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Eiger Ultra Trail

Start 04:004:00 AM Grindelwald, Switzerland

The Eiger Ultra Trail is a hilly course of 101 km with 5,153.5 m of climbing. Its lowest point is 905 m and its highest 2,614 m above sea level. Next race: Saturday 17 July 2027, starting at 04:00.

Grindelwald
Grindelwald. Photograph by Marie-Lan Nguyen, CC BY 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons . Course line © OpenStreetMap contributors

At a glance

Race day
The 2027 race
Start
04:004:00 AM
Distance
101.0 km62.8 mi
101 km · 16 km · 250 km · 35 km · 51 km
Total climb
5153.5 m16908 ft
Highest point 1709 m5607 ft above lowest
Entry fee
CHF 379
For the 2027 race

The course

Pick a place, or drag along the profile

The E101 starts and finishes in Grindelwald at about 1,040 m, rises to 2,614 m at km 35 near the Faulhorn and drops to 905 m at km 55.

Start, finish

© OpenStreetMap contributors

  1. Photo: qwesy qwesy, CC BY 3.0
  3. Photo: Johnw, Public domain
  4. Photo: Photochrom Print Collection, Public domain
  5. Photo: Fl.schmitt, CC0
  7. Photo: Leonhard Lenz, CC0

km 8.9mile 5.5

Grosse Scheidegg

The first checkpoint after the 04:00 start: the organiser's time limit here is 06:30.

Photo: qwesy qwesy, CC BY 3.0

Height drawn many times taller than life · GEDTM30

Course elevation profile, 8× vertical exaggeration Elevation along the course from km 0 to km 101. The trace runs between 905 and 2614 metres, a range of 1709 metres, drawn at 8 times vertical exaggeration so the shape is legible. Smoothed over 1 km before this profile was derived. An unsmoothed urban surface carries the buildings and would assert a climb that is not there. The dashed stretches are bridge decks: First Cliff Walk by Tissot, km 23.7 to 23.9. A bare-earth model reads the ground or the water beneath a bridge, not the deck the runner is on, so those runs are interpolated between the ground either side rather than measured, and they under-report the real climb across a span.
0 25 50 75 100 km
0 20 40 60 mi

Dashed: bridge

  • From 1,040 m up to 2,614 mHigh point 2,614 m at km 35, low 905 m at km 55.
  • Viewpoints, then the foot of the North FaceSeven named viewpoints, ending under the Eiger.
  • Twenty-five hours and thirteen gatesStart 04:00, gates from 06:30, finish limit 05:00 next day.
Course notes 3 short reads on the course
Whole courseGradientFrom 1,040 m up to 2,614 mHigh point 2,614 m at km 35, low 905 m at km 55.

The organiser gives the E101 6,700 m of climbing over 101 km; the ground between the checkpoints reads about 5,154 m. The organiser also says the trails go above 2,500 m and call for solid high-alpine experience.

Measured

Whole courseLandmarkViewpoints, then the foot of the North FaceSeven named viewpoints, ending under the Eiger.

The organiser calls it the first ultra trail inspired by the myth of the Eiger. The race runs on the partial self-support principle, so runners carry their own food and drink between checkpoints and refreshment zones, and the mandatory gear.

Sourced

Whole courseTacticsTwenty-five hours and thirteen gatesStart 04:00, gates from 06:30, finish limit 05:00 next day.

The organiser says a runner has to leave each checkpoint before its time limit, whatever the arrival time. A UTMB index is required for the E101, and the entry fee is CHF 379.

Sourced

Race weekend

Saturday 17 July Race day

  1. 02:302:30 AM–06:306:30 AM

    Early bird breakfast Barrys Lounge, Mountain and Soul Hotel Eiger. Sign-up at the start number distribution, CHF 15 a person.

  2. 04:004:00 AM

    E101 start Grindelwald. 101 km. Time limit 25 hours.
Cut-offs (10)

  1. 06:306:30 AM

    Gate at Grosse Scheidegg

  2. 08:008:00 AM

    Gate at Bort

  3. 09:309:30 AM

    Gate at First (second passage)

  4. 11:0011:00 AM

    Gate at Feld

  5. 12:3012:30 PM

    Gate at Faulhorn

  6. 15:303:30 PM

    Gate at Schwand

  7. 17:005:00 PM

    Gate at Burglauenen

  8. 19:307:30 PM

    Gate at Wengen

  9. 21:309:30 PM

    Gate at Männlichen

  10. 23:4511:45 PM

    Gate at Kleine Scheidegg

Sunday 18 July The day after

  1. 05:005:00 AM

    Finish closes End of the 25 hour limit.

  2. 10:0010:00 AM

    Award ceremony On the stage.
Cut-offs (3)

  1. 00:4512:45 AM

    Gate at Eigergletscher

  2. 02:302:30 AM

    Gate at Brandegg

  3. 04:154:15 AM

    Gate at Pfingstegg

Times as published by the organiser, in Grindelwald time, checked . Confirm on their site before you travel.

Add to calendar .ics file, times in Grindelwald time

Entry

Entry through the organiser

Entry details on the organiser’s site →

The organiser, a third party. We take no entries and have no part in the race.

Race fuel

Energy gel
An energy gel sachet
Illustration · drag to turn

Gels for Grindelwald, between the aid stations

Over 100 km a gel every 40 minutes stops being a plan: most runners eat real food at the aid stations and take gels between. Practise what you will eat on your longest runs.

Our pick: SiS BETA Fuel gel, box of 6, strawberry and lime. 40 g of carbohydrate a gel, about twice a usual gel, from two kinds of sugar your body takes up side by side.

Easy to forget on race morning: pack them with your bib the night before.

Get it on Amazon

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In Canada the button opens GU Energy Gel, Salted Caramel, 24-pack, the best seller there.

Outside the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Austria and Switzerland, the UK and Ireland, Spain and Portugal, Italy, the rest of the EU and Canada the button opens GU Energy Gel, Chocolate Outrage, 24-pack on Amazon.com, the best seller there.

Anti-chafe
A small balm stick
Illustration · drag to turn

Compeed anti-blister stick, 8 ml

An invisible layer before the start keeps seams, straps and shoes from rubbing skin raw.

Put it on before you leave for the start: heels and toes, inner thighs, under a bra or heart-rate strap.

Try it on a long run first, like everything you use on race day.

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We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

Number belt
A race number belt
Illustration · drag to turn

Compressport Race Belt

Holds your bib without safety pins through your top, with loops for up to 8 gels.

Clip the bib on the night before, so it goes on with your shorts in the morning.

Keep the number on the front, where officials and photographers can see it.

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We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

Electrolytes
A tube of electrolyte tablets
Illustration · drag to turn

SiS Hydro electrolyte tablets, tube of 20

One tablet in a bottle puts back some of the salt you sweat out.

One tablet in 500 ml of water in the hour before the start.

Only if you have used them in training: nothing new on race day.

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Blister plasters
A pack of blister plasters
Illustration · drag to turn

Compeed blister plasters, medium, 6

One in a pocket cushions a blister if one starts.

Put it on clean, dry skin and leave it until it comes off by itself.

Give a couple to whoever comes to cheer, so they are there at the km you need them.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

Questions about the Eiger Ultra Trail

Is the Eiger Ultra Trail course flat?
No, it is a hilly course: 5,153.5 m of climbing over 101 km. The highest point is 1,709 m above the lowest.
When is the Eiger Ultra Trail 2027?
Saturday 17 July 2027. The start is at 04:00.
How do I enter the Eiger Ultra Trail?
Entry is through the organiser. Entry fee: CHF 379 (for the 2027 race). Entry details on the organiser’s site
Where does the Eiger Ultra Trail start?
Start: Grindelwald.
Runner talk Questions, tips and race reports from other runners about the course and the city.

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