| Famous climb |
| Beautiful scenery |
| 26 hairpin turns |
| #53 toughest climb of Aosta Valley |
| #21 most elevation gain of Aosta Valley |
| #78 longest climb of Italian Alps |
| #67 average steepest climb of Aosta Valley |
Colle del Piccolo San Bernardo from Pré Saint Didier is a climb in the region Aosta Valley. It is 23km long and bridges 1203 vertical meters with an average gradient of 5.2%, resulting in a difficulty score of 708. The top of the ascent is located at 2200 meters above sea level. Climbfinder users shared 9 reviews of this climb and uploaded 21 photos.
Road names: SS 26 Della Valle d'Aosta
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Great "classic" the climb in itself is not too difficult but be careful not to underestimate the wind that very often blows strongly from France and makes the 12 km from La Thuile to the pass much more challenging than the gradients would suggest.
The scenery is beautiful and evocative: from the legendary 8 hairpin bends that leave Pré-Saint-Didier behind, you move on to the cool valley that leads to La Thuile; once past the ski resort, you quickly gain altitude with long straight stretches before entering the forest and ending the climb in a vast alpine meadow.
Grande "classica" valdostana; la salita di per sé non è troppo difficile ma attenzione a non sottovalutare il vento che molto spesso soffia con forza dalla Francia e rende i 12 Km da La Thuile al valico molto più impegnativi di quanto le pendenze non lascino immaginare.
Il paesaggio è bello e suggestivo: dai mitici 8 tornanti che permettono di lasciarsi alle spalle Pré-Saint-Didier, si passa alla fresca valle che porta a La Thuile; superata la località sciistica si prende rapidamente quota con dei lunghi rettilinei per poi entrare nel bosco e concludere la salita in una vasta prateria alpina.
Very nice climb. From Pre Saint Didier it would be beautiful long while from La Thuile it would be shorter. At the top, a beautiful view of Lake Verney. Super recommended to do around May when it is just opened. You will climb and descend between two walls of snow. Really beautiful.
Salita molto bella. Da Pre Saint Didier sarebbe bella lunga mentre da La Thuile più corta. In cima bellissimo scorcio sul lago Verney. Super consigliato da fare verso maggio quando viene appena aperto. Farete salita e discesa in mezzo a due muri di neve. Davvero bellissimo.
Nice climb from the cosy village of La Thuille. From the village, the climb disappears quite quickly into the forest where there are a number of hairpin turns. Once you leave the forest you can enjoy the beautiful views of the valley and towards the pass. Very worthwhile when you are in the area.
Leuke beklimming vanuit het gezellige dorpje La Thuille. Vanuit het dorp verdwijnt de beklimming al vrij snel het bos in waar er een aantal haarspeldbochten zijn. Zodra je het bos verlaat kun je genieten van het mooie uitzicht op het dal en richting de pas. Zeer de moeite waard wanneer je in de buurt bent.
Cycled up the Italian side of this literally cross-border mountain pass in August 2022.
At the start, the door is immediately dropped as you climb briskly with eight fairly closely spaced hairpin bends out of your starting town. This is followed by a tunnel/gallery sequence located on a slightly winding and occasionally hairpin-turned route ascending into a narrow valley along the mountain river. Six wide and lit/semi-open tunnels of varying lengths. Last one is the longest (600m) just before cycling into touristy La Thuile.
Second half of the climb goes slightly steeper up the open valley flank with the hairpin turns constantly changing your view of the beautiful mountain scenery. Towards the end, a few straights with headwinds can make things difficult for a while. After cycling right past mountain lake Lago di Verney, pass crossing comes into view.
This consists of the abandoned customs building, the necessary catering facilities and a souvenir shop in 360° natural splendour.
Unlike the French side, there is perfect (new) tarmac on the wide road, though there are no white-yellow cycle info posts every kilometre. Bicycle lights, especially at the back, are always advisable in tunnels. Traffic was not too bad, but this is of course a snapshot in time.
Varied climb without extremes that offers everything: hairpin turns, safe tunnels,tourist town and above all fabulous 2000+ high mountain scenery.
Italiaanse zijde (Colle del Piccolo San Bernardo) van deze letterlijk grensoverschrijdende bergpas op gefietst in Augustus 2022.
Bij de start valt men direct met de deur in huis want je klimt pittig met 8 vrij kort op elkaar volgende haarspeldbochten je vertrekstadje uit. Nadien volgt een tunnel/galerij reeks gelegen op een licht kronkelende en af en toe met haarspeldbochten onderbroken route opklimmend in een nauw dal langs de bergrivier. Zes brede en verlichte/half open tunnels met verschillende lengtes. Laatste is de langste (600m) vlak voor het binnenfietsen van het toeristische La Thuile.
Tweede helft van de klim gaat iets steiler omhoog de open valleiflank op waarbij de haarspeldbochten je uitzicht op het prachtige berglandschap voortdurend doen veranderen. Naar het einde toe kunnen enkele rechte stukken met tegenwind het even moeilijk maken. Na het rechts voorbij fietsen van bergmeer Lago di Verney komt de pasovergang in het zicht.
Deze bestaat uit het verlaten douanegebouw, de nodige horeca en een souvenirwinkel in 360° natuurpracht.
In tegenstelling tot de Franse zijde ligt er op de brede weg perfect (nieuw) asfalt, maar er zijn wel geen wit gele fietsinfo paaltjes elke kilometer. Fietslichting, zeker achteraan, is altijd aan te raden in tunnels. Verkeersdrukte viel mee, maar dit is natuurlijk een momentopname.
Gevarieerde klim zonder extremen die alles te bieden heeft: haarspeldbochten, veilige tunnels,toeristisch stadje en vooral fabuleus 2000 + hooggebergte decor.
Done from Aosta, it is 1800m of altitude difference and 55km. You take the SS26 to the tip and start climbing well from Prè-Saint Didier.
A beautiful climb for the landscapes
Fatta da Aosta sono 1800mt di dislivello e 55km. Sì prende la SS26 fino in punta ed inizia a salire bene da Prè-Saint Didier.
Una bellissima salita per i paesaggi
Fact on August 23, 2013:
Ascension doesn't start in La Thuile but in Pré St Didier and even if you want to push it a bit far, in Morgex, but the part between this town and Pré St Didier is not very interesting and on a very busy road.
This side is slightly more complicated than Bourg St Maurice with a length of 23KM for 1200M of ascent
Between the start and La Thuile the percentages are between 4 and 5 ％ on a tree-lined road with 3 tunnel crossings, the last one of about 500M is very well lit, fresh and drinking water fountains.
Beginning of the 13 remaining kms, the vegetation is rare and the wind is often present, with the many laces it is once of face, once in the back and it is rather disturbing.
The slope becomes rougher 6 - 6,5 - 7 and even up to 8 ％, the state of the road at the time when I climbed it, sometimes forced me (when there was no vehicle in front) to drive in the middle which hinders the rising traffic, but impossible to do otherwise.
A few kilometers before the summit, the trees appear again, the 3/4 wind makes the progression painful and the end interminable, finally we see the small St Bernard at the end of the long final straight line....ouf
Good road and prudence
Fait le 23 août 2013 :
L’Ascension ne commence pas à la Thuile mais à Pré St Didier et même si on veut pousser le bouchon un peu loin, à Morgex, mais la partie entre cette ville et Pré St Didier est peu intéressante et sur une route très fréquentée.
Ce versant est légèrement plus compliqué que par Bourg St Maurice d’une longueur de 23KM pour 1200M dénivelé
Entre le départ et la Thuile les pourcentages sont entre 4 et 5 ％ sur une route bordée d’arbres avec traversée de 3 tunnels dont le dernier d’environ 500M est très bien éclairé, fontaines d’eau fraîche et potable.
Début des 13 kms restants, la végétation se fait rare et le vent est souvent présent, avec les nombreux lacets il est une fois de face, une fois dans le dos et c'est assez perturbant.
La pente devient plus rude 6 – 6,5 - 7 et même jusqu'à 8 ％ , l'état de la chaussée à l’époque où je l’ai monté, m'obligeait parfois ( lorsqu'il n'y avait pas de véhicule en face ) à rouler au milieu ce qui gêne la circulation montante, mais impossible de faire autrement.
Quelques kilomètres avant le sommet les arbres font à nouveau leur apparition , le vent 3/4 face rend la progression pénible et la fin interminable, enfin on aperçoit le petit St Bernard tout au bout de la longue ligne droite finale....ouf
Bonne route et prudence
Climbed from Italy on 12 July 2018. Well long, about 23 km, but not very steep. Lots of traffic at the bottom, but further up pretty quiet. Road surface on the Italian side much better than the French part.
Op 12 juli 2018 vanuit Italië beklommen. Wel lang, zo'n 23 km, maar niet erg steil. Beneden veel verkeer, maar verder naar boven vrij rustig. Wegdek aan de Italiaanse kant veel beter dan het Franse deel.
Cycled up in the summer of 2016. Was very doable. A good running climb with some steeper parts here and there but not insurmountable. Good tarmac and on top of the pass a small catering facility.
In de zomer van 2016 opgefietst. Was zeer goed te doen. Een goed lopende klim met hier en daar wat steilere maar niet onoverkomelijke stukken. Goed asfalt en bovenop de pas een kleine horecagelegenheid.
Today (29-8-17) I climbed this climb by car and what struck me is that the road surface is really perfect. Looks like it was recently paved on wouw. Road surface is anything but bad.
Also, based on the profile, the climb seems less intense than in reality. The average is probably correct. But keep in mind that there are several short sections of 8% and higher.
Vandaag (29-8-17) met de auto deze klim getreden en wat opviel is dat het wegdek echt perfect is. Ziet er uit alsof hij kort geleden op wouw is geasfalteerd. Wegdek is alles behalve slecht.
Daarnaast lijkt de klim op basis van het profiel minder heftig dan in werkelijkheid. De gemiddelde kloppen vast. Maar hou rekening met meerdere korte stukjes van 8% en hoger.
| 7 km/h | 03:17:08 |
| 11 km/h | 02:05:27 |
| 15 km/h | 01:32:00 |
| 19 km/h | 01:12:37 |
