The dramatic town of Briançon and its Vauban Citadel, perched at over 1,300m in altitude, cry out to be explored before you set off on your cycling adventure. In the immediate Briançonnais area, there are several strategic forts on the surrounding heights, signalling the historical importance of the area, that you can reach quite easily by foot. After exploring the area, it’s time to get on your bike! Heading south, the Durance River, your companion for this whole cycling trip, makes its presence felt, notably via the impressive gorges it has carved out down the millennia. Riding along, you’ll follow its rapids and cross its waters, rewarded with splendid panoramic views. Once you reach Les Vigneaux, you’ll have tackled this stage’s climbs, so enjoy the well-deserved descent beside the Gyronde, a wild torrent guiding you down to L’Argentière.

After L'Argentière la Bessée, launch yourself on a physically demanding stretch, the Montée de Pallon. Turning back isn’t an option! This may be a very demanding climb, but it takes you high above the Durance, enabling you, through sheer effort, to discover the Biaysse Valley and the wild foothills of the Parc National des Écrins. Riding below snowy peaks, mountain streams and pines line the road on your beautiful descent to Mont-Dauphin, a fort perched at the entrance to the Queyras area. Next, the small town of Guillestre offers a jolly place for a stop, built beside lively waters. Continue alongside the Durance to the little city of Embrun, following the river’s meanders, passing hot springs, enjoying the final slopes, Serre-Ponçon Lake coming into view at the end of the stage, with the Pic de Morgon providing the mountain backdrop.

Leaving Embrun and the banks of Serre-Ponçon Lake behind, a long steady climb takes you along the Route des Puys, to parts that seems lost in time, they’re so remote and quiet. You wend your way along the mountainside between Alpine pastures and spectacular viewing points down on the sparkling Serre-Ponçon Lake. In the usually crisp light, with each turn, a new panorama opens up, towards the peaks of the Morgon Mountain, or the Parpaillon Range, or the great geological folds of the Réallon. Having tackled this stage’s first steep stretches, the rest of the way proves less demanding. Cycling is pleasant through the wild Réallon Valley, then comes a heady descent to Chorges, a little town set below dramatic peaks and rocks sculpted by nature into curious shapes.

This stage may be less spectacular than the more northerly ones, but it presents an enjoyably wide variety of landscapes. Riding through the Avance Valley, you pass peaceful meadows and herds as well as farming hamlets. Away from any bustle, meander along country lanes, with, as backdrop to this bucolic setting, the peaks of Le Champsaur and the Pic de Bure. The little city of Gap, surrounded by such grand summits as Céüse and Charance, provides a lovely urban stop, with its historic centre, lively café and restaurant terraces and facilities for cyclists. Leaving town, tackle this stage’s final climb to Châteauvieux before racing down to the Château de Tallard and the Durance River, enjoying the hint of Provence in the air!

From Tallard, you accompany the Durance, no longer the impetuous river it once was since the Serre-Ponçon Dam’s construction in 1959, water from the river being syphoned off into the Canal EDF, which acts as the guiding thread for cyclists on this stage. Orchards thrive on either side, while the Monges Range makes a charming backdrop. Around here, the Durance Valley opens out and the landscapes become gentler, but perched villages such as Upaix mark the way, with fruit trees and gypsum outcrops to the sides. The cycle route then rises above the Buëch River to offer cyclists a splendid finale, in the form of your arrival at Sisteron, a town overseen by a stone citadel built on dramatically twisted strata of rocks. Northerly lavender fields indicate that you’re reaching the border with Provence. Before cycling into this southerly region, savour the Alpine features visible in Sisteron’s very geology before heading into the sun-drenched south.