Day 236: Grand Circuit de les Alpes

Tiger’s birthday treat — 5,500m of climbing

We don’t want to be carrying presents around on our bikes, so we’ve been having birthday treats instead, and Tiger chose to spend a day on a lightweight road bike with no luggage and cycle a tour of the Alps. I got to go too but, for some reason, Sarina thought sitting in the valley for a day resting would be more fun. She might have had a point in retrospect.

We planned a trip round “Le Grand Circuit”, similar to the course of the Marmotte sportive. It ticks off Le Col du Télégraphe, Le Col du Galibier, Col du Lauteret (on the way down), Alpe d’Huez and Le Col du Glandon, in 190km of riding.

We set off at 8am, with a nice chill in the air for the climb of the Télégraphe, a pleasant warm up for the day. Coffee in Valloir and then on to the mighty Galibier.

Getting used to riding light bikes on the Télégraphe. I couldn’t even get out of the saddle without wobbling to start with!

Where we just came from — half way up Le Col du Galibier

Job done — it was chilly at 2642m

We shot down the glorious descent of the Galibier — 40km of fast downhill, with a short stop on the top of the Col du Lauteret for a baguette. Then it was on to Bourg d’Oisan and the foot of Alpe d’Huez.

This climb is probably the most famous cycling climb in the Alps, and Tiger enjoyed turning onto the 10% ramp at the start just as we’ve seen so many racers do before. There weren’t quite as many people to cheer us on though.

The Alp started to wear on me. I was overheating and had to slow a little half way up. We made it though, a big tick for Tiger. Extraordinarily this is my 10th time up the climb and possibly my slowest (no Strava for previous times).

“It’s still cold”

Atop Alpe d’Huez, the lake where we cooled down Tiger as a three-year-old when we camped here to watch Iban Mayo win the Tour stage. Tiger wasn’t keen for a swim this time.

Then it was down the beautiful side road from Huez village to Villard Reculas and then down a classic alpine descent to Lac du Verney. From then on you’re starting the climb of Croix du Fer or Glandon, dependent on which way you turn at the top.

The climb dragged on a lot and I started to feel weaker and weaker. By the top I was feeling quite sick and had no power — luckily the descent of the Col du Glandon woke me up. What an amazing road! Switchbacks through pasture on a narrow road that seems to weave about just to give you a bit more fun, and at 7pm there was practically no traffic (one car) and a really good view of what was coming. Amazing.

Le Col du Glandon goes on forever

Beautiful views keep you sane

On top of the Col du Glandon, too fatigued to turn round and show the sign

Then it was just the valley road back to Saint Michel du Maurienne. I was dead by this point, and though we tried to keep the pace up, we ended up stopping for me to be sick, so just limped in to town in the end. Still a fantastic day’s riding, and a good night’s sleep seems to have cleared whatever bug, nutritional issue or lack of HTFUs that I was experiencing.