NorthCape4000 VI 2023
Raising expectations, redefining standards, and making the NorthCape4000 – the World’s Most Attended UltraDistance Cycling Adventure – an ever-new Story to be rewritten every year. A Story capable of touching, down to the depths of the human soul, people from all over the World.
This is the goal that our Staff, with Infinite Care and Passion, pursues for 365 days a year, and this, we assure you, is what makes the NorthCape4000 so Special and a point of reference for the world of Bikepacking at UltraDistance.
Not just one of many Sporting events, but one of the Greatest Human Experiences a person can hope to have in the span of their entire existence. Hundreds of people each year, from all over the world, can attest to this.
Route of the NorthCape4000 Edition VI 2023
A Superb Geography. This is the key element behind each NorthCape4000 Edition. And this is what we will use, for the sixth consecutive year, to amaze you and make you experience something truly Unique.
Get ready to experience a variety of landscapes and an abundance of Dream locations that no one before us has ever dared to encapsulate in a single Edition.
But let’s start from the beginning. In 2023 we will have at our disposal one of the most Magical places in Turin where to start your Dream. Once Turin is behind you, together with hundreds of new friends you will aim for the deep green and fragrant high altitude meadows, toward the Magnificent scenery, to be enjoyed meter by meter, of the Great St. Bernard Pass, at an altitude of 2473 meters. It’s already a fairy tale: not even 200 km from the start and an incredibly powerful fluid called Freedom has already pervaded every atom of your body, and you’re just getting started.
The gentle descent into Switzerland opens the door to expanses of lush meadows and endless streams, accompanying you to the crystal-clear waters of Lake Geneva, the bright and unobtrusive companion that gives the stamp of Gate number 1 in Lausanne. Heading west, you will pedal along the lakeshore, immersed in peace and tranquility, towards the Jura massif and one of the main Protagonists of Edition VI: France.
From the Department of Jura, a land of flavors and incredible variety of landscapes, to then reach, in an unstoppable crescendo of Beauty and EnchantMent, we are talking about Burgundy, the land where some of the world’s most legendary wines are produced, such as the Romanée-Conti.
Micro vineyards and yearning country roads now accompany you through the Wine Route alongside some of the “Domaines” that have made Burgundy the world’s standard of comparison. Puligny-Montrachet, Beaune, Vosne-Romanée, all the way to Dijon.
And it is here, in the heart of this lush French countryside, that the time has come to up the ante and aim for the second Gate of Edition VI. A truly Special Gate, located at the foot of what in 1889 was intended to be a temporary monument, but which today is not only still standing, but is one of the symbols of Planet Earth: We are talking about the Eiffel Tower, and you are in Paris.
Admiring the Ville Lumière from the saddle of a bicycle, gliding along the banks of the romantic Seine, is always a fabulous experience; but doing so during the NorthCape4000 makes your Adventure even more Legendary. The renewed beauty of the Notre Dame Cathedral, passing in front of the Louvre Museum, Place de la Concorde and finally the unmistakable profile of the Eiffel Tower, bearing the stamp of Gate number 2.
This is all true, and has an inimitable name: NorthCape4000 Edition VI 2023.
From the Ilé de France you will then head to Belgium and Wallonia, a land of centuries-old forests, rich in canals and waterways, such as the Meuse. Ancient sun-warmed stone villages and imposing cathedrals line the road to Maastricht, Netherlands, while shortly after, yet another star of Edition VI, comes Germany.
Rhineland-Westphalia, the region that first welcomes you to German soil, is an area famous for its castles and the vibrant vitality of its many cities. The compass points northeast, and on the road, in a beautiful succession of miles, come Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein.
The last kilometers of Germany now smell of a North that is finally leaving behind the atmospheres of continental Europe; the geographic and cultural metamorphosis has begun, and meter by meter, as natural as the day taking over from the night, comes beautiful Denmark.
A stunning countryside caressed by the warm North Wind, silent landscapes and headlands that convey harmony and serenity: this is the Denmark of NorthCape4000, a country that has elected the bicycle as the ideal means to get around, certainly, but also and above all to live well. You will greet the northern end of the Danish territory exactly at Frederikshavn, boarding point for the ferry that will take you to Oslo, Norway.
Gate 3 in Oslo, Scandinavia. You have reached the geographic, cultural and especially naturalistic dimension for which this incredible event was envisioned and created.
You are in the home of the NorthCape4000.
With Stamp Number 3 of Edition VI in your pocket, you will enjoy the aperitif of the Norwegian forests on the stretch that takes you from elegant Oslo to Sweden, a nation that you will ride your bike through almost in its entirety, from the south to the deep north. Endless expanses of conifers envelop and surround, like a warm blanket, small villages and beautiful bodies of water, places where beauty is everything and the passage of time is nothing. Fresh air descending into the lungs and a wonderful, powerful feeling of physical and mental rebirth.
An unparalleled sensory experience: this is what awaits you on the roads of the NorthCape4000 Edition VI 2023.
Surrounded by the wonderful sounds of nature and enveloped in a dimension of total contentment, peace and joy, you will climb further and further north to the point where, every year, our Fairy Tale becomes Reality: Gate number 4 in Lapland and the gateway to the Arctic Circle.
You and your bike have reached a land of tents puffing in the forest, reindeer watching you peacefully by the side of the road, and scenery so beautiful that not a single meter, we can assure you, will be erased from your mind for the rest of your life.
Karigasniemi. The last 300 kilometers that bring you the gift of Arctic beauty at its most extreme, a wilderness populated with ghosts and Legends, stockfish drying in the wind and small red houses of Arctic fishermen. It is here, gliding your bike along the shores of Porsangerfjord and the Barents Sea, that you will come face to face with Mageroya, the final challenge, the most sublime, the sweetest.
Incredible sheer fjords, sweeping switchbacks that offer breathtaking views and a moonscape perpetually tempered and sculpted by the elements. 30 km of Absolute Wonder and the road ends, forever.
The most famous Globe in the World is now before you.
North Cape: riding your bike alongside fellow travelers who arrived from all over the world, you have shared and realized an impossible Dream that every year, for 6 Editions now, we turn into Reality.
This Dream now belongs only to you, and with a Force you never even imagined, you will see, it will change your Life forever.
This is the Miracle of the NorthCape4000.
The Minimum Time and Time Limit to Cover the Track.
Designed to give everyone the chance to enjoy an Extraordinary Human Experience, the NorthCape4000 has been open to different philosophies and performances since its inception, so even in 2023 you will continue to be free to ride the trail with the utmost freedom and be able to arrive at the North Cape whenever you want, enjoying the event and its magical atmosphere in every aspect, regardless of your schedule.
However, you should know that in order to achieve the title of Finisher of Edition VI 2023 and be placed on the Order of Arrival, you will have to meet both a minimum time and a time limit within which to complete the course.
We invest so many resources and time every year to ensure the highest quality standards for the event, and this, before anything else, is about the safety of our participants.
Minimum track coverage time: you will only be registered as an Edition VI finisher if you arrive at North Cape on or after August 3, 2023. If you arrive before that date you will not be registered.
At the same time, but for purely organizational reasons, for several editions we have included a time limit to complete the trail and be registered as a Finisher. For Edition VI 2023 the time limit is set by August 15, 2023.
So, to be a Finisher of Edition VI, you are required to cover an average of 180 km per day, exactly as in previous Editions.
In any case, we assure you, whatever your finishing time will be, you will all experience something epic and memorable that you will share with hundreds of people from all over the world.
Gates for Edition VI 2023
For NorthCape4000 Edition VI 2023, there are 4 Gates (checkpoints) along the route. The Gates are strategically placed in areas of geographical, natural or cultural importance. At each Gate, participants will be asked to validate their route. If, for any reason, one or more Gates are missed, the participant will be automatically disqualified.
The 4 control gates planned for Edition VI 2023 are:
G1 – Lausanne (Switzerland)
G2 – Paris (France)
G3 – Oslo (Norway)
G4 – Lapland (Sweden)
Ferries Edition VI 2023
The only ferries/boats allowed during NorthCape4000 Edition VI 2023, to be booked at the full discretion of the participants, are those listed below:
Wischhafen to Glückstadt (Germany) – (Boat on the Elbe River – 10 min)
Frederikshavn (Denmark) / Oslo (Norway).
All other sea routes are prohibited.