The 10 Best Cities for Strolling

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by Kaitlin | March 8, 2007 at 04:50 pm
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UPDATE: Check out our slideshow of the cities named in the top 10 list. It's easy to see why people are prone to strolling in these places. 

Walking is still the number one recommended physical activity for everyone, and it's said that "each 0.6 mile walked daily decreases [your risk for obesity] by 5%." Here are the best cities to do it in, according to Prevention Magazine. Is your city on the list? Do you think it should be?

And the winners are...

# 1 Portland, Oregon

#2 Colorado Springs, Colorado

#3 Madison, Wisconsin

#4 Boise City, Idaho

#5 Las Vegas, Nevada

#6 Austin, Texas

#7 Virginia Beach, Virginia

#8 Anchorage, Alaska

#9 Fremont, California

#10 Raleigh, North Carolina

Source: prevention.com


Walking is a universal pleasure, yet the reasons we do it are as unique as our thumbprints. That's why Prevention and the American Podiatric Medical Association (APMA) are constantly tinkering with the criteria we use for our annual ranking of the best walking cities in America.

For our 4th year, we have again tackled a massive data-gathering project, combed through the news, and searched for fresh evidence of walking's growing popularity, community by community--does the area have accessible trails? how many households have a dog?--to find the most walker-friendly cities and the reasons for their success.

Just as key is how walkers are using their towns' resources to power their way to better lives. So get inspired: See which 10 cities made the cut this year and read how walking transformed the lives of three women who live in these cities. If they can do it, you can, too.

Source: prevention.com

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po1yester
po1yester

at 11:42 on March 9th, 2007

I recently moved from Atlanta, GA to Portland, Or and I have to comment on how much I enjoy walking around here. Living in Portland is a whole new experience for me; I never knew I could live without a car. I'm currently living in the Pearl district, which is a delightful area for every day walk abouts. My car barely moves from the garage. I walk to the bookstore, to the tea shop, to dinner, to the grocery store, to do the shopping, and all along the way I'm likely to pass galleries, boutiques, parks, museums and seemingly untouched, historical architecture. I'm able to get to most parts of town by foot or bicycle, knowing that if I run out of steam, it's raining a bit harder than usual, or I need to hurry somewhere, I can always catch a streetcar. Downtown Portland provides fareless public transportation; that's certainly an incentive to leave your car. Another thing to note about Portland is the half-sized blocks. At first it may seem tasking to travel by foot for 5 or so blocks, but eventually you find yourself strolling along block after block before you realize you've made your way down 20 blocks or so. Even if you wanted to get lost, it's fairly difficult. The blocks of the Pearl, for instance, are numerical and alphabetical and if you've hit Burnside or the Willamette River then you have clearly entered another district. If you were to pass on strolling through Portland, you would miss out on a lot that this beautiful city has to offer.

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Kaitlin
Kaitlin

at 13:33 on March 9th, 2007

Fareless public transport! I want that!

I remember also that Portland has awesome diagonal crosswalks, that run through intersections instead of just from corner to corner. Smart! 

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ladyloneranger
ladyloneranger

at 17:50 on March 9th, 2007

There are many different public walking areas within the city of Colorado Springs, each having their own different terrain and forms of beauty.  Walking trails in the Garden of the Gods offer a variety of trails with varying degrees of difficulty from easy to challenging. The park is open year round. The great red monolithic sandstone outcroppings are awe inspiring!  In springtime Monument Park is rife with flowering plants, shrubs and trees which are a joy to behold.  A stroll through the Xeriscape gardens offer information on plants that grow well in arid soil.  Red Rock Canyon was recently acquired by the City of Colorado Springs and offers rock climbing as well as opportunities for either vigorous or casual hiking.  One of its main features is a beautiful little valley of green between two huge red canyon walls.  Palmer Park, located in the middle of Colorado Springs, is another park offering hiking trails where one is likely to encounter bikers, dog parks and horseback riders.  Exploring the numerous rock outcroppings and hoodoos makes for interesting viewing along the way.  Wildflowers and wildlife are numerous here and add color and sometimes excitement.  The Colorado blue sky and crisp air are one of the things that are attractive to locals and visitors alike.  Come see for yourself!

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devehf
devehf

at 20:24 on March 11th, 2007

Boise has so many parks and trails all over the place. I just wish there were more rollerblade friendly surfaces.

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