Iron

Swimming

Open Water Swimming:

You can definitely swim in Madison's lakes, but be careful! People have drowned while swimming in them, so don't go by yourself or without a safety kayaker.

Dane County and the state of Wisconson test the local beaches for water quality in the lakes - as the summers go on and get hotter, the water quality in the lakes drops because of fertilizers and pollutions. Check the most recent updates on water quality here - http://www.publichealthmdc.com/environmental/water/beaches/beaches.cfm

Lake Wingra is probably the most popular lake for triathlon-style open water swimming.

Fun on the Water (Kayaking, Canoeing, Rowing, Stand Up Paddle)

Kayaking and Canoeing:

From May to September, Wingra Boats is open on Lake Wingra. Lake Wingra isn't open to large motorized boats, and it's smaller than Lake Mendota or Lake Monona, so you won't be as exposed to choppy water. Wingra Boats offers kayaks, canoes, rowboats, stand up paddle boards, windsurfers, and sailboats.

Lake Wingra is also the cleanest Madison lake - water quality is definitely an issue in the summer in Wisconsin lakes, especially with blue-green algae.

You can also rent canoes for Lake Mendota at the Memorial Union Boathouse by the Memorial Union Terrace on the University of Wisconsin campus.

Kayak and Canoe Rentals:

Wingra Boats

Stand Up Paddle Rentals:

Wingra Boats

Parks:

Capital Springs State Recreational Area

Attractions:

Monona Terrace

Mountain Biking:

Madison Mountain Biking

Road Biking: