Restonica Trail by UTMB® 2026

But where exactly is the Restonica Trail? 🤔

In Corsica, of course! Blue sea, fragrant maquis, breathtaking landscapes and trails that will destroy your legs 🦵. Welcome to Corte, the historic capital of Haute-Corse, perched in the heart of the gorges, where a particularly demanding ultra-trail in the mountains awaits you every July. And July in Corsica is hot. Very, very, very hot 🥵. Even at night 🌙. The Restonica Trail comes in five formats for all levels: the 9 km walk to get acclimated, the "Giru di Tumbone" over 17 km, the "Tavignanu Trail" at 33 km, the "Restonica Trail" at 69 km, and "l'Ultra-Trail di Corsica" aka the monster of 110 km and 7,200 mD+ that you can attempt as a 4-person relay to share the suffering with friends 😂. Maximum technical terrain, rocky sections, pure mountain ⛰️. A friendly tip: bring poles 🥢. The "UTC" event takes you up to Bocca Crucetta at 2,415 meters altitude (no, it's not a pizza name 🍕) with a 48-hour time limit—proof of just how brutally tough the course is. Some are finishing while others are only just starting to get sore 🕐.

It all starts in the Tavignanu biological reserve, at night and under flares for the long distances 🔥. Pack your headlamp in your bundle—it's going to be pitch-black 🫣. At dawn, the scenery reveals itself in all its immensity: the sea in the distance, waterfalls, and at the Bocca alle Porte pass at 2,252 m ⬆️, a spectacular view over the glacial lakes Capitellu and Melu, nestled in an alpine setting ❄️. Running the Restonica Trail means experiencing all the diversity of the Corsican mountains in a single race: altitude, technical climbs and descents, fast runnable track, lake 🏞️. The routes pass along the legendary GR20, which hikers take 10 to 15 days to complete and which some runners devour in chunks through the night 😅. The courses cross the Regional Natural Park of Corsica, which covers 450,000 hectares—half the island. You run through a protected area, among centuries-old Corsican laricio pines and pozzines, those little green peat bogs that look like a golf green designed by nature 🌿.

Born in 2008 from the ashes of the Raid Inter-Lacs, a two-day trail race where the route was free between checkpoints, the Restonica Trail became the most popular trail race in Corsica, before joining in 2022 the UTMB World Series among the first 19 races on the circuit 🌍. And despite this worldwide recognition, the local soul has remained intact 🤗. Every finisher leaves with Running Stones that bring the most ambitious closer to Chamonix, and the top three in each race secure their direct ticket to the UTMB World Series Final 🎟️. But before or after the race, take the time to stroll around Corte, visit its famous Citadel and taste Falculella, THE local specialty that will get you back on your feet after such an effort 💪.

The Restonica Trail by UTMB® reveals another island—wild, vertical—one that can only be tamed on foot and with controlled effort 🏃‍♂️. And that is exactly the DNA of trail running 🤓.