The Alps

Champy79

Hi

Does anyone know when you can start to cycle up Alpe D'Huez and other mountain ranges in the alps. Im assuming that they are closed or unfit to ride for a good part of the winter?

torico

you can ride quite a bit through the winter but it will depend on the col
eg the joux plane down to morzine in winter is a green ski piste so will be shut until after easter . climbing to alpe'dhuez should be open all winter ( they need to clear it for the winter traffic) however you wouldnt go booking a winter bike trip to the alps - you mgith find you are in white out !!! also I wouldnt want to ride up to alpe dhuez with the amount of winter traffic that road gets ( alot quieter in the summer!!!) most locals around morzine would tend to ride down to lac geneva and along the valleys and smaller cols. I have riddne up to avorriaz in winter and the road was good after a very warm spell so there was no ice - you just have to watch for thawing snow on the roads re-freezing - best to go out in the afternoon after the thaw if you are there and can get a bike out then its a bonus but you are better off skiing!!. Its also very hard to get the clothing right at easter with huge fluctuations in temperature +20 degreees to minus temps very quickly !!

ugo.santalucia

torico wrote:

you can ride quite a bit through the winter but it will depend on the col
eg the joux plane down to morzine in winter is a green ski piste so will be shut until after easter . climbing to alpe'dhuez should be open all winter ( they need to clear it for the winter traffic) however you wouldnt go booking a winter bike trip to the alps - you mgith find you are in white out !!! also I wouldnt want to ride up to alpe dhuez with the amount of winter traffic that road gets ( alot quieter in the summer!!!) most locals around morzine would tend to ride down to lac geneva and along the valleys and smaller cols. I have riddne up to avorriaz in winter and the road was good after a very warm spell so there was no ice - you just have to watch for thawing snow on the roads re-freezing - best to go out in the afternoon after the thaw if you are there and can get a bike out then its a bonus but you are better off skiing!!. Its also very hard to get the clothing right at easter with huge fluctuations in temperature +20 degreees to minus temps very quickly !!

On an average winter, April for cols up to 1600-1700 mt and May for the others. Ski resorts can be ridden safely from Beginning of April

ugo.santalucia

I forgot to mention that the Italian side, being exposed to the south is probably better for early spring rides compared to the French...

Check out my website for climbs in the North west of Italy

http://ridewithugo.xtreemhost.com/

hammerite

I was in AdH last January, and you would have been able to ride up as far as the DMC off Avenue de Rif Nel most days while I was there. The roads are pretty clear if it hasn't snowed.

I wouldn't recommend it though, as the weather can change in an instant and it's also really cold! and as torico says the amount of buses going up and around the town is quite high.

I think this photo was taken by someone riding up Galibier, I'm guessing they went under the gate to get on the road....

BigG67

Wewent last year the first week of June and the Galibier was shut when we got there.

ugo.santalucia

BigG67 wrote:

Wewent last year the first week of June and the Galibier was shut when we got there.

Last year was not a normal winter... the snowfall was probably twice as much as a snowy winter.
The Giro had to cut off all the cols above 2000 mt as they were all still closed

term1te

I've made the mistake of ignoring the "pass geschlossen" sign on a relatively low Swiss pass in March. There was no snow by the sign, but a couple of hundred meters higher and it was a mixture of refrozen slush and black ice, with banks of snow on either side. When I finally gave up, I spent nearly an hour trying to walk the bike back down, 1km at most. Lessons learnt: closed means closed, cleats and frozen slush don't work together, and light-weight winter gloves are useless when you're walking. Even when I got off the ice, my fingers were so cold I couldn't operate the brakes properly.

Cols are for summer, in the winter, take skis.

Champy79

Thanks for the feedback. Im looking to do the Marmotte and want to head to the alps to do a bit of prep work. April and May are busy for me so wasnt sure it was worth heading out before April and then again in June.

term1te

I spent the week before the Marmotte cycling from Geneva down to the Alp (see link below), best way to ride into form. Arranged the trip with Cyclomundo, can't praise them enough.

Le Commentateur

The guy at grenoblecycling.com will know which of the cols in the area are likely to be accessible at that time.

Here's a late April ride he did:
http://www.grenoblecycling.com/gallery/ ... p?album=92

slogfester

see http://www.cycling-challenge.com/cycle- ... questions/
Will's blog is packed full of info on riding in the alps all year.

chill888

I think this photo was taken by someone riding up Galibier,

Actually that photo was taken near top of Col de Pierre Carrée (Flaine ski station). At 1845 metres it's one of the higher roads open all year in the north French Alps

This link gives official French Col openings/closings. It's a little conservative ..... in other words if you are adventurous it's "possible" to climb a few days before the car openings but MtB might be needed. Galibier / Iseran and the very highest are rarely open before early mid June.

http://www.infotrafic.com/route.php?region=FRANC&link=cols.php?ALPN

the joux plane down to morzine in winter is a green ski piste

True but the more famous side of Joux Plane from Samoens is open most of the winter as there is a cross country skiing at the top ..... but DON'T use a road bike ..... very icy - but fantastic on MtB in winter.





Alpe d'Huez and lots of the ski stations are definitely ride-able in winter. BUT:

- Avoid weekends especially Saturday as it's the chalet turnover day and the roads are jammed.
- Unless it's been VERY dry and sunny - avoid a road bike .... icy patches even on well cleared roads.
- Bring a backpack and bring three extra layers, balaclava, etc for the terrifyingly cold descent. ,)


I snuck up Galibier when road was labeled closed above tunnel last week in October and was warmer than the 2008 Marmotte in July - you never know.

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