On the 17th of May 2024, I took on this challenge to run around the perimeter of the 3 Maltese Islands in one go with no sleep and cross the 2 channels on a Stand Up Paddle. I am a scuba diving instructor and I wanted to combine my passion for the sea and running into one adventure together.
I chose to do this adventure in May mainly for 3 reasons:
- the temperature still allows us to run comfortably here as then in the following months it gets very humid and temperatures can hit up to 40degrees C sometimes
- the nights are some of the shortest of the year in May
- there is very little boat traffic out at sea so it was safer for me to cross on a SUP
I also wanted to use this adventure for 2 primary objectives:
- to inspire others to get into sports and set themselves some targets thus promoting both our physical well being but also mental health
- to fundraise for 3 NGOs close to my heart: Cystic Fibrosis Trust, Richmond Foundation and ACAMH
The adventure started at 5am from Hondoq Bay in Gozo. I chose to start from here as this bay has the closest crossing to Comino. I ran around Gozo in a clockwise direction and most of it was on the trails. On Gozo the trails are marked with a red dot and they keep you as close as possible to the perimeter. The first stop to top up my hydration and also eat something was close to Ta Cenc. This far I was assisted by Yannis, a Greek friend of mine but he had to stop here to head to work. I ran alone to Xlendi, along the cliffs up to Dwejra where I met David and Claudia. Claudia was our amazing support crew all around the 3 islands. From there we ran towards Reqqa Point but we had to cut a bit of the northwest tip short as we were chased by a hunter claiming that we were trespassing on his land. The rest was very smooth as after Marsalforn, we followed the clay slopes to Ramla Bay and then to Dahlet Qorrot for our last pit stop on Gozo. From there we hugged the coast as much as possible, passing from under the Qala quarry, past the Qala Battery and we finished the loop in Hondoq Bay
The first channel crossing on the SUP was done with Gianni and it was pretty short as we headed straight to Sta.Maria Bay.
For the loop round Comino, I was also assisted by Gianni and this time we ran anticlockwise. Thus after Sta.Maria Bay, we went to San Niklaw Bay, then to the Blue Lagoon, up to the tower and then followed the trail closest to the sea and finished off the last bit with a very technical part of the cliffs above Sta.Maria Caves.
The second channel crossing was the longer one and Gianni was with me as well. We crossed from Comino to Malta from the outer side ie past Sta.Maria caves and not past the Blue Lagoon as the ferry passes from that side. We reached Malta in Marfa and from there we started the third island run and finished both sea channel crossings.
I ran around Malta assisted by several different running buddies and also had an amazing support crew following us to drop off food, clothes, shoes and hydration in different spots. I chose to run around Malta in an anticlockwise direction as it was almost 3pm when we started running and wanted to run on the trails of the west coast before sunset. Thus from Marfa, we went towards Cirkewwa, then towards Paradise Bay. We ran past the Mellieha water treatment plant, past Popeye Village and into Majjistral Park. One quick pit stop at Ghajn Tuffieha, then towards Gnejna Bay and onto Fomm ir-Rih Bay. Next came the very scenic cliffs and mostly unvisited side of Malta towards Dingli. With the sun setting over the sea, the sky lit up in all colours and we managed to run the last bit of trails between Ghar Lapsi and Mnajdra Temples in darkness but we had head torches to help us. From there we got to the road and we followed in the direction towards Zurrieq and Hal Far. In Birzebbuga, I had another little stop to refuel and we had some short patches of trail to cover at night as well past St.Peters Pools, Xrobb l-Ghagin and Munxar. When we got to St.Thomas Bay, then we ran on the road again towards Mskala, another short patch on the trails from Zonqor Point to Xghajra and then on the road again towards Rinella. We ran through the 3 cities at night and go to Valletta just in time for sunrise. From there onwards, the sun brought new energy with it and I was running on a high again. On the Sliema promenade, I bumped into some friends doing their morning training and we ran together towards St.Juians, Pembroke and Bahar ic-Caghaq. Once on the coast road, I could feel that the challenge was going to be completed soon and after running through Qawra,Bugibba,St.Pauls Bay and Xemxija then he hit the trails again past the Xemxija church heading towards Mistra Bay. On the clay slopes of Selmun, fatigue kicked in (around 28hrs after starting) and I felt a bit disorientated for a short while but then we found the trail again to take us to Mellieha Bay. One more pit stop there, a coffee to keep me awake and ready to close off this adventure very soon. These are my home grounds as I run here almost every day to work and once we ran past the Mellieha Bay Hotel, we stayed by the sea, jumped a few concrete blocks and made our way towards Ahrax chapel and then down to the White Tower Bay, through Armier Bay and finished this adventure back in Marfa. We had loads of friends and family waiting for us there to cheer us and after thanking everyone for their help and support, jumped in the sea to refresh a bit.
Anyone who would like to do this route, please feel free to reach out to me and I'll help you as best as I can. It was definitely an adventure that I'll remember forever and will recommend to anyone who is in good shape to run 200kms. If your dreams don't scare you, they're not big enough. Start working towards it as from today and very soon it will become real!!!