Beuil – Col de Turini 94kms
Time 5-6hrs Elevation Gain:3,090m +

Col de la Sinne (1,440m)
Col de Saint Martin (1,604 m) 20km, Vertical 1,050m

0830 – dropping in. Brandi the ‘col hunter’, Chris ‘possum hunter’ Yeates and JG ‘dog judge’ Green with yours truly – ‘whitey boss’ trailing along.

‘Dropping in’ are the right words as just after 10 meters from the hotel the brakes are applied for the first time the day. The red rocks and tunnels and blue water canyon of the Gorges Sup du Ciane beckon. After one stop in the middle of the Gorge with the sun just striking the tops and making the red rocks stand out amongst the scrubby green vegetation, JG and the possum hunter are off.

When Brandi and I reach the turn off there is no sign of the other two – just Agnès our trusty driver. Mmmm – first corner turn left ! – must have gone unheard or the winding road was too tempting. Agnès is off in pursuit and it’s not to long really before she appears. ‘Found them. They are just behind me’.

Re-group and away on very small country roads up towards the remote village of Pierlas.

The road is narrow and cuts through dramatic tilt slap rock countryside. Must be hard to keep open sometimes with rock falls. The gradient increases and Chris complains of the early morning cold so pushes on and I join him and keep the pace honest to give him a chance to warm up. As I warm to the task I continue on to the village.

Some of this road is really dramatic as it climbs a buttress with the road supported by many levels of stacked stone – the covers so tight the car is forced to do a three point turn and we cycle on, one above the other. At the town I turn and drop back down to ride up with John.

Meanwhile Chris seeks a coffee shop. I had not told him there was not one but a local lady (actually a retiree from Nice) offers him a cup of tea and before she knows it she has 5 of us in the tiny house supping coffee with hubby and her 85 yr old mother-in-law. Fantastic hospitality. We realize later that none of us know her name. Thanks anyway.

Departing the village for the summit of the col de la Sinne and the ‘col hunter’ is off. I keep company and soon Chris and John are lost behind.
Picnic lunch on the summit – it’s perfect. Cheese, saucisson, apple, bread, butter, chocolate, orange juice, sparking and still water, sun shine and a hint of the sea in the far distance.

But the time demands that we press on.

We descend past Ilonse on rough twisting tar (this road was pushed through and tarred once 25yrs ago) but after Ilonse the road is in better condition and I press on through snaking corners and hairpins. The valley is 25mins of downhilling away

As I descend I watch a piece of tinfoil blowing across the road and swerve slightly to miss it but it keeps moving… Mmm – there is no wind and as I flash past behind a snake as it slithers off the road and disappears. I slam on the anchors and turn to try and get another glimpse but it’s gone. The others go past and I turn to catch them and recount the story.

Down finally in the valley – cheeks flushed with smiles and hands tired from braking through endless hairpins, we regather our thoughts and begin the valley climb (just a couple clicks) to turn right onto the road to Col de Saint Martin – some 20km and 1050m vertical above us.

I ride with Chris and we slowly ascend to the col while Brandi and John chat their way up. Coffee and tart, and for the boys an omelet on top – before more descending. A thousand meters to the valley floor and then another 500meters and 12 kilometers down to the next valley before the 3rd 1000m climb of the day.

Col de Turini (1,607 m) 12km, Vertical 1,100m

John and Chris are already into the climb before we arrive but after 3 or 4 kms we catch John and then Chris a km later and we head up. The first kms are tree lined and shady, but it opens and we ascend through open countryside.

Through La Bollene-Vesubie and ahead the famous zig-zap of the Col de Turini (the Monte Carlo rally passes this way each year and the braking marks are obvious on the road).

The forest closes in and we snake ever upwards passing from one zag to another. They are endless but the gradient is good so we can spin/tempo ride in low gear. This last col is unmarked – no signs on the side of the road to indicate the distance or grade. Something we have grown so used to throughout the length of the ride.

A french yells ‘bon courage’ from the side of the road and ‘une kilometer’. I know better than to believe him but Brandi’s eyes light up temporarily. I warn her that it is more like 3 kms to the top and just to continue to pace herself – last climb – ‘I’m going to leave everything out there’ and so she does in the final rush to the summit.

With some rain in the air we gear up an turn downhill to ride again with John. Brandi soon gets cold and stops and I continue down for John. Soon the three of us are at the summit. The rain that has been threatening now unleashes in full force with hail bouncing of the deck as we cover the bikes and scurry inside. The bags will have to wait.

Bonjour Geoff. Our host Michele is always pleased to see us and passes us the keys. John is in the gods – 4th story but the rest are on a more sane level.

As fast as it arrives the rain departs and we gather our bags, shower and change for dinner. Another day done and the last of the climbing on the Route des Grandes Alps. That beer will sure taste good tonight.

The full stories of the days are on Geoff’s blog as well as more pics on flickr