Col de Grand St Bernard – Gav's Cycling Adventures

Dam Busting Stage 2 – Day Four

Another Epic day in the saddle up to Barrage du Mauvoisin – another hydro-electric dam, however, today the road was either climbing or descending (so no flat miles to pad out the distance) once we left town. In addition to the main climb of the day (4,850 feet of climbing in 25 miles), I’d also identified a couple of bonus climbs in case our legs felt strong….

The first 12 miles followed Sunday’s route to Le Chable, at which point we turned off the main roads & headed towards the snow covered mountains way off in the distance. The views continued to get ever more impressive as we climbed higher & deeper into the mountains – physically as well as metaphorically, as we passed through a couple of tunnels! For the first time this trip we got to see a marmot, rather than just hear them squeaking as we approached.

We made a quick stop for Tarte Tartin with ice cream & a cappuccino in the middle of nowhere, before the final push.

As we rounded the very next corner after our stop we saw our target for the day – the Barrage du Mauvoisin, as it towered 250 metres above us! It’s the 11th tallest dam in the world, took 6 years to build & spans 520 metres from side to side.

After taking in the majesty of the dam, lake & surrounding area (Mont Blanc was visible in the distance), we descended back towards Lourtier, taking in a cliff road detour on the way to view the valley below.

We still felt good, so took the decision to climb a back road (including a 3km gravel section along the summit balcony) towards Verbier. The climb was always ‘comfortable’ & as we gained height the views widened until we again got to see paragliders as they soared on the thermals above us.

We took the same descent as on Sunday until Le Chable, where we stopped for lunch. Our legs still weren’t totally cooked (although well on their way!), so we threw in yet another bonus climb – the Col des Planches. This was on a deserted road that took us high above the main road we cycled this morning, with stunning views towards Col de Grand Saint Bernard in one direction & Mont Blanc in the other. The climb ascended 2,100 feet in 5 miles, so averaged about 8%, but with a couple of short stretches up over 13%.

As we started the descent towards Martigny this was all forgotten, as incredible views up & down the Rhone valley showed themselves.

We popped into town to celebrate another awesome day in the saddle & to take in some of the Tour de France reminders & to top up the calories ahead of tomorrow’s adventure!

Verbier & Back – Day One.

A 3.30am alarm call means it’s time for another Alpine Adventure to commence – this time a 7 day expedition to Martigny in Switzerland. The flight to Geneva to us over Lac de Leman with huge views across to Mont Blanc which dominated the horizon. Having landed on time, we were ready to pick up the Ford Mondeo estate from Thrifty at 11am local time. Unfortunately, our car wasn’t ready & wouldn’t be for at least another hour – initial disappointment was quickly turned to happiness however, as the Reps friend at Hertz was able to rustle up a BMW 216 Estate instead. I hope our luck holds for the rest of the trip too!

We reached our hotel by 1.30pm, so we were able to check in immediately, having the bikes re-assembled & ready to ride by 2.30. Martigny is a major town in the Rhone Valley, so there are mountains everywhere – as a result, I had planned more rides than we had days available & this seemed like the perfect opportunity to use one of them! I’d read about the climb from Martigny up to Verbier, as it regularly features in the Tour de Suisse & is also where Alberto Contador blew the 2009 Tour de France wide open. This was the perfect opportunity to go & try it for myself!

The early couple of miles took us out of town & past several temperature gauges, which confirmed we were in for a warm afternoon – 31 degrees centigrade & blue sky everywhere. The road from Martigny to Sembracher is the start of the Grand St Bernard Pass (the main route into Italy from the Valais valley), so is relatively busy. However, once we got off the main road, the fun really started – while the serious part of the climb is only 5 miles long, it regularly ramped up to 9 & 10% as it twisted & turned up the sheer face of the valley. The heat & severity of the gradient meant it was a real challenge, even if it wasn’t particularly long – just under 2 hours to ride 18 miles & climb 3,750 feet from the base to summit.

The views from Verbier were stunning – views across the valley to snow covered peaks were made even more spectacular by paragliders, as they flew the thermals.

Like many ‘out of season’ ski resorts, most of the cafes & bars were shut & those that were open didn’t have any cake! We stopped long enough to grab a quick espresso & a few photos, before what should have been a fast & lazy descent back to Martigny.

The wind had other ideas, as Ed Wind blew so hard, we had to pedal on some of the downhill stretches, otherwise we would have ground to a stop! An unexpected bonus was that we got to see all the scenery, as we were travelling so slowly!