뚜껑‬에서 가장 멋진 ‪20‬개의 산길

This climb is incredible: it doesn't have any difficult gradients, but it's long, incredibly long, endless. You reach a point where you almost hate it: you've been pedaling for well over an hour and the summit is still out of sight, you're running out of energy and the wind keeps whipping you in the face, you want to throw your bike away and say, "Enough! I'll stop here!"... but it's only a moment, because you're the one who chose to tackle it and you knew exactly what you were getting into; you set off again with more determination than before and attack those last few kilometers of road with all your remaining strength. And then you enter the tunnel, there you begin to realize you've made it, you exit, follow the road that bends slightly to the left, and, as if in a dream, the lake appears. You reach the top and think about how many people have traveled this road over the centuries: Salassi, Romans, monks, migrants, Napoleonic soldiers... you realize you're in a place steeped in history and stunning nature, and there you can't help but love this hill.

The pass between Switzerland and Italy connects Valais and the Aosta Valley (the smallest region in Italy with the black and red flag). "The Fenêtre de Durand is a 2,797-meter-high mountain pass in the Pennine Alps. The mule track connects the Swiss Rhône Valley via the Val de Bagnes with the Italian Aosta Valley. The gap between the 3,347-meter-high Mont Avril and the 3,518-meter-high Mont Gelé (Chanrion) is the only ice-free crossing over the main Alpine ridge east of the Grand Combin massif and west of the Monte Rosa massif. Immediately below the pass summit, on the Italian side, is the small Lac Fenêtre." Source: Wikipedia.

From the Italian side, you mostly have to carry the bike or use rails. Short sections are rideable. The descent into Val Ferret is mostly good, somewhere between S1 and S2. In some places, I had to carry/push the bike because it was too heavy. It took me about 25-30 minutes from the pass to Plan de la Chaux.

Beautiful, smooth, never extremely steep and only a few cars even on weekends.

Great view of the Mont Blanc massif. You can drive to the refuge.

I recommend choosing the classic crossing via Col de Ferret. In contrast to the Fenetre de Ferret, the climb is partly rideable and the view of the Mont Blanc massif is much more spectacular.

https://youtu.be/D352Ql5fMaY?feature=shared I also passed through here on the Tour du Combin. Crossing the lonely col is simply epic. The climb from Fionnay up to the reservoir through the many tunnels is an experience; the climb to the col is easy for a long time, but quite steep at the end. The descent across the lake into the valley is an absolutely fantastic trail, culminating in the Ru Neuf irrigation channel.

The rewards are the magnificent view of the Val de Bagnes and the cheese crust at the refreshment bar at the Col du Lein