Thu, 8 October 2020
Vertical Climbed: 1,560 meters (5,118 feet)
Vertical Descended: 1,545 meters
Rating: 4
Note: this road is closed in the winter months. It is also poorly surfaced before the main Allevard road.
This used to be a departmental road but has been abandoned to the elements for a dozen years. The surface is broken or non existent in places but it can be ridden on a road bike ok climbing. At the turn to Allevard you can climb to the ski station to add 250 extra vertical meters and about 3km of road.
I'd not ridden with Mike over the summer, he was training for the Marmotte so doing longer, harder rides. Any I've been going a bit better the last couple of weeks so asked if he wanted to try a hidden gem (well a gem is a rock and this road has a lot of them). I hoped the climb would slow him down a bit, and so it proved although he put me to the sword on the smooth tarmac after we'd ridden down to Allevard. Mike even managed to find a bit of gravel near his house.
Valley road to Allevard is blocked for works. The roads were mainly dry, a few wet leaves under trees. The climb is reasonably ok on a road bike, a couple of ramps that no longer have tarmac, otherwise a very patchy road surface. The road is blocked at the top for cars. Lots of hunters. Reasonably warm for October.
