Photo : Marc Mongenet / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Col d'Izoard
The Col d'Izoard peaks at 2,362 metres' altitude in the Hautes-Alpes. It links Briançon, to the north-west, to the Queyras, to the south-east, by the D902 road, built between 1893 and 1897 under the direction of General Berge. This road is closed to cars in winter, usually from November to May or June, between Brunissard and Le Laus. A monument and a museum were installed at the summit, in 1934 and 1989 respectively.
The pass is a mythical stage of cycling: the Tour de France has crossed it 36 times, and the Giro d'Italia saw in 1949 one of its most famous passages, when Fausto Coppi took the pink jersey from Gino Bartali. On the south side, a stele pays tribute to Louison Bobet and Fausto Coppi. Just below, the Casse Déserte unfolds an almost lunar landscape of cargneules, dolomitic rocks of tormented shapes, among the most photographed in the Southern Alps.
