After a good night's sleep, we got up early so as to get on the road before it became too hot. Today we would be heading into Italy with the destination being Ceriale and the Mediterranean! The breakfast at the Hotel de Paris was just perfect, and with the bikes soon packed we were ready.
As soon as we left Briançon we started climbing on the D902 towards our first mountain pass of the day, the Col d'Izoard. Like the Galibier from the previous day, this is another Tour de France classic, and this was clearly visible from the graffiti on the road as we climbed up.
The road up to the Col d'Izoard was perfect, with hardly any traffic. It culminates at 2362 meters, and you are treated to a stunning view again.
On the south side of the pass, the landscape looks like something from the moon. It is a very spectacular formation, with rock pillars jutting out from a sandy ground.
The valley then flattens out for a bit before heading up to the next pass. Although the road was very narrow, it continued to be in good condition and there was absolutely no traffic to bother us. At one point, through a particularly scenic part, the going was so smooth that my buddy was able to take some pictures of me riding in front of him!
The road then climbed up to the Col Agnel and the passage to Italy. At at height of 2744 it was to be the second highest mountain pass we would cross, and the road down on the Italian side was just incredible!!
Making our way down rapidly, we could feel the temperature rising all the time. Before fully getting down to the plain we decided to stop for a drink and a rest, which ended up becoming our lunch stop too with the wonderful panini we were served to go with the drinks. We were simply ecstatic, with this morning's ride having been just so good.
Once in the plain things got a bit boring, passing through some Italian villages with the heat becoming almost unbearable. No matter, we trudged on until we got to the final piece of amazing road leading down to the coats and our destination of Ceriale. The hills here on the border between Piedmont and Liguria are very lush with forest, and the roads are incredibly twisty. My buddy at this point was leading the way since my GPS had overheated since some time, and he did an outstanding job to get us down with huge smiles on our faces.
Arriving in Ceriale it was hot and humid! We stopped by the hotel, and the time it took to get the garage opened, we were completely drenched under our hot riding suits. It really was a struggle to get the check-in done so that we could finally take off the suits, and hop in to a cool shower!
The hotel, Residence Oliveto, was not the best. As the name implies, it is more of a residence than a hotel, and so the rooms are equipped with sofa beds instead of proper beds. With no air conditioning, and no fans, I feared the night would be a bit challenging. Still, they had a pool, and we figured we would go and relax there a bit. Unfortunately the water was just too warm for it to be pleasant, and so instead we soon set off for a walk around town.
Just a couple of minutes from the hotel you find the beach. Most of it is private, but there are some spots that remain public beaches, and we decided that we would go for a swim after dinner when it would not be so hot. Our goal, for now, was to find a restaurant that would serve spaghetti Frutti di mare, and with that accomplished, we had our proper Italian dinner.
We did indeed go for a swim in the sea later, and it was amazing that even here the temperature was at least 30°!! Later, back in the hotel room, we struggled to get some sleep, but in the end we were successful.
- Briançon
- Fort Queyras
- Molines-en-Queyras
- Sampeyre
- Fossano
- San Bernardino
- Garessio
- Ceriale
- Col d'Izoard 2362 m
- Col Agnel 2744 m
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