Section 1: Botanical Gardens

Lots of variety in the gardens, lots of mulch and dirt based trails

The Botanical Gardens are awesome. They may not be the largest or best place ever to run, but for being a part of campus they can't be beat. There are approximately 4 miles of unique trail within the Gardens alone, not to mention they can act as a great gateway to a longer run. One of the flaws of these trails is when you are around the creek trail, there are lots of different trails that ultimately go to the same place. Overall though, there are some cool places to check out and some beautiful scenery. The trail that runs south out of the gardens is actually a private driveway, not to mention the absolute WORST HILL IN CLEMSON. I would recommend avoiding this unless you are:
A: Sledding and want a good hill or
B: Running down it to get to the gardens
Otherwise I would avoid using it to connect to another trail. The trail to the west of the gardens is a great connector trail. It runs about a mile and side winds behind the golf course back and forth across a creek. This make for some tough running, but it's fun if you like a challenge. Do not mountain bike this, as there are at least 4 bridges and lots of steps. It would be impossible to ride for more than about 30 seconds at one time. I have never personally mountain biked on these trails, but I wouldn't rule out the possibility, especially the one running along the back of the gardens as it is the least used. Most trails are dirt or Mulch based.