Col de Joux Plane is one of the six major passes of the French Alps

# Col de Joux Plane: A Northern Alps Beast Worth the Suffering

If you're hunting for one of France's most legendary cycling climbs, Col de Joux Plane needs to be on your radar. Sitting at 1,697m (5,567ft) in Haute-Savoie, near the Swiss border, this pass shares elite company with the Galibier, Izoard, and Alpe d'Huez as one of the six major peaks that define the French Alps cycling scene.

The paved D354 connecting Morzine to the south and Samoëns to the north is deceptively short at 23.7 km (14.72 miles), but don't let that fool you—this road is a proper gut-check. From Morzine, you're looking at 10.9 km with 711m of elevation gain (6.5% average). From Samoëns? That's 11.6 km gaining 989m with a punishing 8.5% average. Some sections hit a brutal 15% gradient, and the road's narrow, often single-lane character makes it feel even more intense.

Here's the kicker: the entire slope faces south. If you're planning a summer attempt, seriously get an early start or you'll be cooking in the heat with nowhere to hide.

Reach the summit and you'll find Le Relais des Vallées bar and a parking area. Push a bit further on the gravel road north and you'll hit the true summit at 1,714m, where views of Mont-Blanc will make every painful pedal stroke worthwhile.

Tour de France directors love throwing this at cyclists for a reason—it's relentless from either direction, but the Samoëns side is genuinely one of Haute-Savoie's toughest climbs. While it might not have the star power of its southern cousins, Joux Plane absolutely belongs in the conversation of Northern Alps legends.