Col de la Couillole

The road up to this mountain pass is another one of those narrow, twisting roads where you have a drop-off on one side and a rock wall in the other. This road had more traffic than the others and several times I had to move closer to the edge than I was comfortable with or so close to the rock wall that I was worried about scraping the saddlebags against the rock.

This area is in the Mercantour National Park. It's one of the most biodiverse places in France. Many of the following days will be in this park

Of course, there's a bicycle monument on top. This pass is another famous one on the Tour de France. You know you're on a road that's used in the tour by the painting on the road surface, graffiti really. People would write words of encouragement for their favorite rider or team. I hope they used high traction road paint. The other way you can tell it's on the tour is there's going to be a monument on top, either to a famous cyclist or to bicycling in general.Read more