As a keen cyclist Andy can ride with you or he will drive a support vehicle on rides, which take in more than one Col in a day. All rides can be pre-planned to suit your requirements and fitness. We are totally flexible.

You should plan to take 24 hours to recover from the travelling and to adjust to the altitude. We always recommend a social ride up to the Col du Petit Saint Bernard on the first day. We start from the chalet and climb a constant, gentle 17 km to the resort of La Rosiere, taking us through pine forests and Alpine meadows. From here we continue south with fantastic views of Mt. Blanc to the Col at an altitude of 2188 metres. We then cross the boarder into Italy and descend for a traditional lunch in a mountain restaurant before returning to France and a fast descent from La Rosiere.

Climbs in the Alps can take between 1 and 2½ hours. To give you some idea, a number of the bigger climbs will involve 1500-2000 metre height gains in 15-20 miles. Climbing is all about finding your own pace and rhythm. Initially, it may be easier to ride alone rather than trying to hold somebody else’s pace. Using a heart rate monitor helps to prevent you from riding too fast at the bottom of a climb and then blowing. Test yourself at home to establish what your maximum heart rate is sustainable for 2-3 hours. For a shorter (1 hour) climb you can let yourself go 5 to 10 bpm faster.

Rides that start/finish at the chalet

Other climbs where the start /finish point is more than 1 hour's drive from the chalet

We have not put distances in here as we usually do several cols in one day or combine a col with a particularly interesting ride e.g. Alp d’Huez and Col du Glandon or Col du Galibier and Col du Telegraphe.