A PLACE FROM THE LOT REMEMBERED PICTURES

Jahanpanah Cycle Track (6.7 km Track), Chirag Delhi

Just a road cross away from my old house (GK-2), Jahanpanah Forest at Chirag Delhi used to be my daily hangout spot for the 5 years of my childhood, before we shifted to a different home. I remember glimpses of those days as a track ride on my bicycle, a go on the swings, and a few spare minutes in the garden with my parents and pet dog.




The Jahanpanah Cycle Track is joined to the entrance gates via a thoroughly landscaped park for the children and elder people to assemble and go about their recreational activities. Bushy ridges, planted flowerbeds, pebble paving and likes suits up the park. A corner is dedicated to a small nursery and the “gardeners’’” rooms. Opposite it is the swings area for small kids (…like me, as I was 3-4 years old back then) mushing around tagging along their parents or nannies.

The track on the other hand, still wears its natural looks, with a few flowery bushes planted along the stretch at intervals to demarcate a protective wall between the well-footed track and the wilderness on either sides of it. The forest holds a reputation for its wild Berries, Gum “Gond” trees, loose snakes, ostentation of Peacocks deep within its depth, and stray weasels racing squirrels.




Jahanpanah City Forest in the middle of the south Delhi has a 7 km running track with markers every 200 meters. It’s a great running location, considering that the forest is surrounded by really crowded, high traffic areas. Besides running, you can cycle there as well, along with playing in the little parks scattered all over Jahanpanah forest. However, if one slips off the concrete path, there is an interesting interplay of dirt tracks that go through small tunnels, leading to the ruins of a Masjid at its end. One can manage a 10 km run without ever repeating the same track.




Jahanpanah has its own nursery also. In addition, you can even see some peacocks. A lot of the trail is covered in thick foliage- provides a good respite from the heat. The park also has benches throughout the trail. It is an amazing feeling to see so many varieties of trees all around you and such enthusiast morning/evening walkers. The track has some small bridges for the rainwater flows and steep inclines and declines across them too. Moreover, cycling downhill at full speed gives all the thrill needed to end an eventful day. Not to mention the immense peace, the company only of trees and the challenge of an undulating surface. Most of the trail is quite desolate, and it runs by a number of areas in the city, so it is best to have some company when running there.