Drinkwater Park from The Clough

This 5.2 km route is a lollipop shape, with an out-and-back section from Ruskin Road leading into a loop of Drinkwater Park. With just 22 m of total ascent, it's almost entirely flat, making it a good option for a tempo effort or a straightforward leg stretch. The surface is mixed but mostly unpaved trail and dirt path, so road shoes should be fine in dry summer conditions, but you might want more grip if it’s been wet.

You begin with a short out-and-back leg that takes you from the residential street into the park proper. Once inside, the main part of the run is a single clockwise loop. You'll be following a combination of park paths, including some short paved sections and longer stretches of dirt trail through wooded areas. The route is self-contained within the park, so there's no traffic to deal with once you are off the entry road.

Because the majority of the route is unpaved, footing can become soft or muddy after rain, particularly on the woodland trails. Trail shoes would be a sensible choice through autumn and winter. The flat profile and park setting make it a reliable circuit for training repeats or just logging some miles without having to think much about navigation. Once you've completed the loop, you simply retrace your steps on the initial path to get back to your start point.