The Pachmarhi Redux

Somewhere in the month of March, I was running around Jakkur Lake with Bharat. Naturally, the topic of my next run came up. Anyone who runs with me or knows me well understands my dream—or obsession, or mildly ridiculous goal—of running an organized 42.1 KM full marathon in every distinct part of India. For me, it doesn’t matter how small or poorly organized those runs are compared to flagship events like Tata Mumbai; a full marathon is a full marathon.

I mentioned that I had my eye on a race in Spiti, Himachal Pradesh, which offers multiple distances—70+ KM, 42 KM, 21 KM, and 10 KM. My plan was to run it toward the end of August, provided all went well, Aarush was safely settled into college, and I could balance running with work.

Bharat was quite interested in Spiti initially, but then seamlessly shifted the topic to last year’s Pachmarhi run. I had shared pictures of the lush green MPT Glen View property—a place definitely worth staying at during the monsoon just to enjoy a slower pace of life. By the end of our run, Bharat had somehow convinced himself (and was trying to convince me) that he would definitely do this year’s Pachmarhi Marathon. He even promised to bring along his college friend, Girish, if I joined them as their expert Bhopal guide.

I laughed it off. I had zero interest in going back to Pachmarhi; as far as my running map was concerned, Madhya Pradesh was checked off. Even though during last year’s edition I had missed a key turn (which I documented here), I felt done with it.

A few days later, an invitation to a new WhatsApp group popped up on my phone.

Now, when a new WhatsApp group is formed by middle-aged men, you know two things:

• Things are getting serious.
• They have received official green-light clearance from the Home Ministry for a “boys’ trip.”

After a few deliberations, I thought, what the hell, let me register for the full marathon again and do it properly this time—complete with a ton of pictures.

Between Aarush’s exam preparations, late-night phone calls, and my own reliable laziness when it comes to strength training, the months drifted by. I didn’t follow a structured training block—just like every other time! Right near the end, I managed to squeeze in one 29 KM long run, which came right after a failed attempt the previous week where I had to pull the plug at 25 KM.

About two weeks before the race, the Race Director dropped a notable update: the race timings were being pushed back. The full marathon, which traditionally kicked off in pitch-black darkness at 3:00 AM, was delayed until 5:00 AM. The half-marathon start was pushed from 6:00 AM to 7:00 AM.

As it turns out, the Forest Department had requested the delay because our running route cuts right through the buffer zone of the Satpura Tiger Reserve. With lighter rainfall this year, animal crossings and wildlife sightings had spiked significantly along the road. In hindsight, this was a clear foreshadowing of what was to come on race morning!

After dropping Aarush off at his college (VIT Chennai), I returned to Bangalore on Tuesday evening, August 21st. Early Saturday morning, August 25th, the journey began.

Girish picked me up early in the morning for the airport. After checking in and clearing security, we had some time to kill and decided to grab breakfast at the lounge, where Prasid joined us. It was my first time meeting Prasid. He is the youngster among us—a millennial wedged between three Gen X-ers.

Upon landing in Bhopal, we had to wait at the airport for our Zoomcar host, who had accidentally navigated to Departures instead of Arrivals. Honestly, Zoomcar and our host deserve a standalone blog post of their own, but knowing my writing output, that’s unlikely to happen anytime soon.

Once on the road, we stopped for poha and chai, followed quickly by a pitstop to patch two punctures on the front-left tire and fill up the tank. The highway was full of cows and unexpected speed bumps—definitely not the smooth cruising we are used to down South! The sky was overcast, but the rain held off. We finally stopped at Matkuli for lunch and reached MPT Glen View after 3:00 PM.

After checking in, collecting our bibs, and attempting to rest, Prasid and I ended up chatting endlessly about our respective running journeys instead of sleeping. Around 5:30 PM, we woke up Bharat and Girish, who had actually managed to catch a real nap. Prasid went out for a quick shakeout run, and after an early dinner, we tried to turn in early for the night.

“Caution: Leopard Crossing”

I woke up intermittently throughout the night, finally getting out of bed around 4:15 AM. I got dressed, stepped out, and walked over to the start line.

I was surprised to see very few runners, and everyone looked suspiciously relaxed—no dynamic stretches, no warm-up jogs, nothing. I slowly approached a fellow runner and asked what was going on.

To my absolute shock, he replied, “Didn’t you see the WhatsApp message on the Full Marathon group? The 42K is canceled. We all have to run the Half Marathon.”

Shortly after, the official message came through:

Good morning all… A very important announcement.

Just now, as we were setting up and doing the route recce for the 42K between KM 10 and 11, we sighted a leopard crossing the road. Keeping everyone’s safety in mind, we have decided to cancel the 42K distance this year. You are all welcome to run the 21K instead.

Soon, a group of full marathoners gathered around Mitesh, the Race Director. We tried to negotiate: could we run the 21K loop twice? Could we start early, say at 5:30 AM, so we wouldn’t get baked by the sun during the second loop when the 21K started at 7:00 AM?

Mitesh explained that the HM route wasn’t set up yet with hydration support. People were practically pleading to start at 5:30 AM, offering to carry their own water for the first 5–6 KM. Eventually, it was agreed that our improvised double-loop marathon would start at 6:00 AM.

I went back to the room and lay down to kill time.

When 6:00 AM rolled around, the race still hadn’t started. The collective boredom and lack of excitement among the runners was palpable. But finally, at 6:15 AM, off we went!

The course itself was gorgeous—lush green and free from the chaotic traffic of the main highway. It was a much safer 10.5 KM out-and-back loop.

As I headed back on my first loop, the half-marathoners were just heading out for theirs. Exchanging polite “hi”s and quick words of encouragement with fellow runners brought a great burst of positive energy. I caught sight of Prasid taking it nice and easy, and soon after, Bharat and Girish ran past together. As I approached the turnaround near the start line, I met the 10K and 5K runners stepping out.

The second loop started well. I crossed paths again with Prasid, Bharat, and Girish, who were all on their way back to the finish line. Even though I was slowing down on the second half, my pride kicked in: I didn’t let anyone pass me. In fact, I managed to overtake two runners myself!

And with that—plus a ton of photos this time around—my Pachmarhi Redux was wrapped up in 4:38.

The guys had kindly saved some breakfast for me. After a quick shower, we checked out and hit the road for Bhopal, since waiting for lunch at MPT Glen would have added another 90 minutes to our schedule. On the way, we stopped for samosas, kachoris, and hot chai before hitting the main highway.

Upon arriving in Bhopal, we got our Airbnb address mixed up with another property in New Market near the Indian Coffee House (ICH). Naturally, that meant stopping for an obligatory coffee at ICH before figuring out the correct location. For dinner, we got takeout from Hakeem—the food was fantastic and lived up to its reputation.

On Monday morning, we set off early for Sanchi. When we arrived, our car was literally the only one in the parking lot.

The monument is a stunning UNESCO World Heritage Site (and famous for featuring on the ₹200 note!). We hired a guide who gave us a brilliant explanation of the complex. While it was commissioned by Emperor Ashoka, it was built upon over centuries before being completely abandoned, overgrown, and forgotten—until the British stumbled upon it during a hunting expedition.

From Sanchi, we drove to Bija Mandir in Vidisha, though we unfortunately missed out on seeing the famous Heliodorus Pillar.

On the way back, we made a stop at New Market. Bharat picked up a Maheshwari silk saree before we could even finalize which flavor of ice cream to get at Top ‘N’ Town.

On Tuesday, it was just Bharat and me heading out to Bhimbetka to see the ancient rock shelters dating back over 10,000 years. It was an incredible, eye-opening experience. The site is remarkably well-maintained, and I truly hope it stays that way.

If I have one minor complaint about these world-class historical sites, it’s that they suffer from a lack of immersive storytelling for visitors. Sri Lankan Buddhist tourists visit Sanchi in large numbers and contribute significantly to its upkeep. I wish our domestic tourism focused more on educating visitors about how sacred and significant these monuments are, and how we can better preserve them.

That evening, after dropping the Zoomcar back with our host, our “boys’ outing” officially.