The run starts at the New Era School grounds in Panchgani.
As soon as we come out of the ground through the main gate, we take a left turn and run in the direction of Mahabaleshwar. After running for about 800 meters, we take a U turn and start running towards Panchgani. At around 1 km into the run we pass by the famous tourist attraction Parsi point, which is situated on the way to Mahabaleshwar overlooking the Krishna Valley and the blue mirror like waters of the Dhom Dam.
At 1.70 km, we pass by the Sanjeewan ground and continue onwards towards Panchgani, running on the inside road (not the main Mahabaleshwar – Panchgani road) We pass by iconic and famous schools like Sanjeewan School and St Peters school in this section. These schools are among the best residential educational institutions in India and part of the reason for the fame of Panchgani as a premier educational hub.
At Km 3.02 we reach the Old Church Bakery turn. We have a relatively steep climb of 0.70 from here till we reach the iconic and famous landmark of Panchgani The Table land, one of the world’s highest and largest Mountain plateaus (flat land on top of a mountain).
We run on an unpaved road here, so runners should expect an uneven surface and small ditches/rocky outcrops from time to time. It’s all part of the fun and we are sure it will challenge and excite the truly adventurous soul inside you!
You will run beside beautiful small ponds, with the wind running through your hair and caressing your face, cooling you down after the hard trek upwards to reach here. Enjoy spectacular views of the mountains and valleys, with a bird’s eye view of the pristine and enchanting land that is Panchgani…
You run a loop of about 3.82 km on Table Land and then run down 0.70 km again to reach Janice Smith Shelter turn (at Km 8.52). From here, you take a left and start running on Khinger road (For 21K Runners). For 10K the route will be straight back to New Era Ground.
This section is a beautiful run on a rolling terrain passing alongside Mala’s hotel, Mahavir Swami Jain Temple, Panchgani International School and you also run through small villages on relatively narrow roads, with greenery and natural beauty in abundance all around you. You run for about 5.5 km in this patch and turn around near Rajpuri Village on Khinger road.
Now we run back all the way (its approx 7 km from here to the finish), along the same route, turning left at Bel-Air Hospital to finish at the New Era School grounds.
You can pat yourself on your back for a hard task well accomplished and treat yourself to the refreshing and cool strawberry with cream waiting for you at the Finish line.
Wear your medal with a smile on your face and pride in your heart!
You have truly earned it!!!
