A hidden diamond in the very rough mountains between France and Italy. The giant Colle del Sommeiller is the highest off-road track in the Alps, reaching an altitude of 3,009 metres.
Before my cycling holiday I researched off-road cycling routes in the high Alps. Via books and the internet; yet not once did I read of the Colle del Sommeiller. It was instead high on the La Strada dell’ Assietta; at over 2,000 metres and with a storm closing in around me. A friendly German motor biker stopped to check if I was okay as I was taking a rest from the arduous gradients. After a quick chat and the obligatory photograph; he whispered: “cycle the Colle del Sommeiller; it is beautiful”. Then he roared off into the mist.
I started my ride from the Piazza Statuto opposite the Hotel Sommeiller in Bardonecchia. Here you will find a large free car park. Yet read the signs about the operational hours of the outdoor market on the weekend. There is more parking further up the road; towards the railway tunnel entrance.
Riding in early October; I was almost alone as I took my bike from the car and prepared my gear. Turning left out of the this car park; the directions are simple. Follow the railway line until it enters a tunnel to France. Then follow the noisy motorway above you, until you pass under it as it too disappears into a long tunnel to France. Here, you will see wooded hillside and the narrow lane leading away up a narrow side valley.
Beginner slopes
Some of the early gradients on the tarmac road are severe; with a series of hairpin bends. Then the road seems to relax as it passes a small trattoria. Here there is also a helpful altitude sign of 1,446 metres painted on to the side of a house. Which seems high until you remember the Colle del Sommeiller tops out at 3,009 metres!
From here the tarmac continues for a few more kilometres to the small village of Rochemolles. After passing close by a quaint farm house covered in flowers; you will round a corner and see a gravel road on your right. In the summer months; motorised vehicles have to pay a small fee here to continue. Yet that is little deterrent. So try to cycle in the quieter autumn months to avoid the dust and noise from passing bikes.
The gravel road continues up through a series of rough hairpins then a more gentle gradient. First past a reservoir and then through a pleasant plateau shown in the photograph below. Here is a good place for a picnic or just to rest by the babbling stream. Either way; I hope you are ready for the next section!
Up and up!
From the plateau; the road just climbs up and up! Some sections are incredibly rough and others are very steep. Yet keep going and you will be rewarded with ever changing views; of the valley and the peaks above. You will seen enter a wide open meadow below a cirque of rock. With a ‘rifugio’ serving refreshments in the summer months and a waterfall cascading from the rocks.
If you can fight the feeling of staying in this paradise; the road continues on up through a series of hairpins. Which quickly gains height and you can then look back down on the same beautiful views. From here the gradients relax for a few kilometres. As you slowly wind around various rocky outcrops. The vegetation quickly disappeared here; so I got the impression I was entering another world. It felt like a lunar landscape on a different planet; far, far away.
Reaching the ‘Pian dei Frati’ shown in the photograph above; the track became really rough. With almost no line to follow through stones that have rolled down the mountainside. I saw one motorbiker fall over and another turned back; tired of the effort and in fear of damaging his machine. I am relaxed in my pace; so was not afraid to walk sections that were just too rough. Forget Strava and personal bests here; it is all about survival and safely getting up and down the mountain.
The Colle del Sommeiller
A series of false ridges and more hairpin bends followed over really rough ground. Then the ridgeline to the north seemed to fall away and the valley finally came to an end. The rough stones turned to smooth gravel and the mountain peaks became small hills; I had finally met the horizon. I was all alone here on a sunny autumn day and above me was only sky. Passing a over a car park and past a small modern refuge; I had reached the highest road in the Alps.
In front of me there was a small lake that used to be a small glacier until recent years. Then beyond a small unrideable ridgeline. Leaving my bike, I walked up to the true Colle del Sommeiller. In front of me to the north was France; behind me Italy. Standing on the border stopped and stared in wonderment. The majestic beauty of the landscape; the rugged geology and its rock formations and the overwhelming serenity of such a naturally peaceful place.
Returning to earth
I did not stay for long on the Colle del Sommeiller. With the shorter autumn days I knew that I would be chasing the shadows back down to the valley floor. Putting on all my spare clothes and checking my brakes and suspension; I nodded goodbye to the landscape of the Colle and began my descent.
Gravity soon began to help me back down. Yet I took regular stops to rest my fingers on the brakes and my bum from the bumps. As well as taking in all the wonderful views that were behind me on the ascent. In places I had fun by cycling down footpaths as the setting sun turned the grass around me into a golden hue. Before the sun disappeared to the west I reached the valley floor and civilization in Bardonecchia.
That night, I rewarded myself with a fresh pizza and a beer or two in the bar of the campsite. I felt tired but full of energy from a natural high. The fresh food and beer boosted my spirits yet I was completely relaxed thinking about my perfect day on the Colle del Sommeiller.
I hope you too can enjoy its beauty sometime soon. Peace.
If you would like to read about more of my adventures in the Italy; then click here: Routes in Italy
You can also receive notification of occasional blog posts; by entering your email address below: