The East Bay generally refers to the area across San Francisco Bay to the east of San Francisco, comprising Oakland, Berkeley, Alameda, and Richmond. This area of nearly 3 million people is connected to downtown San Francisco by the Bay Bridge, and by I-580 further north and Rt. 92 from Silicon Valley. Our guide to running in the East Bay includes the best places to run in Oakland, Berkeley, Richmond, and Alameda. NOTE: As of May 2020, Oakland has opened more than 20 miles of ‘Slow Streets‘ to pedestrians and cyclists during set hours. These might be nice for running too!
There is excellent variety for running in the East Bay, including paths along the water, pretty residential areas in Berkeley, and wonderful trail running opportunities in the hilly parks above Oakland and Berkeley. Highlights include the Bay Trail, especially sections Shoreline Drive and south toward Hayward, the recently completed Bay Bridge trail, paths around Lake Merritt, and paths in Tilden Park and Redwood Regional Park. For pleasant residential running on quiet streets, we recommend the Piedmont neighborhood and some of the side streets near UC Berkeley.
The East Bay is well-served by BART. Many of our routes in Oakland, Berkeley, and Richmond are accessible by public transport. Still, the area is fairly spread out, and a car will be helpful if you want to access some of the hill parks in the area.
nd and Berkeley are similar in climate. Average summer high temps are 75F (24C), with cool-ish nights, in the low 50s (11-13C). An extra layer is good any time of year. Winters are mild, with average highs of 58F (15C).
