France, home to the world’s biggest bike race, is littered with mountain ranges – from the Vosges through the Alps and down to the Pyrenees. So it must be home to Europe’s toughest climbs, right?
Wrong – none of the toughest cycling climbs in Europe are in France.
Here are seven that make the Col du Tourmalet and Alpe d’Huez look like Box Hill.
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1. Rettenbachferner, Sölden, Austria
- Length: 12.5km
- Height gain: 1,385m
- Average gradient: 11.1%
- Maximum gradient: 14.5%
To be honest, I could fill this entire list with climbs from Austria alone – they are simply different gravy.
I was so physically destroyed after my first visit, I was forced to buy a new cassette with a – gasp – 32-tooth sprocket (the largest my rear mech would accommodate).
Then on my return trip, I almost wore it out – such is the proliferation of relentless steep gradients.
This climb from the town of Sölden up to the base of the Rettenbach Glacier is the archetypal Austrian beast. Not excessively long at just 12.5km, but with an average gradient of over 11 per cent (which includes a brief downhill section), it’s just insane.
For reference, a typical Tour de France climb averages 7 to 8 per cent. Think an extra 3 to 4 per cent doesn’t matter? Wrong. It’s a different world.
The brutal consistency of double-digit gradients – peaking at 15 to 16 per cent – is enough to have you questioning your sanity.
Yes, the scenery is stunning. But the effort to reach it will have you crying from your eye teeth and bleeding from your soul.
2. Kaunertaler Gletscherstraße, Prutz, Austria
- Length: 38.6km
- Height gain: 1,888m
- Average gradient: 4.9%
- Maximum gradient: 12.3%
Like many of Austria’s grand climbs – such as the equally brutal Grossglockner – the road to the Kaunertal Glacier is a toll road for vehicles. Luckily for us cyclists, we get to ride it for free.
Starting in Prutz, it’s a full 39km to the top. While the gradient is easy at first, the later stages settle into extended stretches of 10 per cent plus. After passing the Gepatsch Stausee reservoir, you head into mountain wilderness on your way to the 2,750m summit.
In the final 11km, the average gradient is an unforgiving 9 per cent. Twisting through eerie solitude, you can feel like the last person on Earth – creeping higher through hairpin after hairpin until you reach the jumble of ski lifts, restaurants and a very well-stocked gift shop where a souvenir is compulsory proof of conquest.
3. Umbrailpass, Valchava, Switzerland
- Length: 13.3km
- Height gain: 1,124m
- Average gradient: 8.5%
- Maximum gradient: 11%
You’ve all heard of the Stelvio Pass – and you may be surprised to read it’s not on this list. Yes, it’s a monster at 25km with 48 hairpins, dramatic altitude and jaw-dropping views. But with an average gradient of just 7 per cent, it’s not a true killer.
A climb that’s much harder is its lesser-known sibling, the Umbrailpass. This Siamese appendage rises out of Switzerland to join the Stelvio shortly before the summit.
Starting in Valchava, it’s 13.3km long with an 8.5 per cent average and multiple soul-destroying kilometres at 9 per cent. Topping out at 2,500m, it features 36 hairpins, a fraction of the Stelvio’s traffic, and views nearly as spectacular.
This is one climb that mustn’t be overlooked – or underestimated.
4. Alto de los Machucos, Bustablado, Spain
- Length: 6km
- Height gain: 610m
- Average gradient: 10%
- Maximum gradient: 28%
The inclusion of the Angliru in the 1999 Vuelta was a watershed moment, opening the floodgates for race organisers to seek out ever more sadistic climbs. One such monster is the evil Alto de los Machucos.
This is a classic Vuelta ascent: barely wide enough for a car, hidden deep in the countryside, and so hard it could make you weep.
First used in 2019, it gained instant notoriety. Over just 6km, it packs in multiple savage ramps up to 28 per cent. That’s only part of it.
The narrow concrete road is ribbed for traction, but these ridges do nothing but sap your speed and wreck your rhythm on skinny tyres. If you're looking for adventure and a challenge – somewhere no one will hear you scream – this climb is for you.
5. Pico Veleta, Granada, Spain
- Length: 37.4km
- Height gain: 2,484m
- Average gradient: 6%
- Maximum gradient: 14%
The highest road ever used by the Tour de France is the Cime de la Bonette at 2,802m. The road to the top of Pico Veleta stands at 3,375m – 573m higher.
I say ‘road’, but that’s being generous. As you climb, the smooth tarmac gives way to potholes, then gravel, then a barely rideable rocky path.
Depending on where you start, you’ll climb more than 2,400m. Once you reach the ski village at Alto Hoya de la Mora, there’s still 10km left – and the air is thin.
On a clear day, the views are so vast you’ll swear you can see the curvature of the Earth. Who needs a rocket? This is spaceflight by bike – a gruelling, almost spiritual experience.
6. San Pellegrino in Alpe, Castelnuovo di Garfagnana, Italy
- Length: 13.7km
- Height gain: 1,217m
- Average gradient: 10%
- Maximum gradient: 20%
Of all the Italian climbs, I could (and maybe should) have chosen the mighty Zoncolan. Of course, it’s harder than anything in France, but it’s been written about endlessly.
Instead, here’s a lesser-known Italian monster: San Pellegrino in Alpe.
Starting just north of Castelnuovo di Garfagnana in northern Tuscany, this climb has featured in the Giro d’Italia multiple times. It's famous for its savage 20 per cent ramps – and for almost breaking Marco Pantani.
Imagine Alpe d’Huez, with the Mur de Huy slapped on the top. That’s San Pellegrino in Alpe.
Over nearly 14km, it averages 10 per cent, but the final third is utterly savage. After a short levelling, you’ll pass a sign saying 18 per cent – laughable in its understatement – and from there, it’s all wrestling the bar and grinding through the pain to the summit.
7. Colle del Nivolet, Noasca, Italy
- Length: 21.3km
- Height gain: 1,142m
- Average gradient: 5%
- Maximum gradient: 12%
The Colle del Nivolet is the most beautiful mountain road in the world. Fact.
But that’s not why it’s on this list – although it certainly helps.
Starting west of Noasca and heading into the heart of the aptly named Parco Nazionale Gran Paradiso, this climb will destroy your legs and blow your mind.
Don’t be fooled by its modest 5 per cent average. That number hides frequent sections of double-digit gradients en route to Lago Serrù – the 2024 Giro d’Italia stage finish.
By the time you arrive, you’ll be wrecked – and rewarded. The final kilometres twist like ribbon between alpine lakes and snow-capped peaks. It’s simply, insanely beautiful. And yes, this is where they filmed the famous bus scene in The Italian Job.
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