Picture

John and Sheila
  • HOME
  • Tandem Tours
  • Flowery Bikes
  • Postcards
  • Bicycles
  • Wavy Walls
  • Patchwork
  • Blog
  • CNF
    • Cycling New Forest website
    • Lymington Tuesday Cycling website
  • ★ ★
    • West Country Way 1997
    • Sea to Sea C2C 1998 >
      • StoS 1
      • StoS 2
    • York to Harwich 1998 >
      • YtoH 1
      • YtoH 2
      • YtoH overwrite WCW
    • Coventry to Lyndhurst 1998 >
      • CtoL 1
    • Lymington to Holyhead 1999 >
      • LtoH 1
    • Orange to Orange 1999 >
      • OtoO 1
      • OtoO 2
      • OtoO 3
      • OtoO 4
    • End to End + Orkney 2000
    • Auvergne 2000 >
      • A 1
    • Cambridge and Norfolk 2001 >
      • C+N 1
    • Dordogne and Lot 2001 >
      • D+L 1
    • Provence 2002 >
      • P 1
    • Suffolk Circular 2003 >
      • PSC 1
    • Ardèche 2005 >
      • A 1
    • Yorkshire Dales 2006 >
      • YD 1
    • Scottish Western Isles 2007 >
      • SWI 1
    • Manche to Med to Manche 2009
    • Baden-Würtemmberg and Bavaria 2010
    • Sault to Sault + Mont Ventoux 2011 >
      • Diary pre tour
      • Diary Day 1
      • Diary Day 2
      • Diary Day 3
      • Diary Day 4
      • Diary Days 5 and 6
      • Diary Day 7
      • Diary Day 8
      • Diary Day 9
      • Diary Day 10
      • Diary Days 11 and 12
      • Diary Day 13
      • Diary Day 14
      • Diary Day 15
      • Diary Day 16
      • Diary Day 17
      • Diary Day 18
      • Diary Day 19
      • Diary Day 20
      • Diary Day 21
      • Diary Day 22
      • Diary Day 23
    • Brittany 2012
    • Alicante + Pyrénées 2013
    • Alicante + Pyrénées 2013xxx
    • Vercors + Alps 2014 >
      • Vercors + Alps 2014 1
      • Vercors + Alps 2014 2
      • Vercors + Alps 2014 3
      • Vercors + Alps 2014 4
      • Vercors + Alps 2014 5
      • Vercors + Alps 2014 6
      • Vercors + Alps 2014 7
      • Vercors + Alps 2014 8
      • Vercors + Alps 2014 9
      • Vercors + Alps 2014 10
      • Vercors + Alps 2014 11
      • Vercors + Alps 2014 12
    • Germany + Switzerland + France 2015 >
      • G S F 1
      • G S F 2
      • G S F 3
      • G S F 4
      • G S F 5
      • G S F 6
    • Pyrénées 2016
    • France and Italian Alps 2017
    • Provence and more 2018
    • On Tour + Pyrénées 2019
    • Avoiding Covid in France 2020
    • Stay in England Covid Year 2021
    • Paris à Velo + le Tour de France
    • Tour of Britain Final Stage 2015
    • Twinning Trips
    • Weekends Away on Wheels
    • Tandem Rallies
    • Lymington Tuesday Cyclists on Tour
    • Paris Brest Paris
    • Wedding and Honeymoon 2006
    • Wedding
  • frame 1
  • frame 2
  • Germany + Switzerland + France 2015
  • test Germany + Switzerland + France 2015
Day 15: One Month Ahead of the Tour de France - Col d'Izoard  TdF HC  2,360m
Picture
Blue sky and sunshine, with cloud building during the late morning into afternoon. Cold but calm mountain air. It had been excellent decision yesterday to postpone cycling until this morning.

This year’s Tour de France route included, as Stage 14, a day when they came from the Col du Lautaret (been there) through Briançon and then climbed the Col d’Izoard (an HC climb to altitude 2,360m) before going on to a mountain top finish at Risoul. The Col d’Izoard was the highest col climbed by the 2014 TdF.

It was 2014 and we were staying in Briançon, so we really could not turn away the challenge of cycling part of this year’s route and checking out the Col d’Izoard summit for them. No need to get carried away though, we were happy to leave out the stage finish at Risoul.

Much of the climb was through wooded hairpins, breaking out near to the top into another different (to us) landscape of rather bleak moraine summit slopes with earth pillars described as ‘Casse-deserte’.

Sheila looked as calm as ever, but John struggled to get going sweating enough for both of us. Perhaps two non-cycling days had an effect?

There was the usual stream of motorbikes, cyclists overtaking us and heaps of wild flowers, with the climb interspersed with stops to eat, or have a comfort break, or just to stop. At the top we took photos of the monument, col sign and of various view out.

1km below the Col was an auberge – the Refuge Napoleon – built in 1858. We rapidly free wheeled around a few sharp bends to arrive there. It was a perfect cyclists coffee stop. We sat in the sunshine and enjoyed large cups of hot chocolate and really good tart. As we could not decide between myrtile and fruits of the forest, so we ordered both and shared half each.

Fleeces on, pertex tops on, gloves and mitts on. One turn of the pedals and we were off on the descent. A few stops on the way down just to look at the views and the drop below.

Once we had grabbed a snack lunch we packed up and motored to Barcelonnette ready to begin our exploration of the Mercantour.

Click on any photo to enlarge and scroll through
Coffee to get us going just out of Briançon
The lower slopes
The lower slopes
Climbing above the trees now
Climbing above the trees now
Climbing above the trees now
Climbing above the trees now
6km to go
Into more desolate scenery near to the top
Into more desolate scenery near to the top
Going well into the higher Casse-deserte
Not so much a col as a summit plateau
Not so much a col as a summit plateau (and coach park) Won't be this empty on TdF day !
Beside the monument
Beside the monument
Summit photos
Summit photos
Summit photos
All of the monument
It took us some time to find the actual col summit sign
Looking out on the way down
Casse-deserte mountain scenery
A brief pause to take in some bends before speeding down
A brief pause to take in some bends before speeding down
A brief pause to take in some bends before speeding down
A brief pause to take in some bends before speeding down
A brief pause to take in some bends before speeding down
Going down
Refuge Napoléon
Refuge Napoléon
Coffee and cake well worth a smile
Which tart first ?

> DAY 16 FROM OUR BLOG and PHOTOS <

Day 1: Col de la Bataille (1,313m)
Day 2: Col de la Machine (1,015m),
Col de Carri (1,215m),
Tunnel des Grands Goulets (1710m long)
Day 3: Col de Preletang (1,267m)

Day 5: Avoriaz (1,800m)
Day 6: Col de la Colombière (1,618m Cat 1)

Day 7: Cormet de Roselend (1,968m  Cat 1)
Day 8: Col de la Madeleine (2,000m Cat HC)

Day 9: Col de la Croix de Fer (2,067m Cat HC),
Marmotte 1 - Col du Glandon (1,924m Cat HC)
Day 10: Marmotte 2 - Alpe d’Huez (1,860 Cat HC)
Day 11: Marmotte 3 - Col du Galibier (2,642m Cat HC),
Col du Lauteret (2,058m)

Day 12: Marmotte 4 - Col du Télégraphe (1,566m Cat 1)
Day 14: Tourism by car from Briançon
Day 15: Col d'Izoard (2,360m Cat HC)
Day 16: Mercantour 1 - Col de la Bonette (2,715m Cat HC),
La Bonette - highest point in Europe by road 2,802m

Day 17: Mercantour 2 - Touring in the Tinée Gorge
Day 18: Mercantour 3 - Col de la Cayolle (2,326 Cat HC)

More about Cycling Events on our other website cyclingnewforest.org
CONTACT US
Picture
BLOG
Picture
Picture

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.