One of the most iconic segments of Forrest Gump (1994) is when the protagonist heads on an endless marathon across the US. Forrest Gump, played by Tom Hanks is seen running across the country for 3 years, 2 months, 14 days, and 16 hours exactly. While the movie does not give away much information about his running route, here are a few of the places that we can see him cover in the movie.
Forrest Gump’s Running Route
Throughout the movie, Gump is seen taking on several challenges and overcoming them despite how harsh the circumstances are. He begins his three-year-long run from his hometown of Greenbow, Alabama in 1979. The viewers are hinted about the year through a newscaster’s announcement of President Carter’s illness.
Soon after, we see Gump running through the Santa Monica harbour where he runs to the lighthouse on the East Coast overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. We then see quite a few shots of Hanks’ character running through various sceneries none of which are marked or mentioned. About two years into his run, we see Gump running across the Mississippi River where he is approached by a bunch of reporters.
After completing his three-year-long run, we see Forrest Gump suddenly deciding to call it quits and make his way back home. While not much is given away in the movie about Gump’s running route, people have managed to draw out a map of the potential route that Gump might have taken.
Gump reportedly ran across the US five times covering over 15,000 miles. In 2021, The Guardian reported a real-life Forrest Gump named Rob Pope, who ran across the country five times after being inspired by the 1994 critically acclaimed movie. He said,
“If you’re a runner who’s had the pleasure of passing a gang of youths or a bar, especially if you have long hair and, God forbid, a beard, I’d be willing to bet you’ve heard the shouts of ‘Run, Forrest, run!’”
Pope even managed to recreate Gump’s long beard look.
