St Petersburg Is - On Its Day - The...

Sankt Peterburg, Russia

St Petersburg is - on its day - the most beautiful city in the world. But it also suffers from bad pollution, terrible traffic, and some poor running surfaces. In the winter, it can be unrunnable, with a mix of snow and black ice making it particularly hazardous. Best routes are along the river, where you can run miles of granite on either side, cruising past the Hermitage (Winter Palace), the Peter and Paul Fortress, the Cruiser Aurora (which fired the cannon to signal the start of the Revolution), and so on. My favourite short route is a loop from the Admiralty, to Dvortsovaia ploshad' (Palace Square), across the Neva onto the Strelka, across the Malaya Neva onto the Petrograd Side, past the Peter and Paul Fortress, back across Troitskii most, and down the embankment back to Dvortsovaia and the Admiralty. That would be about 5.5 kilometers. For longer routes, you can take a more distant bridge back, or explore some of the more northerly islands. Krestovskii island's Primorskii Park Pobedi (seaside Victory Park) is large and good for running. From the centre of town up to Krestovskii is about 8 kilometers. The other Victory Park, south of the centre on Moskovskii prospect, is also a decent destination. From the centre of town, it is a heavily-polluted direct 6 kilometers or so down to the park. Riverside is best to avoid the pollution. A loop of the whole of Vasilievskii island is about 10 kilometers. Warning: few people run in this city, and a lot of people will think you are a weirdo.