Trail des Coteaux de Gascogne

The Trail des Coteaux de Gascogne is a 38-kilometre trail race with 800 metres of elevation gain, starting from Auch, the préfecture of Gers and historic capital of Gascony. This generous and warm-hearted event takes runners through the rolling hills of the Gers, that land of plenty where undulating hillsides covered with vines, sunflowers, and golden wheat stretch as far as the eye can see beneath an immense sky, in the birthplace of Armagnac and foie gras.

Auch, an episcopal city perched on a promontory overlooking the River Gers, is one of the most endearing towns in southwest France. Its Cathedral of Sainte-Marie, a masterpiece of southern Gothic architecture listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site as part of the Routes of Santiago de Compostela, presides over a monumental staircase of 370 steps at the foot of which stands the statue of d'Artagnan, the most famous Gascon musketeer in literature. The pousterles — those medieval stairway lanes cascading down the hill — set the tone for the course: terrain made of constant climbs and descents between the hillsides.

The Trail des Coteaux de Gascogne course winds through the Gascon agricultural landscape in all its splendour. The trails thread between vineyard parcels of the Côtes de Gascogne and Saint-Mont appellations, cross sunflower fields that in summer form golden seas on the horizon, run alongside oak woods where black truffles ripen, and pass through Gascon villages of honey-coloured stone with the distinctive bell-walls of the Toulouse Midi. The paths often follow the ancient Jacobean routes, those pilgrimage trails to Compostela that have criss-crossed the Gers since the Middle Ages, lined with stone crosses and small Romanesque chapels.

With 800 metres of elevation gain over 38 kilometres, the Trail des Coteaux de Gascogne presents a rolling profile that offers no respite. The Gers is a department of hills, and the course relentlessly chains short but steep climbs to the crests of the coteaux, followed by rapid descents into the valleys where streams flow into the River Gers. This "corrugated iron" profile, with no flat sections whatsoever, is more demanding than it appears and tests runners' muscular endurance over the long haul. The terrain consists of agricultural dirt tracks, grassy paths, and stretches of clay-limestone soil that becomes sticky and slippery after rain — the notorious Gers "boulbène" that clings to soles and adds hundreds of grams to shoe weight.

The Gers is the quintessential department of French gastronomy, and the Trail des Coteaux de Gascogne is arguably one of the most gourmet races on the French trail calendar. The aid stations are legendary: foie gras, dried magret, duck rillettes, pastis gascon — that flaky apple and Armagnac tart — and of course floc de Gascogne and Armagnac for finishers. The Gascon welcome, as warm and generous as the land itself, turns every village crossed into a celebration. Runners finish this event with full bellies and light hearts, having traversed a terroir that embodies the art of living of southwest France with an infectious joie de vivre and a sense of hospitality that would do d'Artagnan himself proud.