Detour #309: Taking the Piste on the Col de l’Iseran, France
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The run to the ski resort at Val d’Isere takes you over the Alps’ Highest Pass. Driving up might just be more fun than skiing down.
I’ve done the run to Val d’Isere and its Trois Vallées neighbour Tignes many times. In assorted cheap rental cars, in a student-packed Renault Espace and a massive Toyota Land Cruiser, and never has it ceased to be immensely entertaining (for me, if not necessarily my passengers).
Heading in from the airport or autoroute at Lyon or Geneva the fun always begins at Bourg-Saint-Maurice, where the D902 starts its sinewy ascent into the mountains. It’s a belter of a drive, throwing in its fair share of hairpins, mixed with faster sections that cling to the mountainside. The higher you get the more dramatic the views – none more so than when you cross the dam at Tignes.
However, during the winter, in a vehicle loaded with salopettes and skis, you’ll miss the most intense part of the drive, the Col de l’Iseran — although you can ski it, as it becomes a piste and closed to wheeled traffic for months when the snow has fallen.
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Come the thaw you can explore the road beyond the village of Le Fornet as it becomes narrower and even more switchback-strewn. It’s hard to gauge just what direction you’re actually travelling in thanks to the number of times the route loops around and back on itself as it climbs to a peak of 2,700 metres. Sometimes it’s almost claustrophobic as you’re penned in by the mountains on both sides, while at others the vistas appear almost endless.
Descending towards Lanslebourg-Mont-Cenis there’s no let up in the curves, while the winter-ravaged asphalt is often broken and potholed, making it potentially even more hazardous. You won’t find any guard rails either, so passing other cars or a peloton of cyclists requires patience and accuracy.
In total there’s almost 60 miles of amazing mountain views and a near-constant supply of curves. If you thought skiing was challenging, think again.
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ROADBOOK
CLASS: Mountain PASS
NAME: Col De l’Iseran
ROUTE: Bourg-Saint-Maurice to Lanslebourg-Mont-Cenis
COUNTRY: France
Distance: 56 Miles
The run to the ski resort at Val d’Isere takes you over the Alps’ Highest Pass. Driving up might just be more fun than skiing down.