Running through Queens, NY

I’m originally from eastern Queens in New York City, but was not a runner while growing up.  I was pleased to find a great out-and-back route that starts close to my neighborhood.  It is almost entirely through parks and greenways, with some gentle hills to provide a good workout.  I’ve run it several times since 2003 (when I was training for NYC Marathon), and finally found an “official” map on MapMyRun.com:

My brother continues to live in the house I grew up in, which is just over a mile east of the start of this route in Alley Pond Park, so running from the house adds almost 3 miles to the round trip. I don’t know how long the greenway has been around, but plenty of runners, walkers and dog-walkers use it, expecially the long, straight stretches from Alley Pond to Cunningham parks.

Beautiful Scenery
When I first discovered the path, I was quite impressed and wondered why I hadn’t known about it all these [40+] years. But it’s now a staple part of my visit to the area. It weaves through parks where people are playing baseball, football, and basketball. After Cunningham Park, it passes by St. Francis Prep High School and along it’s longest stretch through city streets on Underhill Avenue, where there’s a long strip of ballfields and park benches.

Kissena Park
You then hit the very picturesque Kissena Park, which includes a cute little pond. Go around one side of it on the way out, and the other on the way back. I lost the trail there and ended up running along Kissena Boulevard toward Main Street, where the vehicle and pedestrian traffic (through Asian neighborhoods) becomes too busy to continue on. Next time, I’ll try to pick up the path to get into Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, which is the second largest park in NYC behind only Central Park.