Thursday 30th August
As predicted, my first wet ride of the trip through the rain and clouds up to Les Deux Alpes. which apparently has Europe's largest skiable glacier, and has also seen a number of Tour finishes over the years. I had lots of fun on this relatively easy category 1 climb and can now appreciate why it plays a very much second fiddle to Alpe d'Huez. It was far easier and much shorter than its neighbour across and down the valley.
My ride started from home and headed along the D1091 for 12km or so up to the official start of the climb at the Barrage de Chambon, barrage being a dam in French. This section was scenic enough but had a number of mountain tunnels to ride through. Now equipped with lights I was visible to traffic but I still did not like riding through them. I also saw a car accident where a car had gone around a hairpin too quickly and slid into the ditch at the side of the road. When I got there the emergency services were standing on the side of the car about to remove the driver. Not good. The actual climb itself was very straight forward and enjoyable. As usual the climb started in trees and opened up at the end before arriving at the ski station which, judging by the number of mountain bikes around, also serves as a mountain bike park. With no view and the rain falling there was no need to hang around, so it was back down the hill for a cautious descent home. It was great to be out on the bike even if it was a bit soggy. It does mean I have to go and clean the bike now so cheerio.
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