Exeter Riverside parkrun takes place on Saturdays at 9 am at Exeter Quay & River Valley Park.

Getting There

At the end of the M5, the A30/A377 bring you Exeter. Follow the signs to the City Centre/to Exeter Historic Quay if you are coming by car. By public transport, the start is about a mile from Exeter Central Station and Paris Street Bus Terminus.

Parking

We stayed at a nearby hotel and walked to the start, however according to the parkrun website, there is Pay & Display parking on either side of the Quay: Haven Banks is a small car park is on the south side and is close to the start. Cathedral & Quay is a large car park on the north side and is around a 10 minute walk to the start. Parking costs £3.40 for 2 hours at either location.

Toilets

There are toilets on the Quay near Butts Ferry crossing a 5 minute walk from the start.

Course

The course is slightly complicated. It starts along the riverside, then you turn into a field (Bromham’s field) and run round it, exit and run along the riverside a bit more, cross a bridge, run round part of another field (Duckes Meadow), turn round and return to the finish, which is near the start, but without running round the first field a second time.

Things to note:

• This in the only event I’ve run where you don’t get your barcode scanned at the end; you must go to the Climbing Hangar to do this.
• No dogs are allowed.
• As already mentioned, the start and finish are in slightly different places.

Terrain

The course in a combination of tarmac footpaths, unmetalled footpaths, meadow and playing fields.

Shoes

Probably trainers as there is a lot of tarmac. Although there is also a lot of grass…

Difficulty

Run Britain rankings for UK parkruns places Exeter Riverside as 280th fastest out of 706. It has a total elevation of 8 metres.

Fun Factor

I found the route rather complicated, and there was also too much rough terrain and slipping and sliding around on mud for my likeing. However, Exeter Riverside makes for a scenic run. So swings and roundabouts…

Where We Stayed

We stayed at the Buckerell Lodge Hotel, which has since closed.

Nearby Attractions

Exeter Quay is a lovely place to spend some time with plenty of cafes and restaurants for a post run refuel, as well as quirky independent shops and the historic Custom House. If you haven’t had enough exercise for one morning, there is canoe and kayak hire. Or you can have a bash at climbing while you’re getting your barcode scanned.