JUNE 9 TO JUNE 25, 2024

Classic Climbs: Maritime Alps to Haut Alps of France with a little Italy and The Colle Fauniera Thrown In (Sea to Ski)

8 June to 25 June, 2024

Cycle over the famous climbs of Tour de France fame. This is a tour for anyone looking for an unforgettable bicycling adventure.  The route traverses the high mountain passes of the Maritime Alps, Rhone Alps and Haut Savoie separating France and Italy.  Each summer every village and town along the route rolls out the welcome mat with festivals and local products prominently displayed.

First time riders in France will be amazed at the courtesy of drivers; often pulling over to the side of the road to allow us to pass on the exhilarating descents. You will hear shouts of encouragement from people on the side of the road near the top of nearly every climb. And you will wonder why you waited so long to ride in France where cycling is the national passion (or is that obsession). 

Beginning from Nice and the Cote d’Azur on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea the route includes passes made famous to cycling fans by the Tour de France on the journey northward to the shores of Lake Annecy just a short distance from Geneve, Switzerland. Our itinerary includes the names of nearly every pass that are perhaps household words to cyclists around the world.

Cycling in the Haut Provence region of the Alpes-Maritime the riding is a pleasant warmup of lesser known passes and tiny quiet roads.  Here the meals are delicately prepared with fresh herbs of Provence and paired with round flavored wines of Provence and Cote des Rhone.  Entering the Haut Savoie region of the Rhone-Alpes we are treated to visual and culinary delights, where cheese is offered as a delicacy almost above the delightful desserts. You will savor Tome de Savoie, Beaufort, Camebert, Rebloucon and Chevre cheeses in salads, sandwiches and sauces. The wines are light, but just right to enhance the less complex flavors of mountain meals.

This IS the epic-center of spectacular mountain pass riding. We will climb more cols (French for pass) than the riders of the Tour de France climb each July. We will likely spend three times as much time climbing as descending. And we will be grinning from ear-to-ear at the end of an epic ride from the Mediterranean Sea to the highest mountain passes of the French Alps. This is the ultimate Sea-to-Ski cyclists dream; to bag 25 named climbs in 14 days of riding.

JUNE 9 TO JUNE 25, 2024

This is a new/modified itinerary for Veloski, combining the roads of the Route des Grandes Alps with occasional jaunts into Italy to create a unique version of Sea2Ski. This tour will provide opportunities to summit the Colle d’Agnello, Col di Sampeyre, Colle Fauniera, Col de Larche, Col de la Bonette, Lacets de Montvernier, Col de la Loze and many, many more.

Sea2Ski: Route de Grande Alpes with the Italian connection June 9 – June 25, 2024

Medevil French Mountain Towns

Climb all the famous Tour de France Alpe climbs

col de Allos, Izoard, Col de L’Iseran, col de la Madeleine, just to name a very few

Lake Annency