O’Keefe Marathon (42.195 km)

Follow the spectacular O’Keefe Rail Trail near Heathcote, as it weaves its way through bushland, open fields, farms and past Lake Eppalock.​

Course Markings – Follow the Red Hoops & the arrows

The Marathon and Half Marathon and Relay courses all follow the O’Keefe Rail Trail and is clearly marked with red and silver reflective tape and hoops and directional arrow signage. There are also white wooden posts with ‘O’Keefe Rail Trail’ at cross roads along the way. There are arrows at all key intersection and decision points.

Course Description – Marathon & Ekiden Relay – Out and Back

The course directions are fairly simple in that you follow the magnificent ‘O’Keefe Rail Trail’ for most of your journey out and back from Heathcote.

Tens of thousands of people ride, run and walk along here each year and it is extremely well marked with signs at each crossing.

START AREA

We start in Camp Street and will head east towards Heathcote Hospital for 300metres.

You’ll then take a sharp right hand turn up a narrow path behind the Heathcote Skate Park. This path winds uphill gently until it reaches the O’Keefe Rail Trail where the athletes turn right.

HEATHCOTE – OUTBOUND

After following the O’Keefe Rail Trail to Holy Rosary Primary School (on the corner of Pohlman and Ebden Street in Heathcote), you’ll turn towards Bendigo for the long journey outbound.

From here the trail weaves and winds through bushland, past Lake Eppalock and through paddocks to Knowsley township.

KNOWSLEY TO THE TURN AROUND AND BACK

Once you reach Knowsley, it’s a quick left right right on some local roads that connects you to the next section of the O’Keefe Rail Trail towards Knowsley Forest. Once in Knowsley Forest, marathon athletes will run PAST the HALF MARATHON turnaround before coming to the far turnaround loop.

This loop will take you off the O’Keefe Rail Trail with a right hand track (there will be signs and marshals) before joining Hicksons Track and turning right again. Follow this back towards Heathcote (west) for approximately 2 kilometres.

From here it’s a blast back towards Heathcote.

Heads-up there’s a steady climb over the final 8 km, so save yourself for this!

HEATHCOTE – FINISHING

Once you arrive back into Heathcote, you’ll turn LEFT into Pohlman Street from Ebden Street at the Holy Rosary Primary School.

Follow Pohlman Street across High Street (the highway) and then turn RIGHT into Wright Street.

Wright Street will lead you all the way to the rear of Barrack Reserve near the lawn bowls club. To enter Barrack Reserve, follow the road on the left and then you’ll arrive at the oval.

After a short run on the grass oval, you’ll arrive at the O’Keefe Challenge poppet heads at the finish line!