Elfsborgsmarschen
13–14 June

Three distances – six different experiences

Elfs­borgs­mar­schen offers two dif­fe­rent expe­ri­ences of Gothen­burg and its sur­roundings. Choo­se between sce­nic trails in hil­ly ter­rain or urban sight­see­ing along the city streets.

Each day of the march offers three rou­tes: 40 km, 20 km, and 10 km. Sin­ce the rou­tes dif­fer between Satur­day and Sun­day, you can walk the same distan­ce on both days and still expe­ri­ence com­ple­tely dif­fe­rent envi­ron­ments and challenges.

40 km – Gothenburg’s urban challenge

The clas­sic Elfs­borgs­mar­schen rou­te takes you on a sight­see­ing tour through the stre­ets of Gothen­burg, most­ly on asphalt. The­re are two man­ned check­points at approx­i­ma­tely 15 and 30 kilo­metres whe­re you can take a bre­ak, check in, and refu­el with flu­ids, juice, tea, cof­fee, and simp­le snacks such as bana­nas, choco­la­te wafers, and pick­led cucum­bers. The 30-kilo­met­re check­point also has por­tab­le toi­lets and medi­cal per­son­nel to add­ress tired and sore feet. If you need to abort the march, trans­port back to Par­til­le Home Guard hall is available.

The march is plan­ned accor­ding to mili­ta­ry mar­ching pace: three 5‑kilometre seg­ments at 50 minu­tes each, with a 10-minu­te bre­ak between each seg­ment and a one-hour rest after 15 kilo­metres. The total time is 10 hours. However, the pace is not a requi­re­ment; you can walk at your own pace.

20 km – Scenic hike

The 20-kilo­met­re rou­te takes you on a hike along trails and small roads among mea­dows, lakes, and forests. Alt­hough the distan­ce is shor­ter, it can feel just as deman­ding as 40 km becau­se the ter­rain is hil­ly. At the unman­ned check­point, you check your­self in and refill with flu­ids, juice, tea, cof­fee, and snacks such as bana­nas, choco­la­te wafers, and pick­led cucumbers.

10 km – For recreational exercisers

The 10-kilo­met­re rou­te also runs along sce­nic trails and small roads among mea­dows, lakes, and forests. It is inten­ded for tho­se who want to chal­lenge them­sel­ves wit­hout going qui­te as far or as deman­ding as the other rou­tes. The­re are no check­points along the way, so bring eve­ryt­hing you need with you.

Dogs are welcome

All four-leg­ged fri­ends are wel­come to join the march, regard­less of which rou­te you choose.

Finish at the Partille Home Guard hall

All three rou­tes end at Par­til­le Home Guard hall, whe­re par­king, toi­lets, sho­wers and over­night accom­mo­da­tion are avai­lab­le. After the march, cold drinks, inclu­ding beer, cof­fee, and tea will be avai­lab­le for pur­cha­se. On Sun­day, the­re will be an awards cere­mo­ny whe­re par­ti­ci­pants who have com­ple­ted both days will recei­ve the Elfs­borgs­mar­schen medal—in bron­ze, sil­ver, or gold, depen­ding on how many times you have par­ti­ci­pa­ted in the past.

Practice for the Four Days Marches

The Elfs­borgs­mar­schen is the per­fect pre­pa­ra­tion for the world’s lar­gest mar­ching event – the Four Days Mar­ches in the Net­her­lands with over 45,000 par­ti­ci­pants. Walk the Elfs­borgs­mar­schen to test your abi­li­ty and see if you are rea­dy for the inter­na­tio­nal chal­lenge in Nijmegen.

Discover the joy of marching

Mar­ching is a sport with mili­ta­ry ori­gins that has now become a popu­lar acti­vi­ty for hund­reds of thousands of peop­le. Whet­her you enjoy long-distan­ce hiking, power wal­king, ruc­king, or regu­lar long walks, Elfs­borgs­mar­schen offers the per­fect com­bi­na­tion of phy­si­cal chal­lenge, natu­re expe­ri­ences, and soci­al interaction.

What is marching?

Mar­ching invol­ves wal­king long­er distan­ces – usu­al­ly 10 to 50 kilo­metres – at a ste­a­dy pace of about 5 kilo­metres per hour. It is low-inten­si­ty trai­ning that keeps you at a wor­king heart rate for a long time, buil­ding endu­ran­ce and fit­ness wit­hout the high impact of running.

Mar­ching is clo­se­ly rela­ted to seve­ral acti­vi­ti­es: long-distan­ce hiking in hil­ly ter­rain, power wal­king at a fas­ter pace, and ruc­king, whe­re you car­ry a weighted back­pack. At Elfs­borgs­mar­schen, we wel­come all the­se ways of moving.

Perfect preparation for the Four Days Marches

Do you dream of wal­king the Four Days Mar­ches – the world’s lar­gest mar­ching event with over 45,000 par­ti­ci­pants in the Net­her­lands? Elfs­borgs­mar­schen is the ide­al pre­pa­ra­tion. By wal­king two days of 40 km each, you get a rea­listic pictu­re of what four days in Nij­me­gen requires.

The Four Days Mar­ches take pla­ce over four con­secu­ti­ve days with distan­ces of 30, 40, or 50 kilo­metres per day. At Elfs­borgs­mar­schen, you can test your equip­ment, find the right pace, and learn how your body reacts to mul­ti-day marches.

More marching events in Sweden

If you’­ve got­ten a tas­te for it and want to try more mar­ching events, the­re are plen­ty of oppor­tu­ni­ti­es around the country.

In the Stock­holm area, the­re are 4Dagars Stock­holm, Bär­sär­ka­gång­en, Snö­svä­gen, Vårskru­den, Natt­sär­ken, Cen­tum, Cen­tum Decem, and Höst­sär­ken. In the Gothen­burg area, the­re is Elfs­borgs­mar­schen and Göte­borgs­mar­schen. And around Swe­den, the Swe­dish Athle­tics Fede­ra­tion’s mem­ber asso­ci­a­tions orga­ni­se Sverigevandringen.

For anyone who wants to challenge themselves

Elfs­borgs­mar­schen is sui­tab­le for athle­tes who want to test their endu­ran­ce, exer­ci­sers loo­king for vari­e­ty, out­do­or ent­husi­asts and scouts who love natu­re expe­ri­ences, as well as per­son­nel in the Armed For­ces, the Home Guard, and volun­ta­ry defence orga­ni­sa­tions who want to earn their sol­di­er’s badge.

You don’t need any pri­or know­led­ge or expen­si­ve equipment—just good sho­es and the will to chal­lenge your­self. You choo­se the pace, distan­ce, and whet­her you walk alo­ne, with a dog, or in a group. Mar­ching builds both phy­si­cal endu­ran­ce and men­tal disci­pli­ne. Elfs­borgs­mar­schen builds bridges between the mili­ta­ry and soci­e­ty by bringing toget­her mili­ta­ry and civi­li­an par­ti­ci­pants in a sha­red challenge.

Take the plunge and disco­ver why mar­ching has become a popu­lar sport. Elfs­borgs­mar­schen awaits you.