The home of Eastern Illinois cross country, The Panther Trail is a two-mile cross country course that spans the western part of the Eastern Illinois campus surrounding many of the EIU athletic and intramural facilities. EIU annully plays host to the Panther Open Cross Country meet each September and hosts the Ohio Valley Conference championships on a rotating basis. The course has a mixture of both grass and a stone-chip path.
In addition to training and racing on the Panther Trail, EIU runners can also take advantage of several other top training areas in the area including -- Fox Ridge State Park (located just six miles south of EIU), The Rail Trail (a flat running/biking trail extending from Charleston to Mattoon) and on various country roads surrounding Charleston.