July, 2023
Colle del Nivolet
I’d wanted to do this ride for quite a while after reading about it on Cycling Challenge, where Will, the site author, says “My favorite climb. Period. Let’s get the hyperbole out of the way: This may be the most beautiful high Alps paved climb I have ever cycled. Seriously.”
He’s right – it’s a beautiful and amazing climb. Not as difficult as some of the other big climbs but stunning in its views and scenery. It’s the sort of ride where you keep stopping to take photos. But make sure you ride it on a sunny day because it’s the gorgeous views that make this ride special.
I started in Ceresole Reale, which is miles from anywhere by car (😀), although only a few miles from Val d’Isere in France as the crow flies. The ride from Ceresole Reale to the Colle del Nivolet and back is 39 km, with 1,203 meters of climbing. This includes about 75 meters of climbing on the way back.
The ride starts being rather boring, then just before KmM (kilometer marker) 12, the valley opens up and you can see a big concrete dam high up ahead. The ride now becomes more interesting, and at KmM 6 you finally reach the dam. Now the ride becomes truly special as you climb, descend to a lake, then climb up multiple switchbacks until you finally reach the col.
Since you are here, you might as well descend just over a kilometer down the other side to a restaurant and parking lot, where the road becomes much rougher.
Turn round and climb back to the col, then enjoy the spectacular views and lovely switchbacks as you descend back to Ceresole Reale.
Here’s the ride on Ride with GPS. And here are some more photos of the climb.
Monte Zoncolan
From Ovaro, the Zoncolan is one of the toughest and most feared climbs in professional bike racing. It has a section of almost 6 km where the average gradient is almost 15%. I stood on most of this. The climb is 9.9 km with 1,158 meters of climbing.
The road is quite narrow and the views are not great. It’s a ride you do not because it’s beautiful, but because it’s The Zoncolan. Fortunately there isn’t much traffic to worry about: as I climbed I was passed by three cars on their down, two cars on their way up, and an elderly couple on e-bikes.
I did it as a loop, climbing up from Ovaro then descending the easier side to Sutrio, but following the lovely ski road down the lower section. Turn left at the bottom and follow the SS465 up over another (much easier) hill to Comeglians and then back to Ovaro. This loop is 40.6 km with 1,590 meters of climbing.
Start in Ovaro just north of the tourist office, where a sign points up to Clavais, Liariis, and Lenzone. Follow the road up to Liariis where you take a sharp right and go slightly downhill until a left hand turn presents you with the beginning of the relentlessly steep next few kilometers.
You’ll pass lots of pictures of famous cyclists as you climb, mostly Italians, but also a few non-Italians such as Merckx, Hinault, and Indurain. By the time you see Marco Pantani, you have done the steepest climbing and are about to ride through three short tunnels. Shortly after this you reach the pass.
Here’s the route on Ride with GPS, and here’s a profile of the ride with comments by other riders. And here’s a video of the climb.
Cycle Uphill 