Col de l'Iseran, Mountain pass and viewpoint in Vanoise Mountains, France
Col de l'Iseran is a mountain pass in the Vanoise massif of Savoie, signed at 2,770 m but mapped at 2,764 m, the highest paved pass in the Alps. The D902 connects Val-d'Isère in the Tarentaise with Bonneval-sur-Arc in the Maurienne. At the summit, a stone signpost with white and blue boards gives directions to Bonneval-sur-Arc, Lanslebourg, Val-d'Isère and Bourg-Saint-Maurice.
A mule track used since the 17th century to carry Beaufortain cheese toward Piedmont, the pass was included in the Route des Grandes Alpes in 1912. The 29-kilometre road, built from 1929 with 600 workers, was inaugurated by President Albert Lebrun on 10 July 1937. A chapel dedicated to Notre-Dame-de-Toute-Prudence, designed by Maurice Novarina, was built in 1939.
The pass forms part of the Route des Grandes Alpes, which links Lake Geneva to the Mediterranean Sea through a network of mountain roads. The connection allows people living in isolated Alpine valleys to reach distant regions more easily.
The road is closed in winter and is used as part of the Val-d'Isère ski area, so access by car is only possible in the snow-free months. The pass is the highest point of the GR 5 and the Grande Traversée des Alpes long-distance trails. The summit lies at the edge of Vanoise National Park, and the Pointe des Lessières (3,041 m) rises just west of the pass.
The approach from the north is notorious among cyclists as one of the longest and most demanding climbs in Europe. For serious cyclists, this route presents a true test of endurance with consistently steep sections.
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