Col de Mille Westside
Description
900 vertical meters from Orsières to Alp Les Beux is the start of the Col-de-Mille tour. The ascent is primarily on asphalt and gravel roads until a first downhill trail loosens up the ascent. This rides slightly downhill from Les Foillets to Chandonne. The ascent to Cabane Col de Mille then has to make up for the almost 300 meters in altitude. This ascent also rides mainly on gravel roads, with the only difference being that you have to push your bike up the last 200 meters to the hut on a singletrack trail. The hut restaurant offers the opportunity for refreshments, as there are another 100 meters of ascent ahead. The tour rides south from the hut on a trail, and after a short carrying section, the culmination point is reached - now comes the downhill fun. The route rides on a great trail to Le Coeur and then downhill in serpentine mode to Combe above Liddes. Along the valley floor, the route alternates between small roads and trails back to Orsières.
Map & GPX-Track
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Details of the tour
43 km
2280 m
2280 m
892 above sea level
2561 above sea level
1 day
Orsières
Orsières
1699
limited
More information
No bike shops are registered for this region. Registration as a partner takes place here.
More tours nearby
User comments (2)
About the author: Thomas Giger
Note: This content has been automatically translated from German. Please report any incorrect translations.
I rode the tour on 23.9.2020. I have now ridden all 3 Col de Mille tours from Ride, and I liked this one the best. The first 130m were ultra steep, so no easy rolling in. But after that it went well. In Reppaz I left the route briefly and climbed up 3 hairpin bends on the road, after which I was able to follow a nice bit through the forest until I got back on the route, and this without any additional meters in altitude. From there it was a constant but moderate ascent, from about 1700m it became quite steep at times. At point 1831 I then climbed another 100m up to "Le Blettay", as I didn't feel like wasting the hard-earned meters in altitude on a wide forest path. From "Le Blettay" I then turned onto the trail, which began as the "Kuhscheissetrail". From "Châlet d'Arpalle" it became a super forest flow trail. At "Le Clou" I got back on the route. From there, the climb is quite long again, although everything is easy to ride on the mountain path. From "Erra d'en Haut" it then changes to a singletrail, initially still rideable, then a short pushing section and then rideable again shortly before the col. From there it's another 100 m uphill, which can be mastered by riding except for the last few meters. After the culmination point, a top trail begins, which repeatedly offers short counter-climbs. Only before "Le Coeur" does it become a little more difficult. After "Le Coeur", the trail starts off on a cow shit trail, but then returns to the finest flow trail. From 1567, however, the singletrail is unfortunately over for the time being. Only from "Font de la Tsi", after more than 300m on tar and gravel, is there a singletrail again, but this time it's a super trail (albeit with a few crisp climbs). Above Forney, I was able to follow a reopened bisse trail, which was also fun to ride again. From Montatuay, however, the trail was finally finished. Conclusion: The ascent is certainly the hardest of all Ride-Col de Mille tours, but the downhill is the most beautiful despite a few gravel/tear tracks. My Garmin showed 43km at 2150m at the end.
Variant for the ascent: at 1260 after Reppaz you could follow a bisse directly to Chandonne and then turn onto the route there, saving around 550m.
I ride a Scott Genius Ultimate, am usually in the head group uphill; downhill always the last one, at a distance.
Hello David. Thanks for your great comment (all 3 tours, by the way). I am interested in this tour and your variant and I have the following 2 questions:
Question 1: Can I also ride it with an E-Enduro? Pushing is no problem with an E-Enduro, but carrying is.
Question 2: Would you send me the GPS track of your variant?
My email address is kurt.neuhauser@hispeed.ch.
Thank you in advance and best regards
Kurt