France/Switzerland

sniper68

We're spending 5 days at Lac De Chalain in France(Jura) and 7 days in Interlakken,Switzerland in August does anyone have an riding experience in either area?
Stage 11(Besancon-Oyannax) of The Tour is riding through the area in France so I'll get an idea fro that but other than the Brunig Pass near Interlakken I'm at a loss.
Is riding around either(or both) Lakes Thun and Brienz worth a go?I'll be riding solo so just want scenic but a bit challenging.
Any advice will be much appreciated!

durhamwasp

I was in Interlaken last summer (take your credit card...) Did the climb up to Grindelwald - nice climb and reasonably hard. I was there with family so did a couple of smaller rides, but nothing worth writing about.

The climb to Grimselpass is doable, and if you are looking for a long day in the saddle also Sustenpass.

sniper68

Thanks for that I'll get the map out 8)
I too am with the family so will probably have one morning riding in France and two in Switzerland so will look at the climb up Grindelwald and then possibly do a blast around one of the Lakes.
We drove to Lake Garda a few years back and I didn't take a bike...a mistake I'm not going to make this time around.

Thanks again.

sniper68

Did you ride to Grindlewald as an out-and-back or as a loop?

durhamwasp

Yeah as an out and back basically, tho with a few slightly different roads. For example going up it I followed the Cycle Route signs, but it was a bit more 'cross' terrain in parts, then just descended the proper road down. If you go beyond Grindelwald it really kicks up!

Another ride I did (2-3hr job) was up Beatenbergstrasse towards Waldegg, beautiful views over the lakes and down onto Interlaken (and our campsite in particular) with a local beer at the top of the climb.

Few pics here https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set ... 202&type=3

sniper68

It all looks good cheers!

robbo2011

Hi, Apart from all the usual recommendations of Grimselpass, Furkapass, Sustenpass etc. (ride these in the week if you want to enjoy a more traffic free ride), how about doing a loop from Interlaken, round the lake to Meiringen, then back up over the Grosse Scheidegg down to Grindelwald and then to Interlaken?

The Grosse scheidegg is traffic free and one of the most scenic passes IME. You'll have wonderful views all day and it will be a proper climb. The ride would be 80km with a total climbing of about 1500m. Highly recommended.

Here's the strava link of Grosse scheidegg so you can see where it is.

http://www.strava.com/segments/1070971

durhamwasp

Is that climb best suited to a crosser? The views look fantastic, I had it on my potential list when I was there, but just didn't have time, and the prices in Switzerland meant we headed quite quickly over to Germany and did more cycling in the Black Forest.

robbo2011

The road quality is better than most British roads! it's fine for a road bike. There is a bus service that goes up and over the pass, so that tells you how good the road is.

The Tour de Suisse rode it a couple of years ago. there are some videos on youtube I believe.

sniper68

I'll look into that aswell cheers 8)

robbo2011

I was going through some photos and found some pics from the last time I rode the Scheidegg.

sniper68

It would be rude not to ride in stunning surroundings like that 8)

Bobbinogs

The Lac du Chalain area is great for cycling, particularly if you head towards St Claude (but not the town itself as it is pretty horrid). Some great lumps around and very quiet roads...but it does tend to be just up or down, not many options for just getting some miles in.

My fav ride was when I went south for a start point but had to drop past Bourg en Bresse to get an HC climb in (I did the stage 10 route from TdF 2010, roughly), and that took a 2 hour drive to get there. La Col du la Faucile is much closer (climbs out of Gex) but the road looked far too busy for me to enjoy a long slow one so I just took off to places like Nozeroy instead (well worth a ride out on the bike, btw). Also, the climbs up to Chateau Chalon near Lavigny are lovely, as is the town itself (worth dragging the family there for lunch, great little places to eat and the views are stunning). Shame there aren't some more HC climbs within touching distance but there are plenty of challenges to be had.

I will be there again first couple of weeks in August if you fancy some company for the odd ride

sniper68

I'm there from 18th-22nd.
My aunt and uncle live near Chateau Chalon in a little village called Menetru-le-Vignoble.IIRC from my Aunts garden you can see Chateau Chalon perched on top of a big lump 8)

sniper68

GRRRRRR Women :x
We aren't going to Interlakken now :roll:
We are now Having 5 nights at Lac de Chalain in French Jura and 7 nights in Frejus on the Cote d'Azur.I'm sure there'll still be some great cycling down that neck of the woods.