Cycling the Route des Grandes Alpes, France
Cycling the Route des Grandes Alpes, France – Photo By Simon Kirwan
Cycling the Route des Grandes Alpes, France – Photo By Simon Kirwan. The Route des Grandes Alpes is a tourist itinerary through the French Alps between Lake Geneva and the French Riviera passing over all the high passes of the Alps, many of which feature in the Tour de France. The road starts at Thonon-les-Bains and climbs via Les Gets and Cluses. It then heads to Saint-Gervais and Megève, over the Col des Saisies (1,633 m). It then passes through Beaufort, Bourg-Saint-Maurice and onto Val-d’Isère. The road then crosses the Col de l’Iseran (2,770 m).
The road then passes through Modane and over the Col du Galibier (2,642 m) and then the Col du Lautaret to La Grave. The road heads to Briançon and then over the Col d’Izoard (2,361 m). The road then heads through Embrun and over the Col de Vars (2,111 m) and onto Barcelonnette, where the choice can be made to continue south over the highest pass of all, the Col de la Bonette (2,802 m)or the Col de la Cayolle (2,327 m). The original end of the Route was Nice but is now Menton, reached via the cols of Sainte-Martin (1,500 m), Turini (1,607 m) and Castillon (707 m). (Wikipedia)