Col d'Aubisque cycling climb map

by Sidney van den Boogaard

Dutch cyclists have a special bond with the Aubisque. In 1951 Wim van Est, the first Dutchman to lead the biggest race in cycling, plunged into a ravine on its descent and survived; a memorial on the Soulor side recalls the fall. The climb itself starts in Laruns, in the Ossau valley. Beyond the spa town of Eaux-Bonnes the road steepens, rising through the forest to the ski station of Gourette. Above it the views open wide until, at 1,709 metres, you roll in among giant bicycle sculptures painted in the colours of the race's classification jerseys. For anyone with a soft spot for the Pyrenees.

This work is part of the Legendary Climbs collection: the most famous climbs in road cycling, from the Alps and the Pyrenees to the short, steep hills of Flanders and Limburg. Each climb is drawn from the real road, with the elevation profile coloured per kilometre and, along the bottom, the length, elevation gain, average and maximum gradient and the summit.

The road is drawn from OpenStreetMap data (© OpenStreetMap contributors) and the profile from Copernicus elevation data (EU-DEM). A great gift for any cyclist, to hang next to the bike or as a goal for next season.