Col du Tourmalet

At 2115 m the Tourmalet is the granddaddy of Pyrenees climbs, the most climbed col in Tour de France history, appearing in virtually every edition since 1910 - that's eighty-six times in total.

From the Pyrenees Cycling Centre you can climb the Tourmalet from either the east (Ste Marie de Campan) or the west side (Luz St Saveur). The round trip, over the col, down the other side and back to base is 101km and the harder direction is probably anti-clockwise, climbing the col from Luz.

Via Ste Marie de Campan

• 25km from the Pyrenees Cycling Centre to the start of the climb.

• 17 kilometer ascent.

• Average gradient 7.4%

• Maximum gradient 11.5%

• Height climbed 1364m.

Via Luz St Sauveur

• 43km from the Pyrenees Cycling Centre to the start of the climb.

• 18 kilometer ascent.

• Average gradient 7.7%

• Maximum gradient 12%

• Height climbed 1404m.

The road climbing the Col du Tourmalet from Luz, seen from the summit.