Task notes: Col d’izoard

When to go

At nearly 2,400m, the Izoard is definitely a fair-weather endeavour. This year it didn’t open until late May, and will likely shut again in October, once the snow starts to fall. Inforoute.hautes-alpes.fr has plenty of relevant information in English on local road closures.

How to get there

We took the Eurotunnel to Calais and then drove, which was around 600 miles/10 hours to Briançon (eurotunnel.com). Alternatively, you could fly with Easyjet to Geneva or Lyon, both of which are approximately 150 miles/three hours from Briançon. Either take your bike with you or hire one from one of the many shops in the area.

Where to stay

We stayed in Le Bourg d’oisans for easy access to a variety of climbs including Alpe d’huez, which is on the doorstep, but it does make for a two-hourplus drive to Guillestre. For the Izoard, a better bet would be the characterful town of Briançon at the bottom of its north side, or for something a little more rustic, try Guillestre itself.

Local bike shops

In Briançon, Intersport-briancon.com is a fully equipped cycle shop with Scott and LOOK carbon road bikes for hire — book in advance. Mountain-cycles.fr has Specialized and BMC road bikes for hire from 55 euros per day. In Guillestre, e-bike dealer guil-ebike.com might be able to help you out of a tight mechanical spot, and on the slopes of the Izoard itself at Arvieux, intersport-arvieux.com hires road bikes in the summer, though details on its website are fairly sparse.