Third Fork Creek Trail

We were at Southpoint and were looking for a trail to go walk. Thanks to Rose L.‘s review, this was a great location nearby so we decided to check it out. I could not find the parking lot for the trail though so need to find that next time. I ended up parking in a residential neighborhood near the trail and we walked from there. It is a straight path surrounded by homes, trees and some water. There were a few flooded areas where you had to go to higher ground and there are signs stating that it is a flood plain. We walked a good hour and the trees were in full bloom. I would come back and will do my best to find the actual trailhead and parking lot :-)

Third Fork Creek Trail is quickly becoming one of my favorite spots to run. The route, from Southern Boundaries Park, off Archdale Drive, to Garrett Road Park, off Garrett Drive, is a little over 7 miles (7.3), which makes for a good intermediate distance training. The trail is quiet, you’ll sometimes see a few other people, but they’re all «active» (running, biking, walking their dogs, etc.) and it’s honestly the most comfortable long trail I’ve run in Durham. You can comfortably ‘zone-​out’ without having to watch for suspicious people. You DO have to watch out for bollards, bridges that cross over the sewer/​streams that run through the path.
This trail is always much cooler than others around, due to the fact that it’s located in a flood-​zone. I especially love to run it in the evenings, after 5pm the sun has set enough that the trees shade the paved path and makes for a cool run in the late summer days. Since this trail is located in a flood zone, I never visit after heavy rain and as with most of the trails in Durham (Al Buehler, Ellerbe even American Tobacco in spots) it does have some sewage smells that creep up on you. I recommend beginning at Southern Boundaries (facilities & water fountains are located at BOTH parks attached to this trail), if you enter the parking lot, drive straight and the trail begins on the right hand side. You meander around a Durham Facilities building and quickly pass UNDER Martin Luther King (NOTE: do NOT take one of the side exits, I did this the first time, but it just takes you to the side walk, stay straight to stay on the trail!)
The first two miles from Southern Boundaries Park will wind you through forests and you hit your first cross walk right after the two mile mark. From there you’ll hit maybe two more cross walks (one you have to run up the sidewalk a bit) but eventually you’ll run up to Rockwood Shopping Center. You can choose to cross the road at a stop light right past this and run up into Garrett Road Park, but honestly, it takes more time than is worth it in my opinion, and isn’t worth the tiny bit of additional distance. One other note, this trail unfortunately doesn’t have any mile makers, so make sure you have a distance tracker if you want to be aware of how far you’ve run! And finally, enjoy! This is an awesome trail for training or just for an easy «stay-​in-​shape» run.

This is a nice and peaceful trail in South Durham. It travels from Southern Boundaries Park to Garrett Road Park, so there is parking on both ends! It is about 3.6 miles end-​to-​end.
The Pluses:
* Quiet and mostly through nature.
* If you’re lucky, you’ll see a family of deer right by the side of the trail!
* Parts of the trail smell wonderful – it’s lined with honeysuckle and you get that sweet smell of childhood!
* Easy to follow – this trail only crosses a few roads, and when it does, it is really well marked. There is no running on the sidewalk for a few blocks and picking up the trail again. Therefore, it makes for a stress-​free run the first time you’re visiting.
The Minuses:
* Floods easily in rainy weather – watch out!
* There are sewage lines around the trail, so parts smell REALLY BAD. Normally it wouldn’t be THAT big of a problem, but most people on the trail are doing cardio exercise. Trust me, when you’re running a 10k and at mile 5, breathing heavily, you really don’t want to force yourself to slow down and take abnormally shallow breaths to avoid the stench.
All in all, it’s a nice place for a peaceful jog or bike ride… and it is both the best-​smelling and worst-​smelling trail in Durham.