15 Fall Half Marathons You'll Love Running Across the USA
Marathons, half marathons, 10-milers + more, all across America
Run for Green Half Marathon
Davidson, N.C. | Saturday, September 28, 2024
A beautifully scenic out-and-back run that starts and finishes on the Village Green in downtown Davidson, N.C., the home of Davidson College. For most of the race, you’ll run along a route that winds roughly in parallel with the South Prong of the West Branch of the Rocky River, through Davidson and the surrounding countryside. “Our course winds its way through lovely little neighborhoods with long stretches out in the woods on the greenway where you can take in the serenity of nature,” the organizers say. “Expect to encounter a hill or two, this is not what we would call a flat course.”
Deep Creek Half Marathon
Telluride, Colo. | Saturday, September 28, 2024
A run among the fall colors in the hills and mountains surrounding the ski resort town of Telluride, Colo. Starting from the Telluride airport, you’ll run along Last Dollar Road to the Deep Creek Trail, passing through woods filled with Aspen trees, along mostly single-track dirt trails all the way back into town, in Oak Creek park next to the Telluride courthouse. As the organizers say, “if you enjoy running on golden paths of Fall colors in enjoyable cool temperatures, then this race is perfect for you.”
Sleeping Bear Marathon + Half
Empire, Mich. | Saturday, October 5, 2024
“Miles of sand beach, bluffs that tower 450 feet above Lake Michigan, lush forests, clear inland lakes, unique flora and fauna make up the natural world of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula, where this early fall race takes place. You’ll run through the village of Glen Arbor and past Little Glen Lake, as well as past the “Dune Climb,” a popular spot for attempting to climb up pure, wind-blown sand dunes. “At the peak of fall color season, the tree-lined course will be one that both runners and spectators won’t soon forget.”
Middlebury Maple Run
Middlebury, Vt. | Sunday, October 6, 2024
The rolling green hills, quaint downtown streets and college town atmosphere of this small city in central Vermont are just a few of the charms of this annual springtime race, nicknamed “The Sweetest Half.” The course takes runners from the Middlebury town center out into the farm fields just north of town, and through the Middlebury College campus before bringing them out and back to town for the finish — and all along the way, you’ll take in some of the most beautiful mountain scenery New England has to offer.
The Rogue Marathon + Half
Medford, Ore. | Saturday, October 12, 2024
Nestled between the Cascade Range and the Siskiyou Mountains in southwestern Oregon lies the city of Medford and the Rogue River Valley, where you’ll run what organizers say is the “fastest marathon in Oregon,” and is also a Boston qualifier. You’ll spend most of your time during the race on the Bear Creek Greenway, a corridor of public parks and urban green space that encompasses some 600 acres of pristine, natural parkland filled with lush vegetation and plentiful trees along the creek from which it takes its name. (And if you have time, Medford is a perfect jumping-off point to explore the outdoors here — from the majestic beauty of Crater Lake National Park to the rapids for whitewater rafting and fly-fishing along the Rogue River.)
Amica Newport Marathon + Half
Newport, R.I. | Sunday, October 13, 2024
The beautifully scenic rocky coastline of southern Rhode Island forms the backdrop for this race, which takes runners on an out-and-back course along Aquidneck Island and features views of the Atlantic for nearly the entire route. From the starting line at Newport’s Easton Beach, you’ll run through downtown, later making your way toward the peninsula-like land formation that juts out into the sound. You’ll also run through Fort Adams State Park, home to a historic 1812-era fort, and then finish up with stretches around the western edge of the island, towards the edge of Brenton Point State Park, with views of the Rhode Island Sound and Narragansett Bay off in the distance.
Man Against Horse Race
Prescott, Ariz. | Saturday, October 19, 2024
Inspired by a bet between two men in a bar on Whiskey Row in Prescott, Ariz., back in 1983 — that one Gheral Brownlow could outrun Cowboy Steve Rafters on his horse in a footrace — today this race has been going for four decades, running in the hills just outside this beautifully scenic town in northern Arizona. The race features a 50-miler, 25-miler and a half marathon, which is considered a “great course to use as an intro to trail running,” organizers say. You’ll run through the fields and trails of Fain Ranch, which looks out onto sweeping views of the Prescott Valley, and climb and descend about 800 feet by the time you cross the finish line.
Rogue Gorge Half Marathon, 12K + 50K
Union Creek, Ore. | Saturday, Oct. 19 - Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024
A gorgeous (and challenging) fall run along Oregon’s Rogue Gorge Trail and Upper Rogue River Trail, two trails that wind through the wilderness that surrounds the Rogue National Wild & Scenic River in the Southern Cascades. The place where you’ll run lies just 20 miles away from Crater Lake National Park, where more than 7,000 years ago, a cataclysmic volcanic eruption buried the region in pumice, ash and lava. Today, the river courses through long-since-cooled lava canyons, where numerous waterfalls and lush forests filled with towering old-growth Douglas fir, ponderosa pine and sugar pine trees abound. You’ll get to take all of it in as you run across bridges over streams and through the woods, among the trees.
Cloverdale Vineyard Races
Cloverdale, Calif. | Sunday, October 20, 2024
A gorgeous run along the dirt roads that wind through Sonoma County’s Asti Winery, when the fall leaves are turning ablaze with color. The race takes places in a small town that lies about 90 miles from San Francisco and just outside Healdsburg, one of the most popular destination towns in the Northern California wine country. Throughout the course, you’ll run on packed, groomed dirt roads past hillsides filled with row after row of wine grapes (as well as a few paved roads, as you’ll be running through a working vineyard) taking in the scenery along the banks of the Russian River and the Alexander Valley all around.
Grand Rapids Marathon + Half
Grand Rapids, Mich. | Sunday, October 20, 2024
A gentle, forgiving, fast and flat course makes this race an excellent one for both first-time marathoners and half marathoners. When they set out to design the courses for each distance, race organizers say they wanted to avoid the “big city races through concrete canyons” kind of experience so common at other events — so they routed most of the miles inside Grand Rapids’ Millennium Park, an urban park about twice the size of New York’s Central Park. There’s no time limit for either race, but they add: “if you use that as an excuse to stop and have a picnic or go out to breakfast, we will disqualify you. This is a race, after all. At least ACT like you’re in a hurry.”
Sri Chinmoy Half Marathon
Congers, N.Y. | Sunday, October 27, 2024
What organizers say is the “perfect” race for a PR follows a fast, flat four-loop course around Rockland Lake State Park just outside New York City, part of a series of races that were first organized in the late 1970s and named in honor of the Indian meditation master and philosopher Sri Chinmoy. Runners will start the race on the western side of the lake, just off Rockland Lake Road; from there, they’ll follow a clockwise loop around the lake four times. Local runners will likely be familiar with the park’s plentiful hiking trails, which wander through the woods of this park along the western bank of the Hudson River, less than an hour’s drive from New York City.
Las Vegas Marathon + Half
Las Vegas, Nev. | Sunday, November 3, 2024
Set for its first-ever running this fall, the all-new Las Vegas Marathon will start among the hills and mountains of Red Rock Canyon, a nearly 200-acre National Conservation Area in the Mojave Desert just outside Las Vegas. From there, you’ll follow a route that winds along Scenic Loop Drive and Red Rock Canyon Drive, including a long straightaway stretch along West Charleston Boulevard toward the city. You’ll descend about 2,300 feet in elevation from the start to the finish line, at Las Vegas Boulevard and Fremont Street, in the heart of downtown Vegas.
Yorktown Battlefield 10-Miler
Yorktown, Va. | Saturday, November 9, 2024
The place where the historic battle that brought an end to the American Revolutionary War took place in 1781 — and would inspire the song in the Broadway musical Hamilton — is where you’ll run at this race “entirely on the Yorktown Battlefield tour roads, with scenic views of woods, meadows, fields and creeks,” organizers say. Runners will start and finish the out-and-back course at Surrender Field, where the British general Cornwallis finally surrendered his approximately 7,000 British troops to the American and French armies on Oct. 19, 1781. From there, the race winds through tree-covered battlefield areas of Virginia’s Colonial National Historic Park.
Snow Canyon Half Marathon
St. George, Utah | Saturday, November 16, 2024
Surrounded by red rock cliffs and sand dunes that tower over the desert floor, the trails and roads within southwestern Utah’s Snow Canyon State Park are the scenery for this breathtaking half, which Runner’s World has called one of North America’s best. The point-to-point route starts at the trailhead for the Red Mountain Trail, one of more than 30 miles of trails within the 7,400-acre park. Throughout the course, you’ll run through a place where “majestic views and the subtle interplay of light, shadow, and color dancing across canyon walls evoke strong emotional responses from visitors.”
Fiery Gizzard Run
Foster Falls S.P., Tenn. | Saturday, November 30, 2024
A tough, but beautiful, run along a trail considered one of the top hiking trails anywhere in the U.S. — the 12.5-mile-long Fiery Gizzard Trail, which runs along a stretch of the Cumberland Plateau in middle Tennessee, just an hour or so from Chattanooga. As the organizers say, “the course provides beautiful waterfalls, stunning rock formations, and overlooks with views for miles,” — something I can attest to, as I’ve hiked parts of this trail myself. “The trail is mostly flat ridgeline running with several steep dips into gorges,” they add, noting that “these descents are quite technical and require focus on your footing.”
