Run Upper Murray

Thowlga Hall and Recreation Reserve provides a country staging area, with “all the charm of Grandma’s kitchen” and enough room to feel like a local gathering before the climbing starts. Run Upper Murray enters the “breathtaking ‘undiscovered’ countryside” of the Upper Murray, threading picturesque farmland and native forests toward Mt Elliot and beyond. The main loop is trail running in the honest sense: “well-defined fire trails,” steady marking, and a lot of up, down, up, down. Mt Elliot’s ridgetop network, better known for paragliding and hang gliding, works beautifully underfoot too, with big views from the top and sharper descending on the way back. You’ll encounter experienced trail runners, kids getting their first proper taste of dirt, travellers, locals, and the usual “army of volunteers that make race day possible”; apparently, the “cows in the lower lands don’t bite.”