Saarbruecken by Pranshu Gabahttps://pranshugaba.com/tags/saarbruecken/Hugo -- gohugo.ioenpranshu@pranshugaba.com (Pranshu Gaba)pranshu@pranshugaba.com (Pranshu Gaba)This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.Sat, 23 May 2026 16:56:00 +0530https://pranshugaba.com/tags/saarbruecken/icon.pngJogging in Saarbrückenhttps://pranshugaba.com/trips/jogging-in-saarbrucken/Sat, 06 Sep 2025 08:00:00 +0530https://pranshugaba.com/trips/jogging-in-saarbrucken/ I attended the Highlights Conference this week at Saarland University where I presented my AAMAS paper on Optimizing expectation with guarantees in Markov decision processes. I am staying in Sportcampus Saar which is very close to the university. It is a beautiful campus with three running trails nearby.

(49.251° N, 7.037° E)

The three routes shown on a map. (Note that North is down in the map.)

On Thursday, I walked along trail #1 (blue, short). Today, I jogged along trail #2 (green, medium) which is about 7 km long. I left very early in the morning while it was still very dark but you could just make out brightness in the eastern sky. However, as soon as I started the trail and entered the forest, it was completely dark once again.

Around the 3.8 km mark, there was a very long stretch that was all downhill. I loved rushing down the hill; it was a thrill. I covered 500 meters in a matter of what felt like mere seconds. It was exhilarating, but also terrifying. I could not stop even if I wanted to. If I stopped running, I would have tumbled and rolled over and over.

Anyway, here’s the route that I took and some pictures that I clicked. Enjoy!

Map

(49.242° N, 7.029° E)
A faint silhouette of an electricity pylon and overhead powerlines against a backdrop of a dark blue sky.

The faintest glimpse of sunlight in the sky.

(49.244° N, 7.045° E)
Two benches in a forest.

Two benches in the middle of the woods.

(49.248° N, 7.048° E)
A mountain covered in trees.

The trees at the top of the mountain begin to see the sunlight. It is still dark below.

(49.248° N, 7.048° E)
A trail towered over by trees on both sides.

Tall trees tower the trail.

(49.250° N, 7.048° E)
A view of houses and trees in the valley with golden clouds in the blue sky.

Houses and trees in the valley come to light as the sun begins to rise.

(49.252° N, 7.053° E)
A bench alongside overlooks a fence.

If you sit on the bench, you see the fence…

(49.252° N, 7.053° E)
Brown sheep grazing in a fenced pasture.

… and the sheep behind the fence see you.

(49.252° N, 7.053° E)
A road sign with printed text "Forstwirt - schaftlicher Verkehr frei" and handwritten text "Help me".

The road is traffic-free. The sign says “Help me”.

(49.252° N, 7.053° E)
A trail cutting through the trees.

It is still dark in the woods.

(49.255° N, 7.053° E)
A trail marker in the woods.

Continue left to stay on trail #2.

(49.258° N, 7.049° E)
A giant metallic structure that is a parking lot.

A parking lot from afar.

(49.257° N, 7.048° E)
Four floors of parking lot in the background, grass in the foreground.

The (empty) parking lot from up close.

(49.254° N, 7.044° E)
Two bicycles: one on the ground and one up above.

A cycle on the ground, a cycle up above.

(49.252° N, 7.040° E)
A side view of a metal structure for parking cycles.

Concentric circles for parking cycles.

(49.251° N, 7.036° E)
The Sportcampus building with bright blue skies.

The end of the trail. It is now fully bright outside. We have returned back to the starting point.

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