Trail da Raia 2025

Are you familiar with Portugal 🇵🇹, known for its gentle way of life and stunning landscapes? While the two major cities along the Atlantic Coast, Porto and Lisbon, capture most of the attention, the rest of the country awaits discovery! For instance, the South Inner Beira province, nestled between the borders of Spain and Portugal, boasts beautiful mountainous areas, including the town of Aldeia do Bispo 🚩. To the north, the Serra da Malcata Natural Reserve 🌲 and trails between the two neighboring countries form the idyllic backdrop for the annual Trail Da Raia, a cross-border event. It's not just one country you'll experience on your running journey, but two! ✌ Indeed, the race commemorates the smuggling paths that long existed between Portugal and Spain from Aldeia do Bispo (Sabugal - Portugal) to Navasfrias (Salamanca -Spain), fostering a shared culture and enduring bonds of friendship.

The Trail Da Raia offers four trail running courses: 44 km, 27 km, 16 km, and 9 km 🏃. There's a discovery trail, two shorter, and one longer distance to make the competition as accessible as possible! The good news is that walkers can also tackle the 9 km distance if they prefer. The elevation gains - respectively 1,370 m, 800 m, 450 m, and 210 m - are reasonable enough to welcome all participants. Moreover, the courses offer relatively smooth and fast trails. Little bonus: the two longest distances are part of the National League ITRA circuit and are certified by the Portuguese Trail Federation (awarding valuable ITRA points - 2 and 1 🏆), a boon for the medal collector in you!

In Spain 🇪🇸, head towards the town of Navasfrias before looping back to Aldeia do Bispo in Portugal 🔁. Embrace the region's natural beauty and the warm, sunny August weather of the Iberian Peninsula! 🌞 Just watch out for sunburns, and don't forget your sunscreen and a big bottle of water. Thankfully, numerous trees offer shade in a dense, refreshing forest scented with eucalyptus... 🥰 Plus, to make your experience even more memorable, the organizers have gone all out to ensure the event is fun and enjoyable: you'll see for yourself once there 😉.

The area around Aldeia do Bispo is mountainous, with the town sitting at an average altitude of 600 m above sea level (or the Atlantic Ocean, in this case 😅). Before or after your run, you can take in the Portuguese coastline. After all, it's not every day you get to travel, so why not make the most of it! As the homeland of Vasco da Gama and Magellan, Portugal naturally has a strong maritime culture, vividly present in the beautiful cities of Porto and Lisbon. While both cities have their own sets of admirers, especially in football ⚽️, the best way to keep everyone happy is to enjoy some of the country's specialties with a glass of Port 🍷 (because, of course, we had to mention it 😂).

If you're really up for making the most of the Trail da Raia, consider venturing out to the distant islands, like the Azores and Pico, home to Portugal's highest peak, the Punta do Pico (2,351 m). But let's be honest, that's an entirely different trip: these islands are over 1,000 km away from the coast 🏊.