The Col de Porte (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 ...
situated in the
Chartreuse Mountains
The Chartreuse Mountains (french: massif de la Chartreuse ) are a mountain range in southeastern France, stretching from the city of Grenoble in the south to the Lac du Bourget in the north. They are part of the French Prealps, which continue a ...
in the
Isère
Isère ( , ; frp, Isera; oc, Isèra, ) is a landlocked department in the southeastern French region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Named after the river Isère, it had a population of 1,271,166 in 2019.[Le Sappey-en-Chartreuse
Le Sappey-en-Chartreuse is a commune in the Isère department in southeastern France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territ ...]
to the south and
Saint-Pierre-de-Chartreuse
Saint-Pierre-de-Chartreuse () is a commune in the Isère department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in southeastern France.
It is located in the Chartreuse Mountains, to the north of the city of Grenoble. The Grande Chartreuse, the head m ...
to the north. It sits on the D512 between
Grenoble
lat, Gratianopolis
, commune status = Prefecture and commune
, image = Panorama grenoble.png
, image size =
, caption = From upper left: Panorama of the city, Grenoble’s cable cars, place Saint- ...
and
Chambéry
Chambéry (, , ; Arpitan: ''Chambèri'') is the prefecture of the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of eastern France. The population of the commune of Chambéry was 58,917 as of 2019, while the population of the Chambér ...
, and prior to 1998 was often crossed in conjunction with the
Col du Cucheron and the
Col du Granier.
To the east is
Chamechaude
Chamechaude is the highest summit in the Chartreuse Massif in the Isère department in eastern France. It is the fourth most prominent mountain in metropolitan France
Metropolitan France (french: France métropolitaine or ''la Métropole'' ...
, the highest summit in the Chartreuse Massif. There is a small ski resort situated near the col.
Cycle racing
The Col de Porte is regularly used in the
Critérium du Dauphiné
The Critérium du Dauphiné, before 2010 known as the Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré, is an annual cycling road race in the Dauphiné region in the southeast of France. The race is run over eight days during the first half of June. It is part ...
. In the sixth stage of the 1977 Critérium,
Bernard Hinault
Bernard Hinault (; born 14 November 1954) is a French former professional road cyclist. With 147 professional victories, including five times the Tour de France, he is often named among the greatest cyclists of all time. In his career, Hinault ...
fell on the descent from the Col de Porte leading to Grenoble when he was alone in the lead, 1'40" ahead of his competitors. Despite the fall, he won the stage at
Bastille
The Bastille (, ) was a fortress in Paris, known formally as the Bastille Saint-Antoine. It played an important role in the internal conflicts of France and for most of its history was used as a state prison by the kings of France. It was sto ...
in Grenoble ahead of
Lucien Van Impe
Lucien Van Impe (; born 20 October 1946) is a Belgians, Belgian cyclist, who competed professionally between 1969 and 1987. He excelled mainly as a climbing specialist, climber in multiple-day races such as the Tour de France. He was the winner ...
and
Bernard Thévenet
Bernard Thévenet (; born 10 January 1948) is a retired professional cyclist. His sporting career began with ACBB Paris. He is twice a winner of the Tour de France and known for ending the reign of five-times Tour champion Eddy Merckx, though bo ...
.
Details of the climb
From
Grenoble
lat, Gratianopolis
, commune status = Prefecture and commune
, image = Panorama grenoble.png
, image size =
, caption = From upper left: Panorama of the city, Grenoble’s cable cars, place Saint- ...
, to the south, the climb via the D512 is long, gaining in altitude, at an average gradient of 6.3%, with the steepest section being at 10%. from the summit, it passes the
Col de Palaquit ().
Tour de France
The pass was first included 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 ...
in
1907, after which it was used in the next three tours, and then not again until 1947.
Appearances in Tour de France since 1947
Since 1947, the passages which have been categorized have been:
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Porte, Col de
Mountain passes of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Isère