The ascent to the Col du Frêne
Arnaud Bachelard
Crossing the Bauges massif
Arnaud Bachelard
Les Bauges, Regional Nature Park
Arnaud Bachelard

Col du Frêne

In the heart of the Bauges

Altitude 950 m
Massif des Bauges
Département Savoie

North side topo

Col du frene topo profil nord

The start is located within the Massif des Bauges on the D911 (le Pont, near Lescheraines). The ascent is quite long at 18.4 km, but not very difficult: after crossing the small Châtelard rise, it's a long 10.2 km uphill false flat to Routhennes. This is followed by a final 1.8 km on a slightly steeper slope averaging no more than 6% to the Col du Frêne.

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South side top

col du frêne profil sud
From St-Pierre-d'Albigny, expect a short ascent of 7.8 km with an average gradient of 7%, which suggests that you're going to have to work at it... After a hairpin bend that will help you rise quietly above the village, it's a succession of 14 hairpin bends where the average gradient, fairly regular, won't drop below 7.5% until the Col du Frêne. On the other hand, you'll gain fine views of both the Combe de Savoie and the impressive Dent d'Arclusaz, one of the Massif des Bauges' landmark peaks
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The map

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Variante Lescheraines / Beaufort-sur-Doron

6 Variante Lescheraines / Beaufort-sur-Doron

67 km
4 h 29 min
Difficult
This is a beautiful linking stage on the Route des Grandes Alpes®, marked by the crossing of the Bauges Range, with its Global Geopark, and the discovery of the former Winter Olympics town of Albertville, as well as the climb to the Beaufortain Range. There’s just one pass along the way – the Col du Frêne (950m), gateway to and from the Massif des Bauges, the climb much more challenging when tackled from the south. To avoid the main road between Albertville and Beaufort-sur-Doron, take the short alternative route via the Col des Cyclotouristes (1330m).

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Joris Lesueur

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