Cycling Alpe D`Huez

[Sunny Portrush]

I tried to do a search on here but as you can imagine, typing Alpe D`Huez into the search engine brings up a load of hits!

Basically, both my wife and I will be 50 next year and are looking for a novel way to celebrate. I immediately thought of cycling up Alpe D`Huez whilst she waits for me at the top reading her Kindle.

I don`t want to take my own bike as it would add to the expense but does anyone have any good recommendations on where to hire from or any pointers to those who arrange cycling tours up the mountain. The latter is my Plan B as I don`t really want to go with a bunch of other people and then find out I have to get off and walk!

I do have a fair degree of fitness and have climbed up the Bealach Na Ba which is probably the nearest equivalent.

Any help appreciated especially those who have gone down the cycle hire route - who did you use and where did you stay

Thanks

 

[Tim Hall]

I cycled up it, ooh, 15 years ago. I hired a bike in Bourg D'Oisans (paid in Francs, which gives an idea of how long ago it was). I had to go back to the shop to get them to show me how the STis worked, as I'd never seen such a thing before. google bike hire Bourg D'Oisans and take your pick.

Fitness wise - well I must have been 40 ish, so a bit lighter than I am now. The bike had a secret weapon - triple chainset with a nice small inner ring. I'll not say the climb was easy, but it wasn't torture. I don't think it's a steep as Bealach Na Ba, but I guess it is a lot longer. I rode by myself, although in the company of others, if you see what I mean.

 

[Venflon87]

I need to do that too. I think this would be a once in a lifetime experience!

 

[EltonFrog]

Why would taking your own bike add to the expense?

Are you flying out there?

Assuming you're flying, I've never had to pay to take my bike on a plane. And in any case it would probably be as costly to hire a bike as to take yours if they did charge to carriage.

 

[User269]

For bike hire I recommend, and have used http://www.cyclesetsports.com/en/479-bike-hire a couple of times. Good bikes available by the day or week. With airlines charging from £70 to take your bike, paying around €75 a day for bike hire might be worthwhile. We took our own bikes as we were driving down.

We stayed here this time.

For general info take a look at http://bike-oisans.com/en/cycling-oisans. There's a very good 'Cycling in Oisans' route guide available from tourist info office, and here and you'll see there are many other equally challenging but more interesting routes such as the loop up to Villard Notre-Dame, Villard Reymond, La Palud, and back.

We were there a couple of weeks back. Having done the climb a few times, I have to say it's a rather busy, ugly in parts, and slightly tedious ascent, not one of my favourites. This year we found a much more interesting route to the summit by going from Le Bourg d'Oisans to Allemont, then the climb to Villard Reculas, coming out on the main d'Huez climb with just around 6 miles to go; quieter roads, stunning views, and you still get to do the stunning classic descent back to Le Bourg d'Oisans.

A great idea to do such a challenge for a special birthday, one of the best bits being unsure if you can do it! I got hooked on Mont Ventoux (much nicer, a bit harder) doing it on my 50th, 55th, and 60th birthdays (and another 13 times as well)!

I prefer Mont Ventoux over d'Huez, but there are more amazing mountainous routes in the Oisans than there are in the Ventoux area.

 

[jazzkat]

I stayed in Allemont last year with a few friends and rode around the area for the week. A few bike shops in Bourg, one even had electric bikes outside. Not knowing how you climb in the UK it's difficult to judge how easy you'll find it. I live in a mountainous area of the Uk and I was surprised that it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. The climbs aren't massively steep (like some climbs in the UK) they just go on at 12% for miles!
I agree with @User269 above, the climb to Villa Reculas is great, as was the Col de Saurenne (although we went down that one, the views were amazing!)
Whichever way you go you'll see loads of guys on bikes most of them staring at the road turning themselves inside out to get 'a time'. (especially on the Alpe D'huez climb) Don't forget to look up every now and again!
I too enjoyed riding Ventoux more, but there are so many great mountain routes in the alps.

 

[User269]

@jazzkat mentioning the electric bike hire reminds me that the cycle route guide gives info about which 'mode' to do the various routes in, whether to take the spare battery etc.! Mrs Portrush could ride up on an electric bike instead of waiting at the top with her kindle. In fact, come to think of it, why would she wait for you at the top anyway?

 

[psmiffy]

No idea - i've cycled past the bottom a couple of times and been up on the bus when I was skiing - but I have a rule about cycling up big hills - if it is not on the way to somewhere - I don't - although I did cycle up to Croix de Fer for coffee after having a night camping on the junction with Glandon - easy two or 3k

 

[Sunny Portrush]

Why would taking your own bike add to the expense?

Are you flying out there?

Assuming you're flying, I've never had to pay to take my bike on a plane. And in any case it would probably be as costly to hire a bike as to take yours if they did charge to carriage.

Having seen the way my luggage gets treated, i`d be reluctant to send my bike by plane and don`t you need a bike box, I presume you just can rock up to check-in asking, "where can I put this" lol

 

[EltonFrog]

My wife took her bike to Paris a couple of weeks ago on the plane in a cardboard bike box from our LBS, and just turned up and put it on as luggage. I've done it too, to France, South Africa and the USA. No hassles, no damage no cost.

Many others here have done it as well.

 

[Norry1]

I did this a week ago with 5 others - having done it 2 years ago as well. Bourg D'Oisans is a great place to stay and it is 0.5k from the base of Alpe d'Huez.

I booked accommodation with these guys http://www.morethan21bends.com/ and it was excellent. They have a bike shop (Prompt) in town and do rentals. Most of us took our own - we travelled by car - but one of us rented as he flew in from Scotland.

The climb is nowhere near the best in the area - but you have to rode it just because of its stature. The rides booklet you get from the tourist office is brilliant. Post up if you want any more info,