Col Hunting in the Chartreuse Alps

A fantastic four col loop through the Chartreuse alps above Chambéry.

I parked in downtown Chambéry …. but it only takes a few minutes to leave the city and start climbing.

The route starts climbing through a quiet residential area but things quickly become rural. I briefly joined the D1006 which has faster traffic – but also a bike lane – so now worries.

At Col de Couz the real fun begins as the route turns into the Chartreuse alps and starts climbing – the rest of the route is superb.

A very hot March meant that there was very little snow. The photo below was taken at the high point of the route near Col de la Cluse. There were ski slopes behind me without a trace of snow.

Steep descent from Col de la Cluse:

Happiness is multiple col signs: 🙂

After descending Col de la Cluse, I joined the route for the last half (4.5 kms) up the south side of Col du Granier. This is the easiest of the four ways up Granier.

For details of the other sides of Col du Granier:

• Steep East side (watching the Dauphiné)
• Classic North side from Chambéry (and this loop in reverse)
• Steep North-East side from St. Baldolph w/ South details too

And finally, a more challenging but excellent loop through the Chartreuse alps including Col du Granier, Col de Marcieu, Col du Coq, and Col du Cucheron.