Trail Alsace by UTMB 2027: preparation, logistics and gear guide

The UTDC starts from the Station du Lac Blanc on Friday 2027-05-14: 158 km, 5,100 m of climbing, 100M category of the UTMB World Series. The same day, the Ultra-Trail des Païens, UTDP, starts from Orschwiller for 108 km and 3,900 m, in the 100K category. These are the event's two long races, and the only two starting on the first day.

Saturday 2027-05-15 lines up three formats from three vineyard villages: the Trail des Pèlerins, TDP, 29 km and 800 m from Barr, 20K category; the Ronde des Pages, RDP, 18 km and 250 m from Obernai, also 20K, which the organisers present as a headlamp-lit night course through vines, orchards and forest; and the Trail des Écuyers, TDE, 10.5 km and 400 m from Châtenois. On Sunday 2027-05-16 the Trail des Celtes, TDC, closes the event from Barr: 47 km and 1,600 m, 50K category.

As of 2026-09-07 the UTDC, the UTDP and the TDE are open for registration; the TDC, the TDP and the RDP show as sold out. This guide gives the published facts and the order of decisions: arriving through Strasbourg or Colmar, choosing between sleeping in the massif or in the vineyards, and packing for a May night on the ridges — colder and windier than the plain suggests. Start times, the detailed agenda and the gear list are not published as of 2026-09-07.

5,100 m of climbing over 158 km is a little over 30 m per kilometre: among the circuit's 100-milers, the UTDC is one of the most runnable. That does not make it easy, it changes what to train — the ability to keep running for a long time without ever quite catching your breath, rather than to hike hard up big passes. Long outings at a sustained pace on rolling ground are more useful here than pure vertical sessions.

Vosges terrain is woodland singletrack, forest roads and ridge sections on sandstone, often damp and covered in roots. The line drops from the massif towards the vineyards: the second half is more runnable than the first, and that is where quadriceps wear decides the end of the race. Do at least one full night outing in the forest with the race pack, and one outing in the rain with the jacket you will wear on race day.

The event is spread over five start locations, which makes it the most expensive logistical point: Station du Lac Blanc in the massif for the UTDC, Orschwiller for the UTDP, Barr for the TDC and the TDP, Obernai for the RDP, Châtenois for the TDE. The last four are vineyard villages, less than half an hour from each other; the Station du Lac Blanc is at altitude, at the end of a mountain road.

A UTDC start in the massif and a finish down in the plain mean sorting the return before the race, not after: official shuttles if they are announced on the agenda not published as of 2026-09-07, or a car left on the right side. That is the first decision for a UTDC runner.

By train, Strasbourg and Colmar are the two entry points, both on the high-speed line from Paris; Obernai, Barr and Châtenois are on the local regional network. This is one of the circuit's most car-free-friendly events — on the vineyard side only.

The Station du Lac Blanc is up in the massif and has no station: the last leg is by car or shuttle. By air, Basel-Mulhouse and Strasbourg airports are the closest; from Paris the drive is about five hours. Sort out the trip to the start line before booking the train, not after.

Obernai and Barr are the most practical bases: roughly two starts each, shops, railway stations, and in all likelihood the UTDC finish on the plain side — to be confirmed on the official agenda. Châtenois and Orschwiller, smaller, suit anyone with a car. Sélestat, in between, is a well-connected fallback base by train.

Sleeping at the Station du Lac Blanc the night before the UTDC start saves a mountain road at dawn, but beds there are limited and book early. Mid-May is already a tourist season in the Alsatian vineyards: confirm late arrival, a very early breakfast, and a recovery night after the finish.

Trail Alsace by UTMB is first prepared as a travel problem: five start locations, a massif and a plain, and a return to sort out before the start. Open a TrailCompanion Prep from this guide to date those decisions and track the agenda and the official list when they land.