Col de la Colombière from Scionzier in the Haute Savoie

Col de la Colombière, at an altitude of 1613m, is in the Aravis region of the Northern Alps. It links the towns of Cluses and Bonneville to the north-east with the villages of Le Grand Bornand and La Clusaz to the south-west.

The climb to the col from Scionzier is without doubt the more challenging side! The first section climbs through forest up to the intermediary plateau and the village of Reposoir, after which the road climbs steeply along a series of switchbacks before opening up with 4km to go; this is where the pain really begins, with the gradient rarely dropping below 10%.