Get me out of this freakin' hotel, please.

June 13, 2007 5:49 AM

MinneapolisJockFilter: Where are good places to run downtown? Anywhere to rent a bike downtown?

Heading to Minneapolis for a conference and want to find a five mile run from my downtown hotel. I'll be at the Hilton on the 1000 block of Marquette, south. It looks like if I run north to First there may be a way to access the path along the river. Google Maps showed what looks like a riverside park, and a pedestrian bridge to the Pillsbury peninsula park. Am I reading that right? Is that runnable?

I also have a little time to myself before and after the conference. Anywhere to rent a bike within walking distance from that same hotel?

posted by Toekneesan to sports, hobbies, & recreation (7 comments total)

The bridge you're seeing is the stone arch pedestrian / bike bridge; the west river parkway running/biking trail (part of the Grand Rounds system) runs just past that. Lots of good running room there. Go a bit south of that and you're along the river, near the West Bank campus of U Minnesota, away from any major auto traffic.

More info on the trails and routes here: grand rounds

(We've lived in the city for all of 2 weeks, and have already come to really like the west river parkway area for running and biking.)

Don't know about bike rental - One on one bike studio has been recommended to us several times as a good bike shop / coffee shop. Don't know if they do rentals but they most likely would be able to tell you who does.
posted by caution live frogs at 6:40 AM on June 13, 2007

What the Frogs said. It's pretty much all park along the river (if you cross it and go south/east, you'll run into the U, which isn't park but isn't exactly hostile territory, either).

I don't think there'd be any bike rental within walking distance of the hotel; but if you can get to Uptown/Lake Calhoun (it'd be a short cab ride), there are several places willing to rent you all sorts of bikes
posted by COBRA! at 7:26 AM on June 13, 2007

Yes, the river parkway is beautiful and very runnable, as is the pedestrian bridge. You'll probably have better luck running south(-east)-ish along the river from downtown than the other direction - depending on how far you go, the neighborhood can get a little more dicey on the north side.

I can't think of anyplace to rent bikes downtown (unless you want a motorcycle, in which case there's a place at Washington and 3rd Ave. N). Like COBRA! said though, you can rent bikes in uptown and go around the chain of lakes (which you'll surely see if you zoom out a little on a google map of Minneapolis). Calhoun Cycle is one such bicycle rental shop. Tons of buses run from downtown near your hotel straight down to uptown, so it'd be a quick trip even if you don't have a car while you're here.
posted by vytae at 8:15 AM on June 13, 2007

if I run north to First

Also, watch out for avenues vs. streets and north vs. south when you're downtown. We've got second ave north, second ave s, as well as second street, (etc. for other numbers) all within a very small area. It can get confusing if all you remember is to turn on "First".
posted by vytae at 8:19 AM on June 13, 2007

Yeah, I'd run south on the west (downtown) side of the river. It's a scenic run with a couple hills thrown in.
posted by DieHipsterDie at 8:21 AM on June 13, 2007

I stayed at the Hilton a couple of years ago and did some of the runs listed at the runnersworld.com website. I'm a woman and I felt pretty safe there. Also, there's a great Y not far from the hotel.
posted by poissonrouge at 8:38 AM on June 13, 2007

Thanks, folks. I Heart MeFi.
posted by Toekneesan at 7:11 PM on June 13, 2007