30k for 30 years

20250518 ©David Mussina 095-Edit (1).jpg

Get ready for our 30th annual Herring Run and Paddle by particpating in our 30k walk/run challenge! Join the challenge for the chance to win Patagonia gear!

SUBMIT YOUR PHOTOS HERE

The SUMMARY

Register for the Herring Run and Paddle on May 17th (if you can make it)! Share with family, friends, and coworkers, too.
Select one 5k route to follow from the list below.
Complete the 5k route and take a photo during your walk/run.
Upload your photo to the 30k challenge entry form (and indicate if you’d like to be entered to win Patagonia gear). The deadline for submisisons is May 16th at 5pm.
Attend the Herring Run and Paddle, where we will announce the three winners of the Patagonia gear.
* repeat steps 2-4 for each unique 5k route if you want more chances to win!

The challenge

Complete these FIVE 5k routes around the watershed before concluding this 30k challenge with the Herring Run and Paddle 5k on May 17th!

1. Horn Pond Herring Loop — This loop takes you around Horn Pond, the last stop for herring as they make their way up the river, and the location of a new fish passage starting construction this summer/fall.

Sign up here for the group run and kickoff party on April 11th (with refreshments after).

2. Somerville Lollipop — This lollipop route (out-and-back, with a loop) starts and ends at Blessing of the Bay Park’s pollinator meadow and loops around Somerville City Hall. It’s quite a hilly route, so expect steep inclines and declines. Pass the Mystic Mural on the way back to appreciate all the wildlife the watershed has to offer, including our beloved Bald Eagles.

Sign up here for the group run and fitness class hosted by Wellness Blueprint on April 19th. *The start/end location for this event will be Baxter Park in Assembly Row.

3. Alewife Clean Water Action Loop — This loop takes you past Spy Pond and along Alewife Brook. Alewife Brook has been at the center of one of MyRWA’s biggest water quality advocacy campaigns—the fight to end combined sewer overflows.

Sign up here for the group run led by Patagonia’s Wild Turkeys Run Club on May 3rd.

4. Mystic Lakes Out and Back — This out-and-back highlights the Upper and Lower Mystic Lakes.* Stop by the Mystic Lakes Dam to view the river herring running alongside you, and click the link to learn about our park and path restoration work along the eastern shoreline of the Mystic Lakes, as well as the Mystic River in West Medford.

*Please note that this route is a trail run on an unimproved path section. If you’d like to travel on a smooth shared use path instead, try a couple loops on Shannon Beach’s newly paved path.

5. Mystic River Reservation Path — This route starts and ends at the Medford Condon Shell (which has some cool info panels to check out) and takes you along the Mystic River. This route takes you past many of our water chestnut removal sites. Learn more about our invasive plant and environmental stewardship programs.

Submit your 5k photo(s) here