Running and Walking

It’s hard to get away from traffic in Bermuda, and Paget [1]’s busy, hilly, narrow roads, often lacking sidewalks, are far from ideal for running and walking. The Railway Trail is the perfect escape from the hubbub, a flat, shady path cutting through scenic neighborhoods.

The Paget trail starts at the top of Trimingham Hill on South Road, where signs and a zebra crossing lead to the entrance. Passing through a short tunnel and between thick limestone cuts in the hillside, the trail runs past Grape Bay, with wide-open views of Paget Marsh [2] and the city of Hamilton’s [3] skyline beyond.

Although the trail occasionally hits tarmac sections and has to cross a couple of main roads, it soon enters a long, wide, tranquil stretch that passes through thick cherry woods, past farmers’ fields and spice forests, all the way to Warwick [4] and beyond. If you keep going, you can actually make it all the way to Mangrove Bay in Sandys [5]—this I know from many a marathon training session!

For nearly 30 years, members of the Mid Atlantic Athletic Club (tel. 441/236-9586, www.maac.bm [6]), the island’s largest running club, have met at the Botanical Gardens [7] for a two- or four-mile “fun run” at 6 p.m. Tuesday evenings through the summer months. Meet in the center of the Gardens just past the main carpark. The loop route leaves North Gate and follows the park’s perimeter along Point Finger Road, South Shore Road, Tee Street, and Berry Hill Road.