La Baleine en Course takes runners into the salt marshes of Aigues-Mortes, a walled town in the Gard department of Occitanie, in France’s Petite Camargue. This late-March running weekend offers road and trail formats, seaside and in-town sections, night racing, duo options, and distances from short 5 km runs up to marathon and ultra-length routes around 58 km.
The course uses the flat, open Salins d’Aigues-Mortes landscape. The shorter races are almost level: the 16 km route lists only 3 metres of climb. The longer races still stay modest by trail standards, with listed climbs of 136 D+ for 30 km, 185 D+ for 42 km, and 261 D+ for 58 km. One race is called “Le cross du saunier,” tying it directly to the salt workers of the area. The event is built for a broad crowd, from pairs and night runners to people chasing a long trail day, and it is timed by Chronospheres.