Alpine Break

This circuit was real adventure mountain biking, if you don’t like having to carry your bike then this is not the circuit for you. It starts here at the Chateau and heads up into the Val d’Escreins up past the marble quarry. The initial climb is on 4×4 track and then it changes to singletrack and there is a section that is about 2k long where the height gain is about 300m which is just about too steep to ride (as a general guide I find that 100m per klick is the limit of ride-ability) and we ended up carrying our bikes up a lot of this section. Read the rest of this entry »

This little circuit can be done in about an hour so is ideal for an evening blast or it can be linked up with a couple of other rides like the Circuit de Barbein. It has a fairly easy steady climb on 4×4 through a little hamlet and up onto the sides of the Durance valley before dropping down some fantastic singletrack back to the valley floor. Read the rest of this entry »

This ride is a full day circuit starting out from the picturesque Chateau Queyras. There is 1900m of climbing on this 35k circuit, and a rewarding 1900m of descending too. It climbs initially up through the Bois du Peyron towards the Sommet Bucher before dropping back down to Molines-en-Quyeras where it crosses the road leading up to Col Agnel. From here it traverses round through the Foret de Fonteloube and then hits a fantastic singletrack descent down switchbacks into Aiguilles, the largest settlement in the Quyeras. This is a perfect spot for a lunch break in the quaint town centre. Read the rest of this entry »