Col de l'Izoard

It's finally time to put our flag on the legendary Col on the Izoard. Needless to remember the legendary cycling pages who have written upon the sunny Casse Desert. Climb the Izoard means following the story of the epic cycling Bobet, Coppi and Bartali. It also means discovering a wonderful and fascinating landscapes: hard to describe the feeling of wonder and astonishment at the appearance of the legendary Casse Desert, a moonlit corner carried over the Alps.
The race starts from Fontguillarde, a small town on the road to Colle dell’Agnello. We descend towards the Valley of the Queyras enjoying the scenery. Overcome Chateau Queyras, on our left we leave the medieval fortress, later modified by Vauban, guarding the narrow gorge of the Guil. Shortly after this we find the junction to the Col de l'Izoard. It rides smoothly, surrounded by green meadows, up to Arvieux with its distinctive bell tower. Still three kilometres fairly easy up to Brunissard. From here the slope will always be higher than the 8% for the next 5 kilometers. The landscape becomes more compelling and really leaves us open-mouthed when, after a curve, we see the legendary "Casse Deserte", - a lunar landscape made up of rocky spiers and completely devoid of vegetation. The road now descends slightly for a few hundred meters, until the tombstone commemorating two mythical names of cycling: Coppi and Bobet. We continue to rise decisively, but the destination is nearby, only three kilometers to go downhill to the Col d'Izoard (2360 m). The climb measures 14 Kilometers with an elevation of just over 1000 m, average slope is 7% with peaks higher than 11%. The spectacular descent offers magnificent views of rock formations created by the severe erosion, overpass the Refuge Napoléon, cross between large bends the Bois de Péméant and the enormous gorge of Cerveyrette to Cervières. We see in the distance the fortifications of Briancon, the highest village in Europe, where we conclude our workout.