‘The good Lord gave you a body that can withstand almost anything, it’s your mind that you have to convince.’ -Vince Lombardi
30.1 km, 7.2% average gradient, 13% maximum gradient, 1247 m ascent
Col d’Aubisque Tid Bits
- Was part of the famous 1910 Tour de France stage where Octav Lapize called the tour organizers ‘assassins’
- Has appeared many times in the Tour de France
- A Cat HC climb (categories are 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, HC, 1 is the easiest). HC, or Hors Categorie, designates a climb that is off the charts.
Trip Map
The following map shows the towns that we stayed in and the climbs that we did.
The day that we rode to the top of Col d’Aubisque, we started from Gurmencon. We ascended on the West side, then descended on the East side to our destination town of Aucun.
Route Map
The following map shows an estimation of the route that we took to ascend Col d’Aubisque.
We started in Germencon. The exact route that we took to get to the base of Col d’Aubisque, I am not sure of. However, looking at the possibly cycling routes on RideWithGps.com, the most likely path was D918.
I know that we did ascend from the West side. This is the more difficult side to climb the mountain from. Don’t let that intimidate you. If I somehow survived, I am sure you can.
We descended down the other side into Aucun.
I recommend that you use other resources as well to determine the route that you would be most comfortable with. There are several routes that people have mapped on Ride with GPS. Because we were leaving from one town and staying in another town, we rode from Germancon to the summit then to Aucun.
Climb Profile
Julie’s Tips
Hotels – There are several places to situate yourself before the ascent up Col d’Ausbisque. I would highly recommend ascending from the West side. We stayed at Le Relais Aspois which situated us such that we could stretch our legs on some of the flatter areas, and do the smaller climb of Marie Banque the day before climbing Col d’Aubisque. This hotel was great, however, it is really in the middle of nowhere (which is very peaceful, you just need to be prepared to walk if you want services).
After climbing Col d’Aubisque, I highly recommend the hotel in Aucun. Aucun is a tiny little place nestled right in the mountains. We stayed at Hotel Le Picors after descending the East side of the mountain.
The Climb – I highly encourage you not to be intimidated by the thought of the ‘harder side’ of the climb. I was able to do this after only one real season of training, at a time when I still had a lot to learn. With that said, I also highly recommend that you get in shape and take plenty of snacks and water…it is a long climb and it isn’t easy.
Just a Girl and a Bike 