Downtown And Southeast
Did you know that Play Roanoke manages five plazas? Visit all of these, along with six parks on this 10.9-mile route through Downtown and southeast Roanoke that begins and ends at Fallon Park. You’ll visit the first city-owned park, Highland Park, which was purchased from Nannie Gish in 1901. You’ll also enjoy the many views of Mill Mountain (and the Star) as you cruise through city streets. My favorite was the view from Arbutus Ave SE, which parallels Riverland Rd SE, near the Roanoke River. You will also pass by the Elmwood Art Walk, which houses eight sculptures installed in 2019, as part of the Art in Roanoke (AIR) program. The theme of these pieces is “Roanoke Rising” and they will be on display through 2021. If you’ve got a gravel, mountain, or cross bike, consider checking out the Fallon Park cyclocross course or better yet, check out one of our local cross races–Play Roanoke’s Summercross race series that happens in August or Virginia’s Blue Ridge Go Cross race that happens Labor Day weekend.
- 11 parks/plazas: Wells Fargo Plaza, Market Square, Century Plaza, Lee Plaza, Holton Plaza, Elmwood Park, Highland Park, Argonne Circle, Bennington Park, Golden Park, Fallon Park
10.9 miles
390 feet elevation gain
Travel time: 1-1.5 hours
Rating: Easy
- A mix of residential and low to moderate traffic streets, and portions of the Mill Mountain, Roanoke River, and Tinker Creek Greenways. Best for bicyclists comfortable biking with traffic.
