Tenerife Bluetrail by UTMB®

One day, someone had the idea to start a trail from the seaside, climb up to 3 555 meters above sea level at the summit of an active volcano and descend on the other side. Over 110 km. In April. And for more than 10 editions, thousands of people have found it absolutely fantastic, which is why so many are at the start 🏁. Welcome to the Tenerife Bluetrail by UTMB 🌋.

First, let's talk about the island, because Tenerife is not just a beach-and-mojito all-inclusive club destination 🍸. Tenerife was born from a volcanic eruption in the Atlantic about twelve million years ago, and took its current shape after the fusion of three smaller islands around three million years ago. And the result is the largest island in the Canary Islands, a piece of Africa under Spanish administration placed in the Atlantic, with a volcano at its center that dominates everything. The Teide, the boss 🫡. Its exceptional landscape and natural phenomena led UNESCO to classify the site as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007. And the sea of clouds ☁️, maybe the craziest thing you’ll see on a racing course in your life. It’s a natural phenomenon caused by the trade winds, which gently push clouds against the peaks and condense humidity between 600 and 1 800 meters above sea level. Up above, in the Teide National Park, high-altitude winds, warmer and drier, keep clouds from rising. Practically: at a certain moment in the race, you look down and see a sea of white cotton as far as the eye can see, with the peaks rising like islands above the clouds 🏔️. It’s so beautiful that you forget for ten seconds that you have 80 km in your legs... before your quadriceps remind you a few hundred meters later 🦵.

Now for the most important part: the race! The first edition of the Tenerife Bluetrail was held in 2011, and since then has been organized by the Cabildo de Tenerife. It is the highest altitude race in Spain and the second in Europe. Over the years, the race has grown, built a solid reputation in the world of international trail, and attracts runners from all over the world 🌍. In 2024, it joined the UTMB World Series circuit, becoming the second Spanish event where runners can earn Running Stones to qualify for the UTMB in Chamonix 🚀. The terrain, meanwhile, is a succession of landscapes that have nothing in common with each other yet flow along the same course. This race lets you run between the rocks and the volcanic cones, climbing among the rocks of the lavas fields 🪨, taking a moment to watch the sunrise and the island as a whole from the summit of Teide 🌄, then descending vertigo-inducingly through pine forests and canopies of laurisylve to reach the trails along the seashore on the north coast of Tenerife. The lavas fields (in Spanish, 'bad lands') are those black solidified lava flows that resemble a lunar surface. And you’ll run on them with your trail shoes, not bad, right? In the dark for some as well 🌙.

The formats offered cover a wide and well-thought-out spectrum. The flagship event, the “Tenerife Bluetrail 110k,” is the full experience: 110 km and 6 250 m of positive elevation crossing the island from south to north through the Teide National Park. From south to north. A complete traverse of the island vertically, passing the roof of Spain. 4 Running Stones on the line. The “Tenerife Bluetrail 82k” offers 82 km and 3 300 mD+, the version for those who still want to come in a roughly presentable state. The “68k” " offers 68 km and 3 600 m of D+. Note that the elevation of the “68k” is higher than that of the “82k,” which clearly shows the organizers' very personal take on the notion of “shorter.” 😅 The “47k” with 2 600 mD+ is available as solo or in two-person relay ✌️, the perfect format to convince someone still on the fence. And the “24k” with 1 300 m of D+ is the ideal introduction to the terrain without jeopardizing your knees for the next six months 🙃. The Vertical Night Challenge deserves a special mention: 6,5 km, 850 m of positive elevation, at night 🌙. A dry ascent in the Canarian darkness, with stars above and there are a lot, because a large part of the Teide National Park sits above the inversion of the trade winds, above the sea of clouds, making it one of the world's best astronomical viewing sites 🔭. You do a night ascent under a starry sky classified as world astronomical heritage 🌌. If only, it would look like a luxury watch ad ⭐.

The HQ of this wonderful adventure is Puerto de la Cruz, the coastal town on the island’s north coast, with the finish on the Martianez beach. You start from a volcano, pass through a lunar landscape, climb into the clouds, and end with your feet in the sand with the Atlantic in front of you 🏖️. If anyone had an argument against Tenerife being the ideal place to hold a trail event, we still haven’t found it 🤫.

If Teide calls you, don’t hesitate! 😄