D211a Balcony Road

Distance: 17.5 miles. Elevation: 2620 ft.

High5 Zero Sports
Banana

4 Replies to “D211a Balcony Road”

  1. Hi Vince, I love this road, probably my favourite in the area. If you do this route again, may I suggest you also take in the D220? – when you reach Le Freney-d’Oisans, go up the Lautaret (D1091), turn right over the dam to the D213 then right again onto the D220. It’s another fabulous balcony road that loops back down to the Lautaret – it also has a warning sign advising you to go a different route…… You are correct about the D219, another tremendous road; it’s steep and has 4 tunnels; one is short, one is lit and two are very dark indeed. At the top, the road between Villard-Notre-Dame and Villard-Reymond is gravel, though I recently cycled across it on 25mm road tyres – it’s best approached form the Bourg side in my opinion. It affords spectacular views of the 21 bends of the Alpe d’Huez opposite. Great site, keep up the good work!

    1. Thanks for your comment Andy, and it couldn’t have come at a more opportune moment. I have just this evening arrived in France, and will be heading south, eventually to the Oisans. I still have a blog entry to publish for the Col de la Croix de Fer from my last tour. This time I aim to do Pas de la Confession (have you done that one?), the D219, and now the one you mention – it sounds fantastic. Thanks again for your suggestions and feedback – much appreciated.

  2. Hello Vince. Yes, I’ve ridden the Pas de la Confession a few times; again, it’s lovely! I preferred the ride from Huez (south) side as it leads to the fantastic descent into Allemond. Enjoy your trip, looking forward to reading the ride reports 🙂

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Stay in touch

To receive an email when a new article is posted here just enter your email address in the box below and click Subscribe!