Ah yes, Alpe d’Huez…
What could I possibly add to the many, many pages dedicated to this particular climb?
One that’s on the bucket list of nearly every cyclist who dares to venture into the Alps…
A climb that is imprinted into the memory of Tour de France followers as being ‘pivotal’ in many a stage, if not decisive to the overall win.
Which, at the time of posting this page and looking at the ‘hard evidence’, has only been the case in 7 out of the 29 times the Alpe has been included in the TDF…
On 6 more occasions, the yellow jersey switched shoulders after the stage, but the TDF was eventually won by another rider.
Only Greg Lemond and Stephen Roche were able to turn the table again: after losing the yellow on the Alpe, they eventually still won the GC.
Famous, but…
Despite it’s fame, Alpe d’Huez is not even the highest or the hardest climb in the area and it’s not particularly beautiful.
Don’t get me wrong: despite it’s modestly “low” summit at 1,840 m, it’s a tough climb and it offers some great views.
But looking at other climbs nearby, I would give a higher rating to the Croix de Fer, Col du Sabot and La Bérarde.
Especially the latter has jaw-dropping views as you get higher and the scenery gets more overwhelming.
The view on Lac du Grand Maison in the deep, the Croix de Fer running a long it, is just stunning.
And the Croix de Fer is bound to surprise you as tougher than you expected from the “raw” numbers.
Even if a climb of 29 kilometers in itself should probably scare you enough to be careful.
Alpe d’Huez and the Dutch Corner
Of course, from a Dutch point of view, the Alpe is special.
After all, there were 8 stage winners from ‘les Pays-Bas’, which – at the time of the last win – was more than half of the stages that included the Alpe.
And even if it has been a while (1989), the Dutch fans still claim bend 7 as their very own ‘Dutch Corner‘, coloring it orange during race days…
However, there is probably nothing like the Dutch taking over the entire Alpe and Bourg d’Oisans.
That happens during the fundraiser event called ‘Alpe d’HuZes’, when it becomes the epitome of their fight against cancer.
You can read more on that on my ‘Alpe d’HuZes‘ page.
Alpe d’HuZes and Team AD6 Tweets
My team and me ticked off 40 climbs among the eight of us during the Alpe d’HuZes event and we raised close 26.000 Euro.
During that year of our Team AD6 Tweets’ participation, I climbed the Alpe eight times in total.
All of those within less than a month, seven of which within a week, so I have come to know it quite well…
Or, at least the classic route of it – I also once rode the very nice ‘Villard-Reculas’ version, but never the approach via the ‘Col de Sarenne’.
Both of these alternatives are described further on.
Bend 0
Since June 2011, there’s a Bend 0 sign on Alpe d’Huez, which is located in the final hairpin after entering Alpe d’Huez and going through the tunnel.
It’s named after Bas Mulder from Harderwijk, who died of lymphoma in September 2010 and who was one of the inspiring icons of Alpe d’HuZes.
My 10th Alpe d’Huez ascend
The Marmotte of 2021 included the classic route of Alpe d’Huez too, of course.
And the Epilogue of my Tour de France 2022 started with my 10th 🥳 ascend of the Alpe.
Alpe d’Huez – the Classic Route
From Bourg-d’Oisans, this climb is 13.8 kilometers long, navigating 21 hairpin bends along the way and this is the route the TDF takes.
Each of the hairpins is labeled and named after a former stage winner.
As there have been more stage winners than there are bends, they started adding names from the bottom (#21) up again, so a couple of signs have two names on them.
The ‘official’ start is at the camping La Cascade – from that point, the climb is 13.4 kilometers, with an elevation gain of 1,129 meters.
Perhaps you’re not easily scared by that 8.4% average, but don’t underestimate the first two steep(er) kilometers.
Beware of the heat
More so if it’s hot down in the valley – temperatures well over 35 degrees are not an exception on a summer’s day.
Then you should definitely take it down a couple of notches, especially during those first tough kilometers.
In fact, if you have a choice, it would be best to avoid those conditions altogether and pick an early start for your climb…
Pacing is key
While the first couple of kilometers, with an average of over 10%, are listed as the toughest, there are several equally tough stretches later on.
These include both stretches before entering La Garde and Huez, and the part between bends 3 and 2.
The first time I climbed up – half past dead from injuries and the preceding Croix de Fer – I particularly developed an aversion against the part between bends 7 and 6.
I’m not sure why, but I know it hasn’t faded away during my later ascends…
All (but one) hairpins are relatively flat if you ride the outside curve, so you could use that to your advantage.
Obviously, you’ll be on the wrong side of the road half the time 😎
This may well contribute to the reason why the overall average of this climb is what it is – moderately hard – because most stretches in between are over 9%.
Be ready to look your best
There usually are professional photographers on the route to capture your effort.
These are typically stationed in the upper hairpins, like number 5 (sometimes) and number 2 (nearly always).
To give you a good impression of what is waiting for you, there’s a video from the Col Collective here.
Alpe d’Huez via Villard-Reculas
This is a more quiet and therefor very enjoyable alternative.
It lacks the attraction of the classic route, but it offers a splendid view on (part of) that, once you have passed Villard-Reculas, as seen in the picture of Bend 7 above.
The start of this climb is in Rochetaillée, more commonly known as starting point for the climb up the Croix de Fer/Glandon.
Shortly after traversing the river La Romanche, you turn right (D44) and follow the direction ‘Villard-Reculas’.
From there, the climb is 20.5 kilometers long, with 1,130 altimeters (5.5%) but that’s a little ‘deceiving’.
You can see on the profile card that there’s a stretch traversing the valley between Villard-Reculas and Huez.
That stretch has no (net) altimeter gain.
It is called the Route de la Confession, which has a marker/sign Pas de la Confession.
Before you get to Huez, there’s even a short descend into that village.
Taking these 5 kilometers out of the equation, the average grade is around 7.8%, so do not underestimate this climb either.
Looking at the ‘raw’ numbers, it’s only 10% ‘easier’ than the classic route…
And yes, from Huez village, you will join the remainder of the ‘classic route’, the final 5+ kilometers of it.
Col de Sarenne
Starting almost opposite of the climb to Les Deux Alpes, in Ferrand at the barrage du Chambon, you can get to Alpe d’Huez via the Col de Sarenne.
The official start is Le Clapier, where the Col du Lautaret also starts and it has the first 9 kilometers in common with that.
Starting at the barrage, it’s a 13 kilometer long climb, with an average of 7.5%.
A very steep start and the final 4 kilometers averaging 9.5%…
After a 200 meter descend in the first 4 kilometers from the summit, there are some 5 kilometers of ‘rolling terrain’ left before you enter Alpe d’Huez.
Note that both Alpe d’Huez profile cards – the classic and the Villard-Reculas alternative – read ‘Col du Poutran’ as finish.
From Alpe d’Huez, this is another 4 kilometer, named ‘Route des Lacs’, with a gravel ending.
The “official” (Tour de France) climb ends at 1,840 metres.
