Col de Marie Blanque (Bielle Approach)

Image courtesy of Gilles Guillamot / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)

This cycle route details the eastern approach for the Col de Marie Blanque climb. Starting in the village of Bielle, it is slightly longer in length than the approach from Escot. The average gradient is just over 5% and there are also some nice sections of ‘flat’ to recover on along the way.

Col de Marie Blanque – western approach

From the start point of Bielle, the climb to the Marie Blanque is just over 11km in length. The first two-thirds of the climb is quite regular in terms of difficulty with the gradient hovering around the 7% mark. There is also a nice section in the middle that provides you with some good recovery which is always welcome on a climb. This is definitely the easier of the two approaches of the Marie Blanque and will provide you with a distinctly different climbing experience than the western approach.

Quick Stats

Distance: 69km / 58mi

Start elevation: 527m / 1,729ft

Max elevation: 1,035m / 3,396ft

Metres climbed: 1,423m / 4,669ft

Metres descended: 1,423m / 4,669ft

Categorised climbs: 1

Image courtesy of Gilles Guillamot / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)

All signs lead to the Col de Marie Blanque!

Food and water

Top up with food and water in the town of Bielle before you set off to tackle the climb.

Highlights

*Enjoy this ‘easier’ approach to the summit of another Tour de France regular.

Col de Marie Blanque via Bielle

Length: 11.1km / 6.9mi

Average gradient: 5.8%

Start point: Bielle

Elevation at top: 1035m / 3396ft