September 2002 Diary
1st September - Six Climbs around Grenoble
There were a few light clouds hugging the Vercors as I cycled south from Grenoble with Gary, my American cycling partner. Gary would be leaving France in a couple of weeks and this was our first and probably last cycle together for a while, so I wanted to choose a route that would give him some memories as well as showing him some places he's never seen before. Our route would take us along the edge of the Vercors before turning east and riding through the Trieves region to La Mure. From there it was mostly downhill and flat back to Grenoble.
The first 18 kilometres of riding were flat and once we'd left the city, the route took us along small roads that I knew well from the winter training days. It was just after Vif, a small village nestled at the bottom of the Trieves and Vercors mountains, that we began to climb. The Col de l'Arzelier was 12 kilometres away and 1154 metres in altitude, a climb where the gradient rarely exceeds seven percent. Following the filling of water bottles, we cycled steadily up to Plenlefrey. The gradient seemed to ease for last three kilometres Col. The impressive peaks the Two Sisters were partially hidden behind clouds and the morning was very different from the clear skies around Grenoble. We passed a lone cyclist halfway up and then a lone lady cyclist just before the Col who had a little shock as I passed her.
The Col was quiet and it was a short downhill before the road followed the contours of the moutains and we followed an undulating road under the Vercors mountains. It was only the final two kilometres of the 1222 metre Col des Deux that the gradient steepened. The view behind gave an impressive view of the mountainside we had ridden along with green pastures and woods climbing up to meet the grey cliffs of the Vercors with clouds hanging over the mountain tops.
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| Cycling
under the Vercors |
After a brief chat with another lady cyclist, it was a short descent to the main road between Gresse-en-Vercors and Monestier de Clermont. We turned right and rode through a relatively quiet Gresse-en-Vercors. It was three kilometres to the 1352 metre Col de l'Allimas and the third Col of the day. The Vercors behind us had now disappeared as the weather changed and the clouds were moving in. The vegetation along the roadside had changed from the dark pines the grow on the mountainsides above Grenoble to lighter coloured pines that gave the descent a mediteranean feel.
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Descending from the Col de l'Allimas |
The
Mont Aiguille |
The Mont Aguille was hidden behind cloud and every few seconds we could see part of the mountain but not its entirity. It was only after descending for three kilometres that we suddenly were presented with a full view of the mountain with a pretty village nestled underneath. The view is one of the most impressive around Grenoble, and even today with the mountain surrounded in cloud, it still took the breath away. There was a final kilometre of climbing to the village before the descent continued down on a great little road that had some lovely sections of left and right curves.
Our route plan was to descend away from the Vercors and head into the rolling Trieves range via Clelles. To get to Clelles, we joined the main road between Sisteron and Grenoble for a few kilometres. A undulating few kilometres that was busy with cars and cars pulling caravans, and it was welcome relief to leave the traffic and drop into Clelles. The cycle computer was reading 80 kilometres but I let Gary know that we'd done the hard part of the day. The local shop was about to close so we ran in to stock up on some food and drink.
Our next destination was Mens, the main village of the Trieves range and situated in the heart of the range. The Trieves are one of the undiscovered gems in the Alps, an undulating range with plently of little roads and Cols to explore. The roads are well paved and empty of traffic. On a clear day, there are impressive mountain views in every direction . We didn't have a clear day and the Vercors had now been completly covered by dark cloud and the southern peaks of the Trieves were looking ominous. Rain was predicted for the afternoon.
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The Col de St Sebastien |
The Col de St Sebastien was another four kilometres of climbing above Mens, a col that was never too steep and but it was enough to let me know that it was our fourth Col of the day. Although the climbs were short, they were certainly tiring my legs.
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The tunnel on the Col de St Sebastien |
We dropped down from the col through St Sebastian before contining the descent towards La Mure. A smell of pines filled the air as I descended the remainder of the col and it reminded me of the south of France. We enjoyed a brief view of the Lac du Sautet to the east before rounding a corner and dropping down through the trees. There was a small tunnel before the final two kilometres of the descent, two kilometres of regular hairpins until we emerged from the trees at the Pont du Poisonnas. The bridge is famous in the area for bungee jumping, but there was nobody launching themselves into the void as we rode over the bridge.
I explained to Gary that this was our final climb had started and it was a steady climb up to La Mure. Although we were surrounded by cloud, the sky above us was blue and it was warm. The road was quiet and on the outskirts of La Mure we turned left and joined a small road that would take us towards Grenoble and give us views over Lac Monteynard and the Vercors. It was a few kilometres longer than the main road but a small road that wouldn't be busy.
The clouds over the Vercors were black and thunder started to rumble in the distance. This should have been a pleasant run back to the city but as we rode around the mountainside and started cycling north, the wind began to get stronger until it was a headwind that was buffeting us. The road was open to the elements with no hedges as we rode between small villages on undulating terrain. I was starting to feel tired now and before we could descend towards Grenoble, we had another four kilometres of climbing
The final three kilometres climbing took us up to Monteynard with a needed 12 kilometre descent to St Georges and the valley. From Vif, the terrain was flat all the way back to Grenoble but the wind was still blowing. I arrived home exhausted with just under 170 kilometres and 2915 metres of climbing. I'd told Gary it would be a 120 kilometre day so we'd both had a suprise.
