 Distance Nice - Peille/return: 54 km Climb: 900 m+ Main routes: M2204 and D2564 (Grand Corniche) Close to: Col de la Madone, L’Escarène, Monaco, Menton Level of difficulty: Moderate - Col de St. Pancrace from La Grave de Peille 8,5 km 5,61% in average, 9% max. Season: Spring, Summer, Fall Tip: You can combine this climb with a climb to the final part of Col de la Madone from the West side: 3,5 km 8% in average, 10,5% max. Col de St. Pancrace is a very nice ride If you look for a few hours out on the bike from Nice and want to include a classic climb.
Head out of Nice by the major road that takes you North of Nice - it is flat and gives you an idea of what suburbs to Nice look like. They are not part of the glamor of the normal pictures of the Côte d'Azur. Here you see how some of the 'normal' people live as you pass through La Trinité, Drap and Cantaron. The road is very busy on workdays. Therefore I advice you to do this ride in a weekend. When you reach D21, make a right turn towards L'Escarène and Peille. Follow it for a bit, until you take D53 to your right. The first part of the ride is not really the most spectacular, but it is a nice stretch to warm up the legs before you reach La Grave de Peille: The start of the climb! The hairpin climb starts as a lot of climbs in the area do: with some quite high % climbing on the first sections. Make sure to find a good low gear to begin spinning with and save a bit of energy for the hairpins to come. It is not a very long climb, but it is a nice challenging one for the ones who want a good training. The road will take you through pretty olive groves and pass stone houses. Take in the silence and magnificent mountains that surround you. The road-stones tell you how many km you still have to go before you reach Peille and your altitude. Make a countdown to 665m. Before you know of it, you are in the beautiful mountain village Peille. You can make a stop and grab a drink - enter the old town by the lower terrain of the village. If you want to beat a Strava record, just pedal on. Pass through Peille to reach the top of the climb in St. Pancrace. It is a few turns away on the opposite site of Peille. It is an extremely picturesque route and there are very nice photo spots along this road! Continue towards La Turbie via D53. You can extend the climb by turning left after a few km - look for the road going up and roadsign to St. Agnes. From here there is about 4 km climb to the Col de La Madone. Had enough of climbing? Then continue by the curling road straight on and go back to Nice via la Turbie - Moyenne corniche or Grand Corniche/Col d'Eze. Have fun! :) Tina Baltzer Lifesparkz Bike Tours  Distance Nice - Peille/return: 70 km Climb: 900 m+ Main routes: Grande Corniche (M2564) and D53 from La Turbie Close to: Col de la Madone, L’Escarène, Monaco Level of difficulty: Moderate Season: Spring, Summer, Fall Tip: If you want to try a true hairpin climb, cycle through Peille to La Grave and climb back up to Peille via one of the famous climbs of the region. Peille is one of my favourite spots to visit for a few hours' bike ride out of Nice! A hidden gem in les Alpes Maritimes this village is definitely worth the climb either via Col d'Eze from Nice or via the North Eastern flat roads out of Nice through La Trinité and Drap and climbing the epic climb to Peille from la Grave de Peille. If you want to follow the beautiful coastal climb you can either follow the route of Col d'Eze or head to La Turbie via the more moderate Moyenne Corniche. Either way, you will pass through La Turbie from where you need to find the road to Peille. It is easy: Just turn left when you see a road going uphill right after the "village center" = the square with restaurants! On your right handside you can look down on the towers of Monaco, however you want to look up to see the pretty trees along the road. When you pass the road towards Monaco Golf Club, you follow the hairpin turn up left - we are cycling, not golfing after all!! :-) Keep following this road untill you reach Peille and enjoy the magnificent view in to the Alpes-Maritimes. It is one of these landscapes that you never tire of. Once you are in Peille, you can have a coffee and crêpe in one of the small cafés in the village. Follow the small street signs - you must enter the small roads going through the medieval town. Every weekend you can also grab lunch in the restaurant in the middle of the village that offers a great view from the tables inside. Col de la Madone de Peille If you are up for a bit more climbing and beautiful views, follow the road towards St. Agnes that you pass on your way from la Turbie to Peille. It is a 5 km moderate climb from here to the famous Col de la Madone. Continue on the other side down to Menton and go back to Nice via the coast road through Monaco - or return the same way that you came for a descend on more quiet roads.  Happy Cycling! Tina Baltzer Lifesparkz Bike Tours  Distance Nice - Gattières - Carros - St. Jeannet - Nice: 55 km Climb: 500 m+ Main routes: M2209 from Saint-Laurent du Var, M2210, M18 Close to: Col de Vence, Vence, Broc, Gilette Level of difficulty: Easy-Moderate Season: Spring, Summer, Fall Tip: If you continue through Carros to Broc and find a small road going down to the riverside, you can cycle back through the flat valley by a cycling path that follows the Var river back to Saint-Laurent-du-Var. Another option for a longer round trip is to follow M1 and D8 through Bouyon and Coursegoules to Vence by passing Col de Vence. Gattières and Carros are villages on the Western side of the Var valley that you can cycle to via some gentle hill-slopes not far from Nice. This is a great route for you, who are starting to become familiar with cycling in mountains. There are gentle climbs and descends where you can challenge yourself with a bit of uphill and descend at good roads and (for the area) short sections. As you moves into the backland of the coast you will be met by the majestic mountain tops from the bigger tops of Les Alpes-Maritimes.
When you start from Nice you cycle out to the seaside town called Saint-Laurent-du-Var via Promenade des Anglais. It is just a few km after Nice airport. In Saint-Laurent-du-Var the quickest way is to find the main road M95. There is often dense traffic, so pay attention and make sure to give room to the other people in traffic when you pass through the round-abouts. Another option is to follow the main road through Saint-Laurent-du-Var town, however there is quite a few traffic lights and often a bit slow town traffic. Follow the M2209 and follow the road on the left towards Gattières after appr. 5 km. You have now a climb up to the first village Gattières. In Gattières there is a bakery where you can buy very nice patissérie and coffee. The local bar close to it is also happy to serve cyclists passing through! :-) Continue on the same road to Carros village. Carros is very beautifully located and has as any medieval village in the area small tiny charming streets - which are not so approachable by road bike! You can now return the same way as you came back to Nice. Or you can follow a pretty road from Gattières up close to St. Jeannet, which is another very picturesque village. At the round about at the foot of St. Jeannet follow the direction towards La Gaude and follow M118 down to Saint-Laurent-du-Var again. Return to Nice! :-) Tina Baltzer Lifesparkz Bike Tours |
