Thu, 31 October 2024
Vertical Climbed: 1,388 meters (4,554 feet)
Vertical Descended: 1,390 meters
Rating: 5
Route Description
The Col du Sabot - at 2100 m - is the highest of the Isère passes and the only one over 2000 meters. Its near neighbor - the Col de la Croix de Fer at 2064 m - is in the Savoie. It has a fearsome reputation - 18.3 km from Allemond with a 1370 m of climbing at an average of 7.5% as well as its isolated location with an out-and-back road gives it a wild character.
The climb is divided into 3 parts. The first part starts in la Rochetaille on the Bourg d'Oisans road. Or at Bourg d'Oisans itself taking advantage of the cycle path by the rider. Below he Lac de Verney dam it is flat. A small climb to the dam then along Lac de Verney with 2.5 km between 0 and 2.5% max.
Near the end of Lac de Verney you leave the road leading to the Col de la Croix de Fer taking a right hander which slopes steeply all at once which reminds you of the first ramps to l'Alpe d'Huez. The 5 km to Vaujany is at an average gradient of almost 9% but there's still another 10 km with 1000 meters of climbing. Do the math, that's 10% average! Continue past Vaujany towards the hamlet of La Villette taking in the Collet de la Villette at 1400 m, an objective in itself. You continue on to a hairpin road, the surface gets worse but is not unacceptable on the climb to the Chalets de Côte Belle (alt.1870 m) and then the Col du Sabot at 2100 m. At the end of the road, there's a parking lot and a breathtaking view of the Lac de Grand Maison, the Croix de Fer climb and the Col du Glandon with Mont Blanc just opposite.
Until 1860 and the Savoie's attachment to France, the Sabot pass marked the border between the two countries. Vaujany, on the route des cols, was equipped with a border post to control entry into the Dauphiné at the Grand Maison. The Grand Maison was a large building used to house shepherds. Behind the Col du Sabot, there was also a border post, some ruins still exist. Sabot comes from Sabaudia, the old patois name of the Savoie. Vaujany - the Roman Via Janus. Janus being the two faced Roman god, looking into the Savoie and Dauphiné. The Sabot has never been used in a major cycle race. There was talk of surfacing the track on the other side for bike use to descend to the Grand Maison dam but no progress has been made.
Trip Report
Having read the scary route description I decided to climb tempo, no beasting the early part of the road and the climb to la Villette was hard, harder than I expected. However once on the col road proper I didn't find things too bad. Maybe I'd warmed up or maybe twiddling the tiny x32 gear and not doing any heroics suited me. The sun on my back was warm and the autumn mountain air rich and pleasant to breath. The kms ticked by quickly and left me time to film. I only began to tire a bit on the final few hundred meters. It was 16h20 and time to head down. The autumn sun was low, casting long shadows, which didn't help with visibility. There are 3 cattle grids on the descent as well as gravel in places. Care required over the first 5 kms on a narrow road with steep drops to the side. After it was possible to relax and enjoy a fast descent - with a small climb in Vaujany as the road loops around the bottom of the village on the descent. The expansion joints on the Lac de Verney bridge were fully open in the cool autumn air and I bunny hopped over them as I was worried about trapping a wheel. From Allemond I took the cycle path passed the new cable car building to avoid the late afternoon traffic.
Not as hard as I expected and an excellent col that I should have ridden before, although I have ski toured hear a few times in the past.
Pleasantly warm, T-shirt weather for the climb but cold in the shade on the descent. Average temperature 13C but 18C in the valley at the start. Busy on the road to Vaujany, quiet after la Villette. The climb to the col du Sabot is ok but care on the descent as it is steep and narrow with gravel in places.
