Got the train to St Jean de Maurienne arriving in the early afternoon. A long 2h30 up to the col with a detour. It is a bit of a drag with hard climbing after St Sorlin.

DescriptionThe col du Galibier (2642 meters / 8668 ft) separates the French departments of the Savoie (Northern Alps) from the Hautes-Alpes (Southern Alps).

From the center of Grenoble this climb is a hard 1000 meters + of vertical. According to the ClimbByBike website it is in the top 500 of alpine climbs for difficulty.

The Haute-Route sportif was crossing over the Glandon so quite a few police around. I cycled the Glandon both ascending and descending.

The idea was to come down to Avignon for a bit of tourism and to ride the Ventoux. However the forecast was for wind and more wind.

A very pleasant loop just over the mythic 100km barrier for Stravassholes! :-) First big alpine col loop for me a long time for me. The Madeleine is a hors category category climb.

Decided to meet the missus and one of her friends in Grenoble for lunch. The idea was to cycle in and come back by car.