Kashmir Marathon 2025 — Running Through Heaven on Earth

Kashmir Marathon — 2025

Kashmir Marathon was in my mind for a while; I came to know of the first edition only after it happened in 2024, in the month of October.

The news that caught my attention was that the Chief Minister of Kashmir, Mr. Amar Abdullah, ran a 2-hour half marathon himself. I think he’s probably the only politician who’s promoting sports in such a big way. Of course, our Bangalore boy one of the youngest MPs is an Ironman himself. Mr. Amar, a 50+ gentleman with a long stint in public life, deserves credit for setting an example.

A Year of Shock and Resilience

Coming to 2025 — this year, Kashmir saw one of the worst atrocities when extremists killed innocent tourists. It was unimaginable and had never happened before. After that, Kashmir went into a kind of lock-down. Knowing the government, I was sure they’d do everything in their power to bring life back to normal — tourism is the lifeline of this picturesque state, often compared to Switzerland and called Heaven on Earth. There was no news about the marathon for a long time, and then suddenly, the dates were announced — and I made up my mind to run it.

Back in 2019, the state of J&K was split into two parts — Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh. So, Kashmir became another state for me to cover. This is my second state… can’t believe that even after 75+ years of independence, we’re still dividing states. Anyway, I’ll leave that to people who know and speak better on such topics. For me, it’s just another marathon to be done.

Getting There

I registered and posted in the Bangalore Runners Facebook community (34,000 strong!) asking if anyone was crazy enough like me to go there. As expected — I got zero response.

I booked my flights just two weeks before the event and the hotel in the last week. When I saw that Timing India was the race partner, I reached out to Dinesh from Goa to check where their team was staying — figured they’d be close to the start line. That’s how I ended up booking Regenta Central by Orchid Hotels.

The week of 27th October started like any other, and I was mentally preparing to run the marathon on Sunday. I was making notes about the cold weather, what to pack, and how to layer up, since it would be single-digit temperatures at the start.

Arrival in Srinagar

Saturday morning, Pamela and Aarush dropped me at the airport for my early flight, and I reached Srinagar* around 11 a.m. The flight was packed — roughly one-third Kashmiris, one-third armed forces, and the rest like me — but not a single runner in sight.

From the airport, I went straight to collect my BIB. After collecting it, I walked to the hotel, about 1.6 km away — also part of my prep to understand the route for the next morning. The walk was pleasant, and I was mesmerized by the fall colors — after 20+ years, I was seeing autumn again.

The Day Before

For lunch, I thought I’d explore nearby, since I was sure I’d eat dinner at the hotel to conserve energy. After walking around 20–25 minutes and getting confused with Google Maps — maybe those restaurants listed were closed since tourist season was over — I gave up.

The streets were clean and calm, with visible police presence everywhere, though not as fortified as the main airport road. Having grown up in the disturbed times of Assam (early ’80s), seeing security personnel every 100 meters wasn’t new — but after so many years, it did feel different.

I came back to the hotel and was the only one having lunch. I was starving since breakfast had been light. After lunch, I went back to my room, and eventually, the inevitable happened — I fell asleep like a horse.

When I woke up, it was dark. I knew I needed to get more sleep but wasn’t sure what to do. After some tossing and turning, I went downstairs and ordered a grilled sandwich — which, of course, no sane runner would eat the night before a marathon. But I wasn’t hungry and was scared I’d get hungry later, so I ate anyway.

Back in the room, I was pleasantly surprised when friends called and messaged me good luck. Somehow, I got a few hours of sleep, and to my surprise, woke up with my first alarm.

Race Morning

As I was locking my door, I heard another one close — it was Amir from Sports Timing Solutions. We greeted each other briefly and he was kind enough to offer me a lift. It was remarkable to see him confidently directing the local driver not to slow down at every checkpoint during that short 1.5 km drive.

The weather was colder than expected, and in all the madness of preparation, I had forgotten the disposable trash bag liner I carried all the way from Bangalore.

At the baggage drop, which was in a small hall, I met a runner from the UK (currently based in Singapore) who had come all the way just to run here — and planned to spend a few more days exploring Kashmir.

Around 5:30 a.m., Pamela called to check if I’d woken up and reached the venue — the ghost of Auroville still haunts.

Just before the start, I gave up my jacket at the baggage counter. When I stepped outside, it was freezing but the place was buzzing — runners everywhere. Most of the elites were from African countries, warming up seriously. The prize money was good enough to attract 30–40 of them across both half and full marathons.

The organizers waited for the Chief Minister, who was running the half marathon, to flag off the event. Once it started, I realized I was running faster than usual — but that was probably my body trying to stay warm.

Running Around Dal Lake

We looped around the city center, Lal Chowk, and soon hit the shores of Dal Lake. The route was mostly around the lake, and the views were mesmerizing — I wish I could’ve captured some of those drone shots!

The half marathoners turned back around 15 km, while we continued along the lake towards Kashmir University. Coming out of the university, it was around 30–31 km. I kept running till about 36, though slower.

Around 38 km came a heart-breaking uphill — not too long, but after 37 km of flat terrain, that 80-meter climb over 2 km felt brutal. I walked. A few runners passed me. Then, with 2 km to go, I started running again — mostly because I had to check out of the hotel and catch my flight! Otherwise, I’d have walked a bit more.

After finishing, I realized there was no food left for late finishers like us — volunteers and security personnel had emptied the boxes.

The Dash to the Airport

I rushed back to the hotel, requested a cab to the airport. The staff said, “Sir, no need to rush.” But I wasn’t taking chances. After a quick shower and double-checking the room, I left.

Airport security is double-layered in Srinagar, and taxis can’t stop near the terminal. Anyway, I was traveling super light with just a backpack. One of the security officers was surprised to learn I’d come all the way from the south just to spend 24 hours running a marathon.

After security, I found a Costa Coffee and treated myself to a big cup of mocha. The flight to Delhi was delayed — but since I had a long layover, it didn’t matter.

At Delhi Airport, I had the worst pasta of my life — it was supposed to be pesto, but was just cream, cheese, and something green. No nuts, no pesto flavor. Honestly, Delhi folks can’t keep anything authentic — be it momos or pasta, everything tastes the same.

The rest of the journey home was uneventful. I reached home past midnight.

Post-Race

My race result wasn’t up on the Sports Timing Solutions website for almost 10 days! Eventually, I had to ask Dinesh for Amir’s contact since my ticket went unanswered for a week.

Now, time to lace up for the next state — Chhattisgarh — coming up in just a month, on 7th December 2025 (Sunday), at Naya Raipur.