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Page contains Dish loop, Back Dish, and Bathtub Run

(Click here for a more pictures)

Dish loop - 3.3 miles
    A runner hasn't really run at Stanford until he or she has done the dish loop. Very hilly, the loop rewards you at the top with spectacular view of the bay area; when visibility is good, you can see all the way to San Francisco. The paved loop has some very large ups and downs, making it a good place to do hill repeats or get a tough run in a short span of time. Taking it slow can be very relaxing as you are often greeted by passing joggers, dish wildlife (apparently there is an endangered species of salamander up there, although most "wildlife" consists of grazing cows), and the scenery. Along the way, you get to see the two large satellite dishes, giving the run its name, pointed at whatever scientists look at. Although both directions around the loop are steep, the loop done counter-clockwise is usually the way most people go because it takes about two miles to reach the top instead of a laborious one mile. For a really cool run, do the loop in the morning when the fog is dissipating and you can see the entire bay unveiled in under twenty minutes. The run is very safe as every thirty minutes, a guard on a golf-cart goes humming by (see if you can beat them up a hill -- they're always up for a race.) Also, the dish loop is also a nice place to hike so take a group of friends on a lazy afternoon or bring some books up and study.
    There are several entrances to the loop. Most of the time, when heading from the claw, the dish is entered near the intersection of Campus Drive and Junipero-Serra. There is another entrance at the intersection of Stanford Ave and Junipero-Serra. For the back entrance, see "Alpine to the Dish." The loops itself is 3.3 miles.

(Both pictures above borrowed from the Stanford Dish Page)

Some personal pictures, taken while the grass was growing back. There are some gooood hills out here. Plus, it is so scenic.

Back Dish (Alpine to the Dish) - 5 miles
    This run makes use of the back entrance of the dish. This is quite an intense addition to the dish loop as the path goes up a mile-long hill with no descents, just changes in steepness. Nonetheless, it is a scenic run, with cows and horses often grazing on the side of the road. Once the path meets with the dish loop at the dish, you can turn left and easily run downhill back to campus or turn right and get in a few more hills. To get to the entrance, go west on Junipero Serra and turn left (south) on Alpine. After a mile or so, you will come to a gravel parking lot right off Alpine. Follow the trail at the back of the parking lot to the entrance of the dish.

Bathtub Run - 7 miles
    Great run that starts with the beginning of the normal, counter-clockwise dish loop but follows a service road down the back of the foothill towards 280. The service road is the last road on the right before you hit the top of the loop. After about 3/4 of a mile when the road begins to level, turn on a small trail that appears on the left which winds back up in the direction of the loop. You should pass over a small crevice that is easily jumpable and up and over a small hill until you come to a bathtub. The bathtub is used as a water trough for the local horses. There, you can either go down a paved road to the right of the bathtub, or you can travel down a fun and bumpy path that runs parallel to the road, until you hit Old Page Mill Road. Take a left onto the road and follow it until you hit Junipero Serra. Use that to get back to the campus.
DISCLAIMER:    Recently, due to area restoration efforts, running on non-paved roads has been disallowed. =(.

Here's an aerial view of the run starting at the dish loop and ending at Old Page Mill. The first, southward leg of the trail is actually to the left of the green dashed line so you can see it.