Bateman
Registered user
I have just spent a few days in the Alps and thought I'd share some of the photos and highlights/lowlights/lessons learned with you. At some point in the next few weeks i'll pull together mapsource files etc for anyone who is interested. Thanks to all who gave me lots of advice beforehand to help me get the most out of the few days i had down there (especially Franco 
). Every pass/road mentioned below was fantastic - there isn't a single one I wouldn't do again. Favourite of the whole trip was the Col D'Izoard, followed closely by the Col De Cayolle - Izoard was superb to ride, with a newly tarmaced south side, and cayolle was just a stunning, narrow, bumpy ride surrounded by stunning scenery.
Overview
I had 'permission' to take 5 days away, wherever I wanted, as long as I let my wife have, in return, 5 days away herself and spend the same amount of money. Having been to the Alps last year for a similar length of time on my own, I decided to return again this year and see some different areas. This time I would be joined by two friends and we would be going in the last week of May. Budget for the whole trip was £500 and I wanted to to see as much of the Routes Des Grandes Alpes, the Route Napoleon and the Parc Vercors as time would allow - which was only 3 days by the time I took out a day each way to get there. So with only an Oxford Humpback and bumbag, sheepskin rug, Satnav and prayers for good weather, we set off on friday Night on the overnight LDLINES ferry from Portsmouth to Le Havre....
Day 1
The LD Lines ferry was cheap - much cheaper than Brittany. A 5 day return with bike, in Club Class was only £60. However, everything on board is very expensive (£1.75 for a can of coke) and Club class is not woth the extra tenner - the chairs are no more comfortable than standard. I'll get a cabin next time.. We arrived in le havre at around 8am and headed straight off via the A6 towards Geneva, arriving at the Annecy turn off just after 2.30pm. It was pretty much 100mph all the way with short stops for fags and coffee. From Annecy we headed up to Thones and up the Col des Aravis to our first hotel. This was an absolutely superb place just over the Col, called l'Escale. The owner rides one of the Media Bikes for the Tour De France and is very amicable - he also runs motorbike tours through the Alps. We got a triple room, with breakfast, for 80 euros - less than £20 each. Highly recommended - there is a garage that the owner locks the bikes in, the views are tremendous and the waitress at the village bar was the most attractive girl I've seen in a long time.
View from the hotel window:
The hotel website (http://www.escale-des-aravis.com/us/index.html)is not great but it is definitely worth a stopver if you are in that area. There is not much to do there if you are after nightlife, but if you want clean, comfortable, alpine lodging at a great price, then you can't go wrong.
Day 2
A long day planned, taking in a number of passes and ending up in Barcolenette. From the hotel, we headed down to Flumet but the Gorge D'Arly was closed, so we took a great little detour over to Ugine, topped up with Petrol then headed up to the Cormet De Roselend. After a quick stop at the dam, we headed up to the top where the abundance of snow added to scenery:
From Roselend, we headed into Bourg St Maurice and down the nice twisty road to Moutiers. just north of Moutiers is the turn off for the Col De la Madeleine, which AlpineRoads.com had said was closed. We thought we'd take a look anyway, and after a fun, twisty ascent on a narrow road, we arrived at the..Route Barre signs....
We managed to ride past the barrier and after a short stop headed up to the top. There was a fair amount of snow but the roads were clear and smooth, with the occasional bit of excitement....
From here, things get a bit hazy...I can't remember which photos go with which passes, but we took in Galibier, Vars, Izoard and Bonette, all of which were superb. In no particular order here are some pictures of those passes..I haven't had time to sit down and figure out which are which but I will soon.
This next photo is of the Cime De La Bonette - the highest road in Europe. We arrived in jausiers at about 6pm and decided to head up to Bonette and back down again, and then find a hotel. The road was great - very narrow near the top and freshly tarmaced. there were also lots of marmots running around, which was quite amusing.
We didn't get right to the very top as the road was blocked and, given the steep drop to the side, I wasn't prepared to try the 4 inch gap....
So after a 20 minute struggle to turn the bikes round, we headed back down to barcolenette and found a small hotel for the night - nothing fancy but at that time of the night we just wanted food, showers and beds.
Day 3
To be added tomorrow.....
). Every pass/road mentioned below was fantastic - there isn't a single one I wouldn't do again. Favourite of the whole trip was the Col D'Izoard, followed closely by the Col De Cayolle - Izoard was superb to ride, with a newly tarmaced south side, and cayolle was just a stunning, narrow, bumpy ride surrounded by stunning scenery.Overview
I had 'permission' to take 5 days away, wherever I wanted, as long as I let my wife have, in return, 5 days away herself and spend the same amount of money. Having been to the Alps last year for a similar length of time on my own, I decided to return again this year and see some different areas. This time I would be joined by two friends and we would be going in the last week of May. Budget for the whole trip was £500 and I wanted to to see as much of the Routes Des Grandes Alpes, the Route Napoleon and the Parc Vercors as time would allow - which was only 3 days by the time I took out a day each way to get there. So with only an Oxford Humpback and bumbag, sheepskin rug, Satnav and prayers for good weather, we set off on friday Night on the overnight LDLINES ferry from Portsmouth to Le Havre....
Day 1
The LD Lines ferry was cheap - much cheaper than Brittany. A 5 day return with bike, in Club Class was only £60. However, everything on board is very expensive (£1.75 for a can of coke) and Club class is not woth the extra tenner - the chairs are no more comfortable than standard. I'll get a cabin next time.. We arrived in le havre at around 8am and headed straight off via the A6 towards Geneva, arriving at the Annecy turn off just after 2.30pm. It was pretty much 100mph all the way with short stops for fags and coffee. From Annecy we headed up to Thones and up the Col des Aravis to our first hotel. This was an absolutely superb place just over the Col, called l'Escale. The owner rides one of the Media Bikes for the Tour De France and is very amicable - he also runs motorbike tours through the Alps. We got a triple room, with breakfast, for 80 euros - less than £20 each. Highly recommended - there is a garage that the owner locks the bikes in, the views are tremendous and the waitress at the village bar was the most attractive girl I've seen in a long time.
View from the hotel window:
The hotel website (http://www.escale-des-aravis.com/us/index.html)is not great but it is definitely worth a stopver if you are in that area. There is not much to do there if you are after nightlife, but if you want clean, comfortable, alpine lodging at a great price, then you can't go wrong.
Day 2
A long day planned, taking in a number of passes and ending up in Barcolenette. From the hotel, we headed down to Flumet but the Gorge D'Arly was closed, so we took a great little detour over to Ugine, topped up with Petrol then headed up to the Cormet De Roselend. After a quick stop at the dam, we headed up to the top where the abundance of snow added to scenery:
From Roselend, we headed into Bourg St Maurice and down the nice twisty road to Moutiers. just north of Moutiers is the turn off for the Col De la Madeleine, which AlpineRoads.com had said was closed. We thought we'd take a look anyway, and after a fun, twisty ascent on a narrow road, we arrived at the..Route Barre signs....
We managed to ride past the barrier and after a short stop headed up to the top. There was a fair amount of snow but the roads were clear and smooth, with the occasional bit of excitement....
From here, things get a bit hazy...I can't remember which photos go with which passes, but we took in Galibier, Vars, Izoard and Bonette, all of which were superb. In no particular order here are some pictures of those passes..I haven't had time to sit down and figure out which are which but I will soon.
This next photo is of the Cime De La Bonette - the highest road in Europe. We arrived in jausiers at about 6pm and decided to head up to Bonette and back down again, and then find a hotel. The road was great - very narrow near the top and freshly tarmaced. there were also lots of marmots running around, which was quite amusing.
We didn't get right to the very top as the road was blocked and, given the steep drop to the side, I wasn't prepared to try the 4 inch gap....
So after a 20 minute struggle to turn the bikes round, we headed back down to barcolenette and found a small hotel for the night - nothing fancy but at that time of the night we just wanted food, showers and beds.
Day 3
To be added tomorrow.....
Same spot June last year. Phone camera though. Looking forwards to more, 
Excellent
:cool
