Runners start the half marathon at the Earl Brydges Artpark in Lewiston, New York, a small village of just over 2,000 residents located along the Niagara River, which marks the border between the United States and Canada.
From there, runners head north, first through downtown Lewiston (along Center Street, 4th Street and 2nd Street) before heading onto Lower River Road, which they’ll follow north for the next few miles as it becomes River Road and Main Street, once runners make their way into Youngstown.
These first few miles that bring runners northward unfold over a very gradual downhill slope for the first six miles of the race, and then really flatten out as the course nears the shoreline of Lake Ontario and brings runners up for a loop around the grounds of Old Fort Niagara.
Located on a bluff overlooking the blue waters of Lake Ontario, the history of the fort dates all the way back to the 1720s, and it has played an important role in the military history of the U.S. as well as that of Canada, France and Great Britain, each of which held control over the fort at different times in its history.
Now part of what is known as Fort Niagara State Park, the original fort out on the bluff will serve as a major highlight of the race course, as runners will head all the way out to the bluff where it sits, and (depending on the weather and the visibility on the day of the race) will be able to see the skyline of Toronto across the lake.
And while most of the rest of the race is run on paved or brick surfaces, the stretch through the fort is made up of crushed gravel park roads and trails.
Following the two-mile stretch through Old Fort Niagara, runners will then turn and head east along Lake Road for the final three miles of the race, in to the finish line at Porter-on-the-Lake Park.