Forest races

Deserts, forests, seaside or high-altitude mountains, France is one of the most versatile countries on the planet 🌍. The landscapes change completely depending on the region, and sometimes intertwine to create a unique setting ideal for running and other endurance events 💨. Its forests in particular are among the most wooded in Eastern Europe. Nearly a third of the territory is covered by them. The Fontainebleau Forest, the vast Landes pine forests or the Vercors forests are among the most famous internationally 🌳. They served as hunting grounds for the former kings of France 👑, as mystical places at the origin of many legends, and are today the favorite playground of the most playful runners. Fun and technical, you’ll find everything you need for a route that breaks away from urban routine 🤯.

Under the trees, the difficulty changes drastically: roots, muddy ground, humidity 💦, treacherous elevation gain hidden by dead leaves—nothing is designed to make your task easier. Every stride requires special attention, far more than on a smooth, open course 🏃‍♂️. The trade-off is the shade of tall trees that protects you from the heat and makes long distances more bearable, even in the middle of summer ☀️. But don’t neglect sunscreen, though—the sun is cheeky and won’t hesitate to slip between the pine needles 🌲.

Besides Fontainebleau, there’s no shortage of great forests to immerse yourself in the heart of nature🌱. In Germany, the Black Forest takes its name from the density of its fir trees that filter the light, while the Ardennes Forest stretches between France, Belgium and Luxembourg across rolling terrain 🇱🇺. Further east, the Białowieża Forest, straddling Poland and Belarus, is considered the last primeval forest in Europe and remains the sanctuary of the European bison 🦬. If races record-breaking forests interest you, here are also the largest in the world: the polar taiga, the Amazon rainforest and the Congo tropical rainforest teem with exotic fauna and flora. Clearly, the forest game is really something 😳.

But enough talk—let’s talk running. In France, the Ultra Trail du Pays de Fontainebleau offers 87 km in the heart of this royal forest in Seine-et-Marne 🇫🇷. After several hours looping through the Parisian undergrowth, you might end up running into a funny hiker or a lost Gaul 😂. The area has, in fact, been the set for more than one famous film shoot 🎥. In Normandy, the Trail de la forêt verte winds through Bois-Guillaume over three distances accessible to all levels. 14 km, 26 km or 35 km—to each their own course, to each their own challenge ⚔️. In Vendée, the Enduro de la Forêt crosses the Pays-de-Monts state forest, between maritime pines and sandy trails in Saint-Hilaire-de-Riez. Further west, in the Rhône, the Trail Hivernal des Coursières offers, in Saint-Martin-en-Haut, a wooded immersion with snow-capped peaks as a backdrop 🏔️. Near fine sandy beaches or legendary mountain passes and snowy trails, you can find forests absolutely everywhere in the country 😊.

Internationally, Germany is banking on the Black Forest Marathon in Bräunlingen, which crosses this massif made famous by the tales of the Brothers Grimm 🇩🇪. In Belgium, The Last Man Standing in Andenne has participants run repeated loops in the heart of the wooded Ardennes hills, until only one runner remains standing 🧍‍♂️. If you really want to get away from the Hexagon and take in some scenery, the Nepal Bhutan Trail Adventure promises a true journey into the unknown, with two routes of 108 km and 141 km 🔁. In order: an ultra hike and an ultra-trail: it breaks your legs and makes you see new vegetation 🍀. For fans of short versions and hamburgers (yes, it’s cliché—we know 🍔), the county of Alabama, in the United States, hosts the Jackalope Trail Run every year. There are two formats of 6 km and 12 km, so that the effort is as intense as the environment you run through 🤩.

We’ll leave you with all these little recommendations ✅. What’s certain is that once you’ve made the rounds, you’ll start to truly rival Robin Hood’s knowledge of the terrain. But if you want to see even more, don’t hesitate to browse (figuratively speaking, of course—this whole catalog is virtual 😬) the full calendar of forest races, just below this text! And we’ll see you very soon for a little walk in the woods 🪵.