Col de Marie-Blanque (elevation ) is a

mountain pass A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since many of the world's mountain ranges have presented formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both Human migration, human a ...

in the western

Pyrenees The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to C ...

in the department of

Pyrénées-Atlantiques Pyrénées-Atlantiques (; Gascon Occitan: ''Pirenèus Atlantics''; eu, Pirinio Atlantiarrak or ) is a department in the southwest corner of France and of the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Named after the Pyrenees mountain range and the Atlanti ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. The pass is situated south-east of

Oloron-Sainte-Marie Oloron-Sainte-Marie (; oc, Auloron e Senta Maria; eu, Oloroe-Donamaria) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine (before 2015: Aquitaine), southwestern France. History The town was founded by the ...

and connects the valleys of the

Aspe Aspe (, ca-valencia, Asp) is a town and municipality located in the ''comarca'' of Vinalopó Mitjà, in the province of Alicante, Spain. The town is located in the valley of the river Vinalopó, from Alicante city. The economy of Aspe is based ...

and the

Ossau The Ossau Valley (French: ''Vallée d'Ossau''; Gascon: ''Aussau'' / ''la vath d'Aussau'') is a valley of the French Pyrénées, in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques ''département''. Administration 18 communes belong to the Valley: Arudy, Aste-Béo ...

rivers.

Details of the climb

The western side of the climb, starts from Escot on the N134. The climb is long at an average gradient of 7.7% (height gain – ). Although relatively short, there are several long sections with gradients in excess of 11%. From

Louvie-Juzon Louvie-Juzon (; oc, Lobier de Baish) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. See also * Ossau Valley *Communes of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department The following is a list of the ...

(east), the climb is long. Over this distance, it gains at an average gradient of 4.1%. The climb proper starts at Bielle on the D934 from where it is long, gaining at an average gradient of 5.1%, with a maximum of 8.5% near the start. En route, the climb passes the Plateau de Bénou.

Tour de France

The pass was first used in the

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in France, while also occasionally passing through nearby countries. Like the other Grand Tours (the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España), it consists ...

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd go ...

and has been crossed 15 times by the tour, including on stage 9 of the 2020 tour from Pau to

Laruns Laruns (; oc, Laruntz) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in south-western France. It is situated at the confluence of two mountain streams, the Gave d'Ossau and its tributary, the Valentin. Formerly part of the province ...

Appearances in Tour de France

References

External links

Preview Stage 17 2010 Tour de France with Cycling Profile for Marie-Blanque

Profiles and Tour de France appearancesCol de Marie-Blanque on Google Maps (Tour de France classic climbs)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marie-Blanque Mountain passes of Nouvelle-Aquitaine Mountain passes of the Pyrenees