Mary and I rode the Spanish Peaks and Great Sand Dunes bike tour in Colorado with Lizard Head over six days in June 2015. There were seven guests and two guides, John and Leslie. Three guests besides Mary were engineers! One other guest was doing bioinformatics like me, and Leslie did graduate work in phylogenetics before she decided to become a guide. This was our kind of tour!
Here is our itinerary.
On Day 1 (Sunday, June 21): We shuttle from Colorado Springs to Beckwith Reservoir and then bike to Westcliffe. We cover 51 miles (with 5,800 ft of climbing) and go over four 9,000-ft passes!
On Day 2 (Monday, June 22): We bike 61 miles (1,800 ft), mostly downhill, from Westcliffe to Walsenburg.
On Day 3 (Tuesday, June 23): We do a short shuttle to Segundo and then bike 112 miles (7,300 ft) to Great Sand Dunes National Park. We go over two high passes: Cuchara (9,995 ft) and La Veta (9,413). We pass riders going the other way in the Race Across America. This is the Queen Stage of the tour, i.e., the longest ride, and we are really tired at the end.
On Day 4 (Wednesday, June 24): We hike in the park for awhile and then bike 59 miles (500 ft) against a strong headwind to Joyful Journey Hot Springs Spa. We spend the night there in a yurt.
On Day 5 (Thursday, June 25): We shuttle to the Royal Gorge and then bike 55 miles (7,500 ft) to Victor. We encounter showers and a rainbow above Cripple Creek before going over Victor Pass (10,201 ft).
On Day 6 (Friday, June 26): We shuttle to the base of Pikes Peak where we begin the big climb to the top at 14,110 ft. I do the whole climb (!) but Mary shuttles the last few miles because she is not feeling well. We have an exciting descent to finish the ride and the tour. I bike 39 miles (6,900 ft) for the day, and Mary does 32 miles (4,000 ft).
Photos and commentary follow.
Day 1 (Sunday, June 21): This is the view of Pikes Peak from Colorado Springs, where we start the day with a shuttle. Our objective on Day 6 is to bike to the top from the other side!
The shuttle takes us to Beckwith Reservoir, where we begin biking for the day.
We have lunch by Lake Isabel.
Soon afterward we get to Bishop Castle, where we climb part way up the left tower. Check out the dragon!
Jim Bishop, who built the castle, rests nearby.
After biking over four 9,000-ft passes, we finish with a great downhill to Westcliffe, where we spend the night. The Sangre de Cristo Mountains dominate the skyline.
Day 2 (Monday, June 22): We start biking in Westcliffe.
We pass some picturesque red barns.
We cruise downhill with the Sangre de Cristo Mountains on our right. We see pronghorns, but they run too fast for me to take a picture of them.
Near the end of the ride, we come to one of the few climbs of the day.
We spend the night at La Plaza Hotel in Walsenburg. Parked in front is the Lizard Head rig that shuttles our suitcases and sometimes us.
Day 3 (Tuesday, June 23): After a short shuttle from Walsenburg to Segundo, we begin with some easy climbing to go around the Spanish Peaks, which are off to the right. The tan rock at the left of center is a massive dike radiating from the peaks.
After a steady climb we get to Cuchara Pass (9,995 ft), the first high pass of the day.
We pass a herd of donkeys in the valley on the other side.
Mary starts the climb to the second pass of the day with the Spanish Peaks behind her. We started the day on the other side of them and went over Cuchara Pass to the right.
Here I am at the second high pass of the day. It is mostly downhill from here to the end of the ride, but there is such a strong headwind that we have to pedal to go down!
Day 4 (Wednesday, June 24): This is the morning view from our lodge overlooking the Great Sand Dunes.
We hike across Medano Creek to get to the dunes. We see some fascinating surge flows in the creek.
We only hike part way up a dune to save energy for the biking ahead.
Mary begins biking for the day.
We pass a field of desert wildflowers.
And then we see one of the San Luis Lakes in the middle of the desert!
After fighting a strong headwind, we finish the day at Joyful Journey Hot Springs Spa. We spend the night in the yurt on the left.
Day 5 (Thursday, June 25): We start the day with a shuttle to the Royal Gorge where we begin biking.
Mary rides on a backcountry road on our way to Cripple Creek.
Mary enters Cripple Creek. The pile of rubble in the upper right is from a huge gold mine. The black clouds portend rain ahead.
This is the huge open-pit gold mine between Cripple Creek and Victor. Those trucks are really big.
We bike under a rainbow during a brief shower (photo by John Humphries).
We go over Victor Pass. Pikes Peak is in the distance (photo by John Humphries).
We spend the night at the Victor Hotel. It was built of brick in 1899-1900 after all the wooden buildings in the business district burned down (photo by John Humphries).
Day 6 (Friday, June 26): We shuttle to the bottom of Pikes Peak and pass through the toll booth near the start of the climb.
The switchbacks go up and up.
I pop out above the clouds.
Mary joins me on the summit after I bike all the way to the top! We both have a thrilling descent back to the bottom and the end of the tour.
Mary and I did the bike tour of a lifetime with Lizard Head in August and September 2014! It was called Zion to Taos, but we actually biked all the way to Santa Fe. We covered nearly 900 miles in 13 days and biked EFI (every fricking inch) of the planned route plus some bonus miles without a shuttle, except for 25 miles after Mary fell and got a concussion. That required a quick trip to the ER for her to get a doctor’s OK to continue.
For the first week of the tour we had 15 guests and two guides, which was more than would fit in the single van that accompanied us after we left Zion. Three guests besides Mary and me biked EFI, which meant that there was enough room in the van for the others when they took a bump at the end of the longest day 🙂 Six guests left after the first week.
Bertrand and Ben were our guides for the first week, while Bertrand and Joe were the guides for the second week. Bertrand is a French chef, so we had some good meals along the road 🙂
Here is our itinerary for this awesome tour!
Day 1 (Sunday, August 31): Hike in the Virgin River Narrows with condors overhead, shuttle through the Zion-Mt Carmel Tunnel, and then bike to Mt Carmel (17 miles & 1,100 ft of climbing). Day 2 (Monday, September 1): Mt Carmel -> Bryce Canyon (64 mi & 4,100 ft) followed by an afternoon hike Day 3 (Tuesday, September 2): Bryce Canyon -> Boulder UT (77 mi & 4,800 ft) Day 4 (Wednesday, September 3): Boulder UT -> Hanksville (87 mi & 5,500 ft) Day 5 (Thursday, September 4): Hanksville -> Blanding (126 mi & 8,700 ft), the Queen Stage!! Day 6 (Friday, September 5): Blanding -> McElmo Canyon (65 mi & 2,600 ft) Day 7 (Saturday, September 6): McElmo Canyon -> Durango (70 mi & 5,000 ft) Day 8 (Sunday, September 7): Durango <-> Pinkerton Hot Springs (31 mi & 1,000 ft) for a rest day bonus ride Day 9 (Monday, September 8): Durango -> Pagosa Hot Springs (54 mi & 3,200 ft), Mary’s fall! Day 10 (Tuesday, September 9): Pagosa Hot Springs -> Chama (48 mi & 3,600 ft) Day 11 (Wednesday, September 10): Chama -> Ojo Caliente (94 mi & 5,300 ft) Day 12 (Thursday, September 11): Ojo Caliente -> Taos plus a bonus out-and-back ride to Palo Flechado Pass (78 mi & 4,600 ft) Day 13 (Friday, September 12): Taos -> Santa Fe (77 mi & 6,900 ft)
Photos and commentary follow.
Day 1: Sunday, August 31. Mary and I are ready to start the tour with a warmup hike along the Virgin River in Zion National Park.
Condors circle overhead!
After shuttling through the 1.1-mile Zion-Mt Carmel Tunnel on the east side of the park, we are ready to start biking for 13 days!
Mary climbs out of the park.
Day 2: Monday, September 1. We start three days of biking along Utah’s Scenic Byway 12.
We follow a dedicated bike path through Red Canyon.
When we get to Bryce Canyon National Park, we get off our bikes and go for a hike.
Day 3: Tuesday, September 2. We enter Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument soon after we leave Bryce Canyon.
Sunflowers are in bloom in a dry wash.
Escalante, with less than 1,000 people, is the largest town along today’s ride.
This is the view from Head of the Rocks. Can you find the road we will ride?
Mary does one of the last climbs of the day.
We spend the night at the Boulder Mountain Lodge, which serves us a delicious dinner and breakfast.
Day 4: Wednesday, September 3. Mary nears the top of the climb above 9,000 ft over the east shoulder of Boulder Mountain.
I get ready for a death-defying descent. I hit 49.7 mph on the way down!
We follow the Fremont River in Capitol Reef National Park.
A sheep watches warily from the bushes beside the road.
Irrigation makes a spectacular green oasis in the desert.
Factory Butte towers above the desert floor.
Day 5: Thursday, September 4. This is the long, lonely road that will take us 126 miles from Hanksville to Blanding for the Queen Stage of the tour. We leave in the dark before anyone else, and an owl flies beside us for awhile.
We wait at Hog Spring for Bertrand, who arrives in the van with a hot breakfast! We leave before any of the other guests arrive. From here until we near the end of the day’s ride, I see two outhouses, one ranch, and no services. It is really good that we have a van with us.
We roll downhill to the Colorado River.
We cross the river at Hite, the lowest elevation on the tour. We now have an uphill ride into a headwind with the temperature in the 90s.
We get some salvation in late afternoon when the wind dies down and a shower cools the air. This plaque at Salvation Knoll seems apt.
Day 6: Friday, September 5. At the first rest stop of the day, the trailer gets stuck on the drop-off by the side of the road. After disconnecting the trailer and jacking it up, we are able to put the rig back together again.
We cross into Colorado and stop for lunch at Sutcliffe Vineyards, which is in the irrigated bottom of McElmo Canyon.
We spend the night at Kelly Place in McElmo Canyon.
I explore one of the kivas nearby.
Day 7: Saturday, September 6. On our way from McElmo Canyon to Durango, we stop for lunch in Mancos. There we see the historic Bauer House.
Later we find this plaque commemorating the 1776 expedition of Dominguez and Escalante. These two Spanish priests and their party were the first Europeans to explore western Colorado, Utah, and northern Arizona.
Day 8: Saturday, September 7. On our rest day, Mary and I do a 31-mile loop ride from Durango up and down either side of the the Animas River Valley. Here Mary has just crossed the river.
We turn around near Pinkerton Hot Springs.
You can read about the springs here.
Day 9: Monday, September 8. Mary falls after hitting a pothole when leaving Durango and gets a concussion while cracking her helmet 🙁 Bertrand drops us off at the ER and goes to Walmart to get a new helmet. After the doctor OKs Mary to continue, we rejoin the other guests for lunch by the side of the road.
We continue with the rest of the guests to Pagosa Springs and then do a bonus ride outside of town to make up for the miles we missed in the morning.
Later we soak in the hot springs. This is my favorite.
We regroup for dinner. Mary seems concerned but perks up when asked about what it’s like to be a rocket scientist.
Day 10: Tuesday, September 9. We enter New Mexico. This is a rougher place to bike. There are bullet holes in the welcome sign, and the shoulders of the roads are covered with glass from broken beer bottles. We have several flat tires on the rest of the tour.
We bike through some rain to finish in Chama. Bertrand prepares bouillabaisse for dinner outside our motel while Mary and Barb watch with eager anticipation.
Day 11: Wednesday, September 10. We bike south from Chama to Tierra Amarilla and then go east over the Brazos Summit at 10,528 ft on our way to Tres Piedras. This is the highest elevation of the tour.
There is little traffic on this high-country stretch of US 64.
We turn south at Tres Piedras and go to Ojo Caliente, where we soak in the pools and spend the night.
Day 12: Thursday, September 11. We bike on backroads to rejoin US 64 just before it crosses this bridge over the Rio Grande. Mary has two flats, and I have one along the way.
This is the impressive view of the Rio Grande Gorge from the bridge.
Wildflowers are still in bloom on the other side, even though it is September.
After a 42-mile ride to Taos, where we will spend the night, Mary and I do a 36-mile bonus ride out and back to Palo Flechado Pass.
Back in Taos we check out the historic plaza.
Day 13: Friday, September 12. On our final day of the tour we bike the High Road to Taos from Santa Fe in reverse.
We have great views from parts of the road that really are up high.
At our lunch stop, guide Joe takes a photo of the very fit team that bikes the whole 13-day tour. From left to right are guests Ron D, Barb, Dan, Liz, Mary, Wayne, Ron K, Debbie, Robert, and guide Bertrand.
Mary leads the team up one of our last climbs.
Near the end we take a detour on a dirt road to avoid some busy traffic.
Two happy bikers celebrate completing this awesome tour in Santa Fe!
Mary and I did our first bike tour with Lizard Head in May 2013. It was called Redrock Canyons and was in Colorado, Utah, and Arizona. In six days we covered 474 miles, including two centuries, with 30,200 ft of climbing. There were three other guests – Bob, Mary Ellen, and Charlie from Florida – and two guides – Joe and Chuck.
We had unusual, unsettled weather. On each of the last five days there was alternating sun and precipitation of some sort. Day 2 was the hardest. Not only was it long, but we had 40 miles of light rain into a headwind with the temperature in the low 40s. On the last day we briefly biked with hail stones pounding on our helmets and carpeting the road!
Here is the itinerary for the tour.
Day 1 (Sunday, May 5): Fruita -> east side of Colorado National Monument + Unaweep Canyon -> Gateway (62 miles & 4,600 ft of climbing) Day 2 (Monday, May 6): Gateway -> Dove Creek (113 mi & 6,200 ft in under 12 hours), the Queen Stage and the longest that we had ever ridden! Day 3 (Tuesday, May 7): Dove Creek -> Bluff (86 miles & 3,500 ft of climbing) Day 4 (Wednesday, May 8): Blanding <-> Salvation Knoll (49 mi & 5,200 ft), a “rest day” ride Day 5 (Thursday, May 9): Bluff -> Monument Valley (57 miles & 4,900 ft of climbing) Day 6 (Friday, May 10): Monument Valley -> Hite (107 mi & 6,000 ft in under 10 hours), another century ride!
Photos and commentary follow.
Day 1: Sunday, May 5. After a short shuttle from Grand Junction, Mary and I are ready to start biking in Fruita.
Soon we enter Colorado National Monument via the west entrance.
We climb these switchbacks to reach the rim of the canyon.
We follow Rim Rock Drive and eventually get to this great view of Independence Monument.
This closeup of Independence Monument shows two climbers on the ledge just below the summit on the left!
After lunch near the east entrance of the Monument, we do another shuttle to Unaweep Canyon. Many years ago it contained a river, but now there are just two creeks which are separated by this gentle divide.
We continue biking to Gateway, where we spend the night at the fancy Gateway Canyons Resort (not this log cabin). The Palisade is the prominent butte in the background.
Day 2: Monday, May 6. Mary leaves Gateway just after dawn with the Palisade in the background. We get an early start for this Queen Stage of the tour.
We follow the Delores River upstream for miles and eventually get to this overlook. When we get to the junction with the San Miguel River, we follow it upstream.
We have lunch in Naturita, after which we ride for 40 miles through cold rain! Eventually we reach the Delores River again and dry off. We cross the river there at Slick Rock and warm up as we climb on our way to Dove Creek, where we spend the night.
Day 3: Tuesday, May 7. John Humphries, the owner of Lizard Head, joins us briefly during our wet start from Dove Creek. After the rain stops, we have this view of Sleeping Ute Mountain across the sagebrush of the Colorado Plateau.
We cross into Utah and enter Hovenweep National Monument. It contains the ruins of several prehistoric villages scattered across multiple sites.
This ruin is called the Stronghold House.
Mary and I pose in our cold-weather biking attire.
After lunch we continue west to a rest stop at the Hatch Trading Post. Here Chuck and Joe stand by the trailer that hauls our luggage and food.
Mary climbs up from the trading post with the Sleeping Ute in the background. We ride to Bluff, where we spend the night.
Day 4: Wednesday, May 8. Mary, Charlie, Joe, and I decide to do an out-and-back bike ride on our “rest day”. After a shuttle
to Blanding, we bike over Comb Ridge. Here Joe whizzes downhill from the road cut in the ridge.
We stop for a break at the Mule Canyon ruins.
We turn around at Salvation Knoll dressed in our cold- and wet-weather attire.
The weather finally clears as we go back through the road cut in Comb Ridge.
After we shuttle back from Blanding to Bluff, we find Chuck fixing a BBQ dinner for us!
Day 5: Thursday, May 9. We leave Bluff and bike one last time over Comb Ridge in the distance. We see four wild burros on today’s ride.
We stop for a break at this stunning overlook of the Goosenecks of the San Juan River.
We follow famous US 163 to Monument Valley.
We stop for lunch near the top of the climb and wait for the weather to clear.
This thunderstorm is pouring rain over the park at the end of our ride.
After waiting out the storm, we bike to the Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park, which is just across the border in Arizona. This is the spectacular view of the Mittens and Merrick Butte from our room at the View Hotel!
Day 6: Friday, May 10. We retrace part of our route from the day before and go past famous Mexican Hat back in Utah.
We bike across the Valley of the Gods and are awed by the formidable escarpment of Cedar Mesa, which awaits us ahead.
This sign advises us of the steep gravel road ahead. Called the Moki Dugway, it was built in the 1950s for trucks hauling uranium and vanadium ore down from the mesa. We do the 1,200 ft climb on our road bikes. The road switchbacks above and to the right of the sign!
We are treated to this awesome view down the switchbacks and across the valley from the top of the climb.
The road is straight and gently rolling on top of Cedar Mesa. The La Sal Mountains in the distance have new snow from the recent storms.
We stop for lunch by the van one last time at Kane Gulch Ranger Station. Soon after we leave, a black cloud passes overhead, and hailstones pound on our helmets and cover the road!
We bike west through the spectacular scenery of the future Bears Ears National Monument with the Henry Mountains in the distance.
Mary and I celebrate the end of a terrific tour on our bikes by the bridge over the Colorado River at Hite! We then do a long shuttle back to Grand Junction.
Mary and I did our last bike tour with Breaking Away in July 2012. Called the Trans Alps Challenge, it was 10 days of epic biking along the border between France and Italy! We biked 57 miles during two warmup days and 594 miles with 78,500 ft of climbing during the tour! There were eight guests plus three guides: Oleg Bozhor (the new owner), Mitch Clinton, and Guillaume Dassonville. We had biked before with all three guides.
Here is the itinerary for the tour.
Days -1 & 0 (Wednesday & Thursday, July 18 & 19): We arrive in Geneva on Wednesday afternoon and shuttle to Divonne-les-Bains in France, where we spend two nights. We do warmup rides of 13 miles on Wednesday and 44 miles on Thursday by Lake Geneva back and forth across the border between France and Switzerland.
Day 1 (Friday, July 20): Shuttle to St Pierre-en-Faucigny on the outskirts of Geneva in France and then bike to Crest-Voland over the Col de St Jean de Sixt (956 m), Col de la Croix Fry (1,477 m), and Col des Aravis (1,487 m) for 43 miles and 6,900 ft of climbing.
Day 2 (Saturday, July 21): Bike from Crest-Voland to Bourg-St-Maurice over the Col des Saisies (1,650 m) and Comet de Roselend (1,968 m), shuttle to Val d’Isère, and then bike to Lanslevillard over the Col de l’Iseran (2,770 m or 9,088 ft), the highest paved pass in the Alps. We bike 71 miles with 9,000 ft of climbing.
Day 3 (Sunday, July 22): Bike from Lanslevillard to Sestriere in Italy. We go over the Col du Mont Cenis (2,085 m) and Colle delle Finestre (2,176 m) and finish with the climb to Sestriere (2,035 m). We bike 55 miles with 10,000 ft of climbing.
Day 4 (Monday, July 23): Bike from Sestriere to Dronero with a short shuttle to avoid some construction. We bike 67 mi with 3,500 ft of climbing.
Day 5 (Tuesday, July 24): Bike a loop from Dronero over the Colle Fauniera (2,481 m) for 56 miles and 6,500 ft of climbing. We are the only guests to do all of this ride.
Day 6 (Wednesday, July 25): Bike from Dronero over the Colle della Lombarda (2,350 m) at the border with France and half-way up the Col de la Bonette (2,715 m) when a thunderstorm forces us to shuttle to Jausiers for the night. We bike 74 miles with 10,500 ft of climbing.
Day 7 (Thursday, July 26): Bike a loop from Jausiers over the Col de la Cayolle (2,326 m), Col de Champs (2,080 m), and Col d’Allos (2,250 m) for 85 miles and 10,700 ft of climbing. We are the only guests to do all of this ride.
Day 8 (Friday, July 27): Bike from Jausiers over the Col de Vars (2,109 m) and Col d’Izoard (2,360 m) and most of the way down to Briançon when a gusty thunderstorm forces us to shuttle the last few miles to town. We bike 53 miles with 7,800 ft of climbing.
Day 9 (Saturday, July 28): Bike from Briançon to the tops of the Col de Lauteret (2,058 m) and Col du Galibier (2,642 m), shuttle through tunnels, and then bike up the famous Alpe d’Huez (1,780 m). We bike 41 miles with 8,300 ft of climbing.
Day 10 (Sunday, July 29): Bike from Alpe d’Huez to the top of the Col de la Croix de Fer (2,067 m), over the Col du Glandon (1,924 m), and down to La Chambre for 49 miles and 5,300 ft of climbing. We shuttle back to Divonne-les-Bais to end our epic tour!
Photos and commentary follow.
Day -1: Wednesday, July 18. We have this great view of Mont Blanc as we fly into the Geneva airport.
After Guillaume picks us up at the airport and shuttles us to Divonne-les-Bains, we get fitted for our bikes and go for a warmup ride. Here Mary stops by a cornfield with Mont Blanc in the distance.
Further along the first crop of hay has already been harvested.
Day 1: Friday, July 20. We get on our bikes in St Pierre-en-Faucigny to start the tour.
These two cols are open. When we arrive at the junction for them, we take the road to Col des Aravis.
We go over the easy Col de St Jean de Sixt, the first of three cols today.
Next we go over the Col de la Croix Fry.
We stop for lunch at the Col des Aravis.
This is the impressive view of Mont Blanc from the col (photo by Mitch Clinton). Afterward we go down the Gorges de l’Arondine, cross the river at Flumet, and climb a short way to Crest-Voland where we spend the night.
Day 2: Saturday, July 21. Soon after we start we go over the Col des Saisies and drop down to the valley on the other side.
Mary climbs the Cormet de Roselend (photo by Mitch Clinton).
We stop at the top of the Cormet de Roselend, the second col of the day. We then enjoy a long downhill to Bourg-St-Maurice, where we have lunch.
After a shuttle to Val d’Isère, we start the long climb to the Col de l’Iseran.
Mary approaches the top of the climb with Val d’Isère far below.
Mary has only 1 km more to go to the top of the climb.
We are on top of the Col de l’Iseran, the highest paved pass in the Alps! There are still patches of snow in July.
Long switchbacks take us down the other side of the col to Lanslevillard where we spend the night.
Day 3: Sunday, July 22. Mary is part way up the Col du Mont Cenis, the first climb of the day.
Mary reaches the top of the Col du Mont Cenis.
We bike several kilometers beside the lake near the top of the col.
We cross into Italy and drop down to Susa in the valley below.
We take the lightly travelled road on the right to the Colle delle Finestre.
I near the top of the Colle delle Finestre. The last 8 of 19 km are not paved. Of the eight guests on the tour, I am the only one to do the whole climb on a road bike!
I celebrate reaching the top of the Colle delle Finestre.
We drop down the other side and then begin the long climb to Sestriere at the end of the valley in the distance.
We spend the night in Sestriere, which is a biking destination in the summer and a ski resort in the winter.
Day 4: Monday, July 23. We retrace part of yesterday’s route until we get to this junction, where we go to the right toward Dronero.
We cross this bridge to finish the ride in Dronero where we spend two nights (photo by Mitch Clinton).
Here is the river that runs underneath the bridge.
Day 5: Tuesday, July 24. We do a loop ride that takes us over Colle Fauniera.
This stretch at 15% grade is the steepest of the tour.
Mary crosses an arched stone bridge.
We reach the top of Colle Fauniera in a cloud. The alternative name of Colle dei Morti is more sinister.
Lots of cows are grazing on the other side of the col.
These cowbells help keep track of the cows.
We stop at Hotel Village Ceaglio, which is a popular place for mountain bikers in the summer.
We strike up a conversation with Peter Vogt who is in charge of IT for the hotel.
Lots of old tools hang on a wall.
Day 6: Wednesday, July 25. We start the long climb up Colle della Lombarda.
We go up these switchbacks.
Mary nears the top of the climb.
We reach the top of the col, which is now named Col de la Lombard since we are entering France (photo by Mitch Clinton).
We go down these switchbacks on the other side. A ski resort is in the distance.
We go right at this junction to the Col de la Bonette.
Mary bikes past a waterfall.
We get off our bikes part way up the col because of a thunderstorm overhead and shuttle to Jausiers (photo by Mitch Clinton).
We spend two nights at the Hotel Villa Morelia in Jausiers (photo by Mitch Clinton).
Day 7: Thursday, July 26. We bike several miles from Jausiers to this junction where we start a big loop over three cols. First we go up Col de la Cayolle to the left.
We follow the Gorges du Bachelard for much of the climb.
We reach the top of Col de la Cayolle.
Fireweed is in bloom as we go down the other side.
We start the climb up Col des Champs.
The col is in the distance.
We reach the top of Col des Champs. The other guests are ahead of us.
Mary goes down the other side. We meet the other guests and our guide Guillaume at the bottom where they are finishing lunch. We have a snack and say good-bye to them as they all shuttle back to Jausiers.
We are on our own as we start the third climb of the day up Col d’Allos. The road is reserved for cyclists every Friday morning in July and August.
Mary crosses one of many stone culverts on the climb.
I make it to the top of Col d’Allos. Mary does too but struggles up this last climb of the day because she did not have enough to eat.
We have a long descent to the valley below and then a few more miles up the valley to the right to get back to Jausiers. We have a long day on our bikes: 85 miles with 10,700 ft of climbing!
Day 8: Friday, July 27. We leave Jausiers going north.
The Fort de Tournoux towers above the valley road. It was built to defend France against invasion from Italy.
Mary heads toward the Col de Vars.
We cross this river after which the climb gets steeper.
We reach the top of the Col de Vars.
We continue north a little way down these switchbacks and then turn east.
We ride along a road high above the Gorges du Guil.
Eventually we drop down to the river and see these kayakers.
We leave the main road to Italy and head north to the Col d’Izoard. It is 14 km to the top.
We bike through a small town in this valley before we get to the steep part of the climb.
The last couple of miles go through the otherworldly Casse Déserte.
This impressive monument is on top of the Col d’Izoard.
We follow these switchbacks down the other side. A gusty thunderstorm passes overhead, and we get a shuttle the last few miles to Briançon.
We walk to the old town of Briançon for dinner and cross the moat on this bridge.
Day 9: Saturday, July 28. We leave Briançon and start the climb to the Col du Lauteret in the rain.
Both cols that we will climb are open.
We reach the Col du Lauteret and continue up to the Col du Galibier.
Mary nears the top of the Col du Galibier.
We savor the top of the Col du Galibier, the fourth highest paved pass in France. We retrace the last part of our climb, shuttle through some tunnels, and bike to le Bourg-d’Oisans where we have lunch.
After lunch we start the 14-km climb up Alpe d’Huez.
This is the first of 21 switchbacks, which are numbered starting from the top.
Lots of switchbacks are behind us as we are high up the climb.
I near the top of the climb (photo by Mitch Clinton).
This banner marks the official end of the climb. Note the crosswalk underneath the banner.
Mary goes past the crosswalk to finish the official climb. However, we need to bike a little further to get to the hotel where we spend the night.
Day 10: Sunday, July 29. We proudly wear our new Alpe d’Huez jerseys that Oleg gave us the night before.
We go partway down by a different route and then rejoin the route that we took up the day before.
We bike along the valley floor until we come to this junction. There we turn right to climb the last two cols of the tour.
This World War I monument is partway up the climb.
Mary bikes along the Lac de Grand Maison.
We pass fireweed above the lake and head for the Col du Glandon in the distance.
We continue past the turn to the Col du Glandon and climb to the higher Col de la Croix de Fer along the road behind these signs.
We reach the top of the Col de la Croix de Fer. Bikers in a race come up the other side.
This is the Iron Cross for which the col is named.
We go back down to the Col du Glandon.
This big bike sculpture is at the col.
We go over the Col du Glandon and down these switchbacks to finish our biking at La Chambre. We shuttle back to Divonne-les-Bains to end our epic tour!
After finishing the previous six-day bike tour with Breaking Away, Mary and I returned to the Novotel Malpensa in Cardano al Campo near the Milan Malpensa airport. We spent three nights there and biked on our own for three layover days. We then did this second bike tour with Breaking Away for the next seven days in July 2011. The first five days were in the Dolomite Alps, while the last two days were in the higher Alps of Italy further west. We biked 95 miles on our layover days and 352 miles with 45,300 ft of climbing during the tour. There were 11 guests in total plus four guides: Greg and Teri Hogan, Glen Allen, and Oleg Bozhor.
Here is the itinerary for the tour.
Day -2 (Friday, July 1): On our first layover day we do a longer ride along the Canale Naviglio Grande than we did before the previous tour. We bike 45 miles.
Day -1 (Saturday, July2): We have saddle sores and bike only 10 miles from Cardano al Campo to Femo and back. For extra exercise, we run 5 miles and swim 400 m.
Day 0 (Sunday, July 3): We go back to the Canale Naviglio Grande and bike the opposite way alongside the Fiume Ticino. We bike 40 miles and run 5 miles. Mary does a 400-m bonus swim.
Day 1 (Monday, July 4): Take a long shuttle to Levico Terme. Then bike 47 miles with 4,000 ft of climbing to finish at Albergo Antico in Bellamonte.
Day 2 (Tuesday, July 5): Bike over Passo Rolle (1,984 m) and Passo Cereda (1,369 m) to finish at Sporthotel Europa in Alleghe, where we spend three nights. We bike 55 miles with 6,500 ft of climbing.
Day 3 (Wednesday, July 6): Bike the Grande Strada della Dolomiti, a big loop over five passes: Passo Falzarego (2,105 m), Passo Valparola (2,192 m), Passo Gardena (2,136 m), Passo Sella (2,240 m), and Passo Pordoi (2,239 m)! The first two passes are right next to each other. We bike 68 miles with 9,000 ft of climbing.
Day 4 (Thursday, July 7): Bike most of the Alleghe Sud loop over Passo Duran (1,605 m) and Passo Staulanza (1,773 m) with an out-and-back to Passo Giau (2,236 m). We shuttle a downhill stretch because the road is wet. We bike 55 miles with 10,000 ft of climbing!
Day 5 (Friday, July 8): Bike through the Sottoguda gorge, over Passo Fedaia (2,054 m), and over Passo Costalunga (1,752 m) to finish at Hotel Stiegl-Scala in Bolzano. We bike 51 miles with 5,000 ft of climbing and swim 400 m afterward.
Day 6 (Saturday, July 9): Do a long shuttle to Lasa. Then bike 42 switchbacks up the 6,200-ft climb to Passo dello Stelvio (2,760 m or 9,055 ft), the second highest paved pass in the Alps! We finish the day with a long downhill to Bormio, after 35 miles of biking with 6,200 ft of climbing.
Day 7 (Sunday, July 10): Bike one more big climb over Passo Gavia (2,652 m) to finish in Edolo after 41 miles of biking with 4,600 ft of climbing. Do a long shuttle back to Novotel Malpensa in Cardano al Campo to end the tour after 17 successive days of biking in Italy and Switzerland!
Photos and commentary follow.
Day -2: July 1. On our first layover day we bike for miles along the path by the Canale Naviglio Grande. Stretches of it are very green during the summer.
Picturesque towns front the canal along other stretches.
Day 1: July 4. After a long shuttle to Levico Terme, we begin our biking with a climb through vineyards above the distant valley. It is our anniversary 🙂
We stop for a snack at this lake.
Mary bikes by a church in a small town along the way.
We spend the night at Albergo Antico in Bellemonte.
Day 2: Tuesday, July 5. We get our first views of the spectacular Dolomite Alps!
We bike over Passo Rolle.
Then we go down a twisty descent through this ski resort.
Seven very fit bikers pose at the top of Passo Cereda, our second pass of the day.
We have lunch at this inn at the pass.
After we go down another twisty descent, Mary enjoys a flat ride along a valley road.
We bike around this tunnel via the bypass to the right.
Mary does one last climb for the day.
We spend the first of three nights at Sporthotel Europa in Alleghe.
Day 3: Wednesday, July 6. Soon after we start biking, we come to this complicated road junction. We take the road to Passo Falzarego.
Mary nears the final switchbacks below the top of the pass.
Mary is just below the pass with the glacier-topped Marmolada in the distance.
We summit Passo Falzarego, the first of five passes on this epic day of biking!
After only another mile, we go over Passo Valparola.
We enjoy a long descent and then begin climbing again as we near La Villa.
We have lunch in Corvara, the town far below, and then climb these switchbacks to Passo Gardena.
Mary does a little extra climbing to stand by the sign at the top of the pass.
The view down the other side is spectacular!
Mary descends the other side.
Then we climb again and are treated to this view of the Marmolada. With an elevation of 10,968 ft, it is the highest peak in the Dolomite Alps.
We summit Passo Sella.
And then we go over Passo Pordoi, the fifth pass of the day!
We have a long, long descent to get back to Alleghe in the valley below. This has been our most incredible day of biking!
Day 4: Thursday, July 7. Mary climbs Passo Duran.
We make it to the top.
We go down a twisty descent and then summit the higher Passo Staulanza. The road ahead is wet, so we shuttle to the start of the next climb.
We get on our bikes again at the start of the climb to Passo Giau.
Mary nears the top of the pass.
We celebrate reaching the top of our third pass of the day!
Day 5: Friday, July 8. We go right at this road junction through the Serrai di Sottoguda. It is a narrow gorge that is only open to bikers and hikers.
Mary bikes through the gorge.
We rejoin the road for cars on the other side and climb to the top of Passo Fedaia. The grade is 13% near the top.
Our second pass of the day is Passo Costalunga.
We finish our ride with a long descent into Bolzano, the largest city in South Tyrol. This is the main square.
Mary checks out the fruit and vegetables in this open-air market.
Day 6: Saturday, July 9. Mary starts the long, 6,200-ft climb up Passo dello Stelvio!
We pass this picturesque church.
Mary pedals higher on one of the many switchbacks.
As we near the top, we see these switchbacks dotted with bikers below.
We savor the top of Passo dello Stelvio!
Going down the switchbacks on the other side is a real treat. We use care going through the dark tunnels further down.
We spend the night at Hotel San Lorenzo in Bormio.
Day 7: Sunday, July 10. We get an early start on our bikes to climb Passo Gavia before a local race does the same climb.
The motorcycle escort for the lead racers catches Mary. Spectators cheer us on along the way 🙂
Mary nears the summit of this big climb.
We enjoy our last summit of the tour. We then do a long downhill ride to Edolo where we finish our incredible 17 successive days of biking in Italy and Switzerland!
Mary and I did the first of two back-to-back bike tours in the Alps with Breaking Away in June 2011. The first three days of this six-day tour were in the Lake District of Italy and Switzerland, and the second three days were in the Swiss Alps. We biked 33 miles on our warmup day and 304 miles with 28,500 ft of climbing during the tour. There were 20 guests in total plus four guides: Greg and Teri Hogan, Mitch Clinton, and Oleg Bozhor.
Here is the itinerary for the tour.
Day 0 (Friday, June 24): We arrive at the Milan Malpensa airport and shuttle to the nearby Novotel Malpensa in Cardano al Campo, our hotel for the night. We go for an out-and-back warmup ride to and along the Canale Naviglio Grande. We bike 33 miles.
Day 1 (Saturday, June 25): Shuttle to Arona on Lago Maggiore. Then bike along the lake to Stresa, do a loop to Orta San Giulio, and spend the night at Hotel Astoria back in Stresa. We bike 57 miles with 2,800 ft of climbing.
Day 2 (Sunday, June 26): Bike from Stresa on Lago Maggiore to Bellagio on Lago di Como, where we spend two nights at Hotel Belvedere. We take two ferries, go in and out of Switzerland by Lago di Lugano, and bike 68 miles with 2,800 ft of climbing.
Day 3 (Monday, June 27): Bike a loop to Madonna del Ghisallo, where there is a chapel, cycling museum, and cycling monument. We bike 22 miles with 2,500 ft of climbing and swim 400 m in the hotel pool.
Day 4 (Tuesday, June 28): Do a long shuttle to Roveredo in Switzerland. Then bike over Passo del San Bernardino (2,066 m) to Hotel Eden Montana in Ilanz. We bike 76 miles with 7,200 ft of climbing.
Day 5 (Wednesday, June 29): Shuttle a short way to Disentis, bike out and back to Lukmanierpass (1,920 m), and then bike over Oberalppass (2,046 m) to Alpenhotel Schlussel in Andermatt. We bike 44 miles with 6,500 ft of climbing.
Day 6 (Thursday, June 30): Bike from Andermatt over Furkapass (2,436 m) and Nufenenpass (2,478 m or 8,130 ft) to finish in Airolo after 37 miles of biking with 6,700 ft of climbing. Do a long shuttle back to Novotel Malpensa in Cardano al Campo to end the tour.
Photos and commentary follow.
Day 0: Friday, June 24. We are in front of our hotel in Cardano al Campo and are ready for a warmup ride.
Day 1: Saturday, June 25. We are ready to start biking in Arona.
We bike along Lago Maggiore.
When we get to Stresa, we climb above the lake and have this beautiful view.
We stop for lunch in Orta San Giulio by Lago d’Orta. This is the view of the lake from our restaurant.
We walk through the small town and see colorful old buildings such as this one.
Back on our bikes, we climb above Lago d’Orta.
We end our day at the Hotel Astoria.
This is the view of Lago Maggiore from the balcony of our hotel room.
Day 2: Sunday, June 26. We bike along the shore of Lago Maggiore to Verbania, where we get in line to take the ferry across the lake to Laveno. Our bikes are on the three vans for the tour.
We begin boarding the ferry.
The ferry takes us to Laveno.
This is the view from Laveno back to Verbania with the snow-topped Monte Rosa Massif in the distance.
We bike into Switzerland and along the shore of Lago di Lugano.
After lunch by the lake we climb an 18% grade to leave Switzerland and return to Italy (photo by Mitch Clinton).
Lago di Como is our third lake of the day.
We get to Cadenabbia on Lago di Como just in time to catch the ferry to Bellagio.
Bellagio is on a peninsula of land between two arms of the lake.
As we walk up the hill to Hotel Belvedere, we see this view back across the lake.
At the hotel, Mitch takes this group photo of the 20 guests and three other guides.
Day 3: Monday, June 27. We bike a loop to Madonna del Ghisallo, where there is a chapel …
and a cycling museum (photo by Mitch Clinton) …
and a cycling monument.
We bike along the shore of Lago di Como back to Bellagio, which is by the hill at the tip of the peninsula in the distance.
The hotel has a nice pool where we swim.
These stairs take us into town for dinner.
Mary is all smiles as she waits for dinner at a restaurant by the lake.
After dinner we hike back up the stairs to our hotel.
Day 4: Tuesday, June 28. After our shuttle to Roveredo in Switzerland, we start biking up this beautiful valley.
We pass this waterfall and arched bridge.
Mary is well up the long climb to Passo del San Bernardino.
Mary nears the top of the pass (photo by Mitch Clinton).
We celebrate the top of our first pass in Switzerland!
Mary stops by the side of road as we go down another beautiful valley. There is very little traffic, since the main road goes through tunnels.
A sign in German wishes us a happy holiday 🙂
This is the view from our hotel room in Ilanz, where we spend the night.
Day 5: Wednesday, June 29. During an out-and-back ride, we turn around at Lukmanierpass (in German) or Passo del Lucomagno (in Italian). There is an ospizio, or hostel, at the pass.
Next we bike over Oberalppass
For some reason there is a lighthouse at this pass 🙂
Day 6: Thursday, June 30. We bike up these switchbacks to Furkapass on a dreary day.
The top of the pass is in a cloud. We warm up and wait awhile inside the shelter at the top hoping the cloud will lift.
Unfortunately, the cloud does not lift, so we shuttle down the other side and miss doing this amazing downhill on our bikes.
The sun is out in the valley below where we get on our bikes again.
Mary starts the big climb up Nufenenpass.
These are the final switchbacks up Nufenenpass, the highest paved pass in Switzerland at 8,130 ft.
High peaks poke through the clouds at the top of the pass.
We whiz down these switchbacks on the other side on our way to Airolo, where we end the biking for the tour.
Mary and I did our third bike tour of the year and second with Bicycle Adventures in October 2010. Called the Hawaii Classic Plus, this seven-day tour circled the Big Island. Besides us, there were four other energetic and enthusiastic guests – Cliff and Kathy from Wisconsin, Paul from Washington, and Yvonne from Saskatchewan – plus our fun-loving guide, Wyler Boulé from Washington.
Here is the itinerary for the tour.
Day 0 (Saturday, October 9): Arrive at the Kona airport and shuttle to the Waikoloa Beach Marriott in Waikoloa. Along the way we pass cyclists participating in the Hawaii Ironman Triathlon! In a few days we will bike this same route. Day 1 (Sunday, October 10): Bike 49 miles from Waikoloa to Waipio Valley Overlook. Then shuttle toward Hilo and get dropped off partway to meet long-time friend Tom Burton, who gives us a snack and a tour of his farm. Afterward he drives us to Hilo where we rejoin the rest of the tour for dinner. We spend the night at the Hilo Hawaiian Hotel. Day 2 (Monday, October 11): Shuttle to Pahoa and bike two loops in the Puna District for 50 miles with a swim in the Ahalanui Hot Pond along the way. Then shuttle to Kurtistown and bike another 20 miles to the Kilauea Lodge in Volcano. We spend two nights there. Day 3 (Tuesday, October 12): Hike in the Thurston Lava Tube and Kilauea Iki Crater in the morning. Bike 31 miles to the end of the road up Mauna Loa and back in the afternoon. Day 4 (Wednesday, October 13): Bike 100 miles (!) to the Keauhou Beach Resort in Kona. Day 5 (Thursday, October 14): Bike to Greenwell Farms where we tour a coffee farm and then to Puuhonua O Honaunau, the Place of Refuge, for lunch. Afterward, bike all the way to the Waikoloa Beach Marriott where we spend another three nights. We bike a total of 74 miles. Day 6 (Friday, October 15): Bike a 70-mile loop along the coast to Hawi with a return via Waimea to complete our circumnavigation of the Big Island. Day 7 (Saturday, October 16): Ride a catamaran and snorkel to officially end this classic tour! We also run 5 or 6 miles on our own at sunrise and hike in the Waikoloa Petroglyph Preserve in the afternoon. Day 8 (Sunday, October 17): Run 6 miles again at sunrise and then catch our flight home.
Photos and commentary follow.
Day 1: Sunday, October 10. Mary and I are ready and eager to start biking from the Waikoloa Beach Marriott.
We bike east toward Mauna Kea on Waikoloa Rd until it ends and then turn north on Mamalahoa Hwy, where Mary is here. She has just passed the Saddle Road junction. Mauna Loa is in the distance to the south.
We turn east at Waimea and bike in a cloud much of the way from there to this Waipio Valley Lookout. We end our biking for the day there, have lunch nearby, and shuttle south on the road to Hilo, which is too dangerous for bikes.
Partway through the shuttle, we get dropped off to meet Tom Burton, who drives us to his farm. This is his two-part house. Mod 1 on the left is finished, while Mod 2 on the right is livable, but largely unfinished inside.
This is the dining room and kitchen in Mod 1. Tom cuts up the farm-grown papaya on the table and serves it to us as a snack.
Afterward we walk around the farm. Papaya trees are in the foreground, while his two-part house is in the background.
Here is a closeup of a papaya tree with a row crop behind.
Tom, shown here, has some goats and built this A-frame for them to climb 🙂
Day 2: Monday, October 11. After a shuttle to Pahoa, we bike south on Hwy 130 and pass the Star of the Sea Painted Church. It used to be in the town of Kalapana at the end of the road but was moved here in 1990 just ahead of the lava flow that overran the town.
Soon afterward we see steam from new lava entering the ocean in the distance!
The road ends at the hardened lava from the 1990 eruption. Mary and I sat on a black sand beach here in 1977!
We bike east on Hwy 137 past green palm trees, black rocks, white surf, and bluegreen ocean.
We swim in the geothermal Ahalanui Hot Pond. Sadly, this beautiful pool was covered by lava in 2018 🙁
I bike back to Pahoa on a tree-lined road.
The road steepens as we near Pahoa. We shuttle from there to Kurtistown, where Paul, Mary, and I get on our bikes again to do the long, gradual climb to Volcano on Hwy 11.
Day 3: Tuesday, October 12. We begin the day with a hike through the 500-year-old Thurston Lava Tube. Our guide Wilder clearly enjoys his job 🙂
Next we hike down into Kilauea Iki, a pit crater next to the large Kilauea caldera.
As we climb out of the crater, we have this view looking west across the crater to Halemaumau, another pit crater steaming in the distance.
Here is our team on the rim of Kilauea Iki: Cliff, Kathy, Wilder, Yvonne, Paul, Mary, and me.
We shuttle to the Jagger Museum next to the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory to get a closer view of Halemaumau. Both the museum and observatory were damaged in the 2018 eruption and have been closed since then.
In the afternoon, Paul, Mary, and I bike up Mauna Loa to the end of the road.
A hiking trail goes higher, but we turn around here.
Mary puts on her jacket since the descent will be cooler than the climb.
A faint rainbow appears in the vog, a mixture of volcanic gases and fog.
We have the road to ourselves since there is a locked gate at the bottom. We meet a ranger who asks us why we went past the “Road Closed” sign. We tell her that we thought that only applied to cars 🙂
Day 4: Wednesday, October 13. We start the day going southwest on Hwy 11 and bike 30 miles downhill! We reach the coast at Punaluu Black Sand Beach where we have a snack.
We see green sea turtles there.
Then we have to do some climbing. This is the view back as we leave the coast and turn west toward Naalehu.
We cross some relatively recent lava flows from Mauna Loa and head north for the rest of the day. It is amazing that trees can grow out of the lava so soon after an eruption.
We finish the day at the Keauhou Beach Resort. I have a flat tire not far from the finish but fix it myself. The day’s distance from the start to finish is 95 miles, so Mary and I bike another 5 miles to make it a full century ride 🙂
Day 5: Thursday, October 14. We bike a round-about way to this coffee farm in Kealakekua to avoid riding very much on busy Hwy 11.
We take a tour through the farm and see trees like this that are full of beans. Their harvesting and processing is very labor intensive, which makes the coffee from here expensive.
Mary enjoys a nice downhill to the ocean.
Soon we have this beautiful view of Kealakekua Bay.
When we get to the water’s edge, Mary points to the monument to Captain Cook across the bay. It is close to where Cook was killed in a skirmish with Hawaiians in 1779.
We bike south to Puuhonua O Honaunau. Also known as the City of Refuge, it was a safe haven for those that broke the Kapu laws in olden times.
We have lunch at the City of Refuge and enjoy its beautiful setting.
After lunch we pass the Painted Church as we climb up from the coast.
We then have a long ride north, including 21 miles on the famous Iron Man cycling route, until we reach the Waikoloa Beach Marriott. This is the sunset from there.
Day 6: Friday, October 15. For our last day of biking, we head north along the coast to Hawi following the Iron Man route. This is the view of Mauna Loa behind us to the south.
Hawi, the turnaround for the Iron Man, is a quiet little town. A colleague of mine at SDSC grew up here!
We climb out of Hawi on Kohala Mountain Rd for our return trip south. Mary rides on a flat stretch after the climb.
Much of this northern part of the Big Island is devoted to cattle ranching, so we are surprised to see these donkeys.
This ranch house near Waimea suggests that the ranching is profitable.
Each day Wilder marks the day’s route on this map on the door of the trailer with our gear. Here he proudly displays the finished map at the end of the last day’s ride!
This closeup shows that we circumnavigated the Big Island 🙂
Day 7: Saturday, October 16. Mary and I go for a run at sunrise to get some aerobic exercise on our easy last day of the tour. Mauna Kea is on the right skyline.
We show off our bike-hardened legs before boarding the catamaran behind us.
We motor offshore until we find a pod of spinner dolphins. They swim beside our boat and jump out of the water spinning!
We motor into shallower water and get ready to snorkel.
Paul has an underwater camera and takes some stunning photos!
Here is another one!
Paul and Mary relax on the bow of the boat as we head back to shore.
A kiteboarder takes advantage of the strong wind.
We disembark from the boat to officially end this truly classic tour!
In the afternoon Mary and I go for a hike through the Waikaloa Petroglyph Preserve next to the hotel. This patch of petroglyphs looks abstract. A lava tube is behind Mary.
This petroglyph looks like an animal with a big head and long tail!
Day 8: Sunday, October 17. Mary and I go for for one more sunrise run in Hawaii.
This sign by the water’s edge warns about a shark that was seen after we returned from boating and snorkeling the day before. We were lucky to have gone earlier.
Mary waves from the balcony of our room as we pack up to leave.
We board our flight home after a very special tour!
Mary and I did our first bike tour with Breaking Away in the Alps in July 2009. Mary heard from a colleague that it was possible to bike along with the Tour de France, so she persuaded me and Greg Antal (another colleague) to join her on this Alps/Tour de France bike tour. Greg told us that we needed to train, so we did several rides together up Mount Laguna and Palomar Mountain in San Diego County and were ready when we got to France 🙂 We biked 61 miles during our two warmup days, and Mary and I biked 340 miles during the seven-day tour. This was a large tour with 31 guests (!) and four guides: Greg Hogan (the owner), Mitch Clinton, Guillaume Dassonville, and Giorgio Bausman.
Here is the itinerary for the tour.
Days -1 & 0 (Wednesday & Thursday, July 15 & 16): We arrive in Geneva on Wednesday afternoon and shuttle to Divonne-les-Bains in France, where we spend two nights. We do warmup rides of 18 miles on Wednesday and 43 miles on Thursday by Lake Geneva back and forth across the border between France and Switzerland.
Day 1 (Friday, July 17): Shuttle to Valleiry, a short distance from Geneva in France, and then bike 51 miles to Aix-les-Bains.
Day 2 (Saturday, July 18): Bike 50 miles from Aix-les-Bains to Albertville over Mont Revard (1,537 m) and Col du Frene (950 m).
Day 3 (Sunday, July 19): Bike from Albertville to the base of the Col du Glandon, shuttle to the top, and then bike down the other side and up Alpe d’Huez (1,780 m). We bike 60 miles. Greg A finishes but gets sick and shuttles the rest of the tour 🙁
Day 4 (Monday, July 20): Shuttle to the top of the Col du Lautaret. Then bike over the Col du Galibier (2,642 m), down to St Michel, and up the valley until we reach newly tarred road. Finally shuttle over the Col de l’Iseran to Val d’Isère. We bike 40 mi.
Day 5 (Tuesday, July 21): Bike from Val d’Isère to Bourg-St-Maurice where we check out the finish line for today’s stage of the Tour de France. Continue biking over the Cormet de Roselend (1,968 m) and then up the Col des Saisies (1,650 m) to Les Saisies where we spend two nights. We bike 56 miles.
Day 6 (Wednesday, July 22): Before the racers arrive at Les Saisies for today’s stage of the Tour, we bike a 37-mile loop through Flumet and Villard that goes over the Col de la Forclaz (1,527 m) and then up the Col des Saisies again. We finish just before the racers go over the col!
Day 7 (Thursday, July 23): Bike 46 miles from Les Saisies over the Col des Aravis (1,487 m) and Col de Croix Fry (1.477 m) to Annecy, where the biking for our tour ends. Watch the time trial for the Tour with a capital “T”, and then shuttle back to Divonne-les-Bains to end our special tour!
Photos and commentary follow.
Day -1: Wednesday, July 15. Greg, Mary, and I are ready for our first warmup ride. Our guide Mitch is in back by one of the vans.
Day 1: Friday, July 17. After our short shuttle to Valleiry, we get on our bikes and go past a field with cattle and sunflowers
We are all smiles as we are finally on our bikes for this much-anticipated tour (photo by Mitch Clinton).
Soon after we cross the mighty Rhone the weather deteriorates. We bike in pouring rain for much of the rest of the ride to Aix-les-Bains, where we spend the night.
Day 2: Saturday, July 18. We start the climb to Mont Revard in drizzle (photo by Mitch Clinton).
Mary is happy to be on her bike despite the weather (photo by Mitch Clinton).
Before long we are biking in a cloud. We have lunch at the cafe on top of Mont Revard but miss the promised “panoramic” view (photo by Mitch Clinton).
Most of the guests shuttle to Albertville, but Mary and I keep biking and are treated to broken clouds and a dry road as the weather improves (photo by Mitch Clinton).
Day 3: Sunday, July 19. We bike to the base of the Col du Glandon and then shuttle to the top where we have lunch. Afterward, we get on our bikes again.
We enjoy the long descent down the other side in beautiful weather.
We follow a flat valley road for several miles until we reach this turn to the climb up Alpe d’Huez.
Mary goes around a switchback with me right behind her (photo by Mitch Clinton).
These are some of the 21 switchbacks on this famous climb (photo by Mitch Clinton).
We arrive at the official finish of the climb after 60 miles of biking!
Day 4. Monday, July 20. We shuttle to the top of the Col du Lautaret and pose for a group photo taken by Mitch.
We get on our bikes to do the 8-km climb to the top of the Col du Galibier.
Mary is halfway up the climb. This is my favorite picture of her biking 🙂
The grade hits 12% near the top (photo by Mitch Clinton).
We are on the top of the Col du Galibier, proudly wearing our Alpe d’Huez jerseys that we earned the day before! (photo by Mitch Clinton).
Halfway down the other side we pass this house with beautiful flowers on its balconies.
Even this bridge across the river in the bottom of the valley has flowers!
We head up the valley toward the Col de l’Iseran but only get partway before we encounter new tar on the road. We shuttle the rest of the way to Val d’Isère, where we spend the night.
Many buildings in Val d’Isère have slate roofs.
Day 5. Tuesday, July 21. We encounter this tunnel on our long descent from Val d’Isère to Bourg-St-Maurice. There are some anxious moments sharing the road inside with cars.
We are 3 km from the finish line of today’s stage of the Tour de France, which is in Bourg-St-Maurice.
Mary and I check out the finish line. We decide not to wait a few hours for the racers to show up and then do a shuttle. Instead we bike up the remaining two climbs to Les Saisies, where we spend the night.
Mary is halfway up the first climb, the Cormet de Roselend, where the grade is steepest at 9%.
We are on top of the Cormet de Roselend.
Just over the top we stop for an outdoor lunch at this uncrowded cafe. Most potential customers are probably back in Bourg-St-Maurice watching the Tour.
We still have a long way to go to the valley below before we do the second climb of the day.
After biking 23 km from the top of the Cormet de Roselend, we turn at this junction to start the 15-km climb to Les Saisies.
Halfway up we pass the town of Hauteluce below the cloud-topped Mont Blanc.
Mary nears the top of the climb to Les Saisies.
This is the view from our hotel across the main road through the ski resort town of Les Saisies.
Day 6: Wednesday, July 22. Before the racers get to Les Saisies, we bike a loop that goes over the Col de la Forclaz.
The road ahead is closed to cars from 10 am until the last racer goes by.
This junction that was uncrowded when we biked by the day before is abuzz with activity. We join many other cyclists and bike up to Les Saisies again. This time spectators cheer us on!
Mary nears Les Saisies with crowds lining the side of the road. Just before we reach the top of the climb a gendarme asks us to get off the road, so we walk our bikes the rest of the way.
Soon the parade that leads the racers arrives.
Driving this lion float is not a job for someone who is prone to claustrophobia.
Thor Hushovd of Norway is the first racer over the col. He is wearing the green jersey for the best sprinter. He has already been over the Cormet de Roselend and has two more cols to climb today!
Day 7: Thursday, July 27. Today we bike over two cols that the Tour racers did the day before. The first is the Col des Aravis.
The second is the Col de la Croix Fry.
We then have a downhill and flat ride to Annecy where we end the biking for our tour! Chocolate is popular in Annecy 🙂
Canals connect the town to the lake.
A racer leaves the start of today’s time trial for the Tour.
Spectators can watch this big screen to see the racers out on the course.
Sylvain Calzati of France approaches the finish line. His team car follows to help him in case he has a mechanical problem. After all the racers finish we shuttle back to Divonne-les-Bains to end our special tour!
