La Crosse is a city of about 250,000 located on the Mississippi River. It’s a college town as well as a regional educational, medical, manufacturing, and transportation hub for western Wisconsin. It’s a scenic spot, with its riverside setting and extensive marshlands. There’s a nice variety of running in La Crosse, featuring its waterfront, numerous multi-use trails, pleasant parks, and pastoral roads just outside of town.
One of the best places to run in La Crosse is the River Walk along the Mississippi, which can be combined some of the marshes near downtown. Two longer multi-use trails are the Great River State Park Trail and the La Crosse River State Trail, which are connected. For some nice trail running, head to Hixon Forest, near town. For some pastoral running on quiet roads, we love Barron Island, and especially Goose Island.
Runners should note La Crosse winters are very cold and snowy. By contrast, summers are warm to hot!
