Col de Tamié: Cheese and Church Ride

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# Ride at a Glance
**Start and end point**: Downtown Annecy, in front of the Town Hall.

**Difficulty**: Intermediate. The climb to the Col de Tamié is gentle and enjoyable, however the overall 96 kilometer length of this route is challenging. For a more relaxed rhythm, consider staying overnight along the way!

**Climbing index**: 5% average for the first half of the 14 kilometer climb, then about 2% for the rest. Maximum 7% to 9%.

This route starts at the Town Hall in the center of Annecy. With your back to the Town Hall, make a left onto the sidewalk. Cross the bridge over the river Thiou and then turn left onto Quai de La Tournette.

The first section of the route is on a path with mixed pedestrians and bicycles, and then you'll be on a dedicated bike path. If there are throngs of tourists, you can bypass the shared section  by taking the Rue des Marquisats to the marina, then picking up the bike path there.

Once you get a little out of town, traffic on the bike path will thin, and you can enjoy stunning views of the lake on your left. You go through two tunnels and the scenery becomes more rural.

About 14 kilometers into the ride, you'll pass the @poi[Coup de Pompe](1298873), a bike friendly café, and the @poi[Locomotive](1298874), with free rest rooms, a public fountain and picnic tables to relax for a few moments before continuing on.

As you enter Doussard, you leave the lake behind. At Faverges, you turn off the bike path, amble through the town and begin the climb up the Col de Tamié. This route takes you at first on smaller country roads until you join the large but still fairly calm main road up the col.

If you want to spend the night before continuing up the hill, there are a few hotels marked along the route, including @poi[Au Gay Séjour](3894087) which has comfortable beds and a good restaurant with stunning views of the mountains through glass walls.

About 24 kilometers into the ride, you begin a 1@slice[4 kilometer climb](d,23546.97,37652.11) to the top of the col, with a visit to the monastery along the way.

@point[At the 33.5 kilometer mark](d,33522.55), you will see some buildings and a sign offering cheese for sale. There, you make a right to head up a steep hill to the monastery. There, you can visit the @poi[gift shop](3908912) and @poi[church](3923396) and see the @poi[monastery ](3915836)from the outside. There are bathrooms in the gift shop and @poi[standalone bathrooms](3936607) in the parking lot.

Leaving the monastery, follow signs to Albertville. It's a short climb to the top of the Col de Tamié, where you'll find a couple of restaurants, including @poi[L'Auberge du Col de Tamié](3927245) and the @poi[Chalet des Trappeurs.](1300179)

Also at the top of the col is a farm which makes boutique brand of ice cream called [Glaces & Cows](http://www.glacesncows.fr/en/). I met the owners one day moving their cows at the end of the day--an American woman and a Frenchman, which is why the name of the product is in two languages. The ice cream is sold at the monastery store and at a number of boutiques in Annecy. During the summer, during certain hours (haven't yet figured out which) it's on sale by the scoop at the @poi[Fort de Tamié](3892329), a historic military site you pass just after the col.

The climb isn't quite over yet, as there's still @point[the Collet de Tamié](d,37665.57), a tiny little peak which nonetheless has its @photo[own sign](1024409) to tell you you've arrived. From there, a winding, gorgeous and very pleasurable descent through Mercury, then a gentle coast into the fairly large town of Albertville.

Albertville is a convenient place to pick up sustenance at the @poi[8 à Huit ](3895090)convenience store or stop for a high-quality fast-food meal at @poi[Kebab de la Gare](3890762).

Leaving Albertville, you cross the Arly river and make a left on a bike path which is poorly paved in parts. @point[As you make the left onto the path ](d,50853.9)right after bridge over the river.

For the next few kilometers, you can enjoy the @photo[Arly river ](968095)to your left. It's a gravel road for a kilometer or two, then transitions to pavement. The  eight kilometers from Albertville to Ugine are on a mixture of bike paths and roads shared with cars. At Ugine, turn left to @photo[enter the tunnel](1024411), which puts you on a well-maintained bike path. From there, a flat 36 kilometers back to the center of Annecy.

## Food, Water and Bathrooms
Please note that bathrooms, fountains and many of the casual dining options on this list are open only in warmer months. This list is in order of appearance on the route.

@poi[**Auberge du Bessard L'Oasis**](1299027) Restaurant offering lakefront dining or a little kiosk for snacks and cold drinks, open in warmer months. Next door there is another restaurant, also with lakefront dining, called the Bodega.

@poi[**Water Fountain**](1299028) Public water fountain on the bike trail.

@poi[**Les Crêpes de Dame Kerlou**](1299030) Very friendly Brittany style crêperie with outdoor seating. As you can see from the photo there is a sign that says "don't hesitate to bring your bicycles inside." Score!

@poi[**Coup de Pompe**](1298873)
400 Route du Taillefer, Doussard. Tel: 04 50 05 54 95 Small friendly café with bathrooms for customers. Delicious organic frozen fruit drinks which they call smoothies, pronounced 'smoozies' in French. Plus ice cream and pastries. Rents tandem and other bicycles, and does bike repairs, too! Open seasonally, from the end of April through mid-September. Right across from the Locomotive. A great place to stop for a break midway through the ride.

@poi[**The Locomotive**](1298874)  Behind this green locomotive car, there are free public rest rooms, a water fountain and a grassy area with picnic tables. You'll pass this, and the Coup de Pompe twice-once at about the 14 mile mark and a second time toward the end of the ride.

@poi[**Bathroom hut at the Abbaye de Tamié**](3936607) Right outside the parking lot as you enter the monastery, the hut contains bathrooms. There area also bathrooms in the gift shop.

@poi[**Auberge du Col de Tamié**](3927245) Right at the top of the climb, a café restaurant.

@poi[**Chalet des Trappeurs**](1300179) I've heard great things about this restaurant, a few hundred feet from the Auberge, which serves Savoyard specialties. Open every day but Monday, but if you want lunch you need to call ahead and reserve. Please write me if you try it and let me know what you think!

@poi[**Kebab de la Gare** ](3890762)1 Avenue Général de Gaulle, Albertville. Excellent platters of "kebab" or gyros, plus sandwiches and other tasty fast food. Cold drinks, a terrace and a bathroom. Great stop for a bicyclist!

@poi[**8 à Huit convenience store**](3895090) 27 Avenue Jean Jaurès, Albertville. Near the halfway point of the ride, great place to stock up on water and snacks.

@poi[**Chamonix restaurant/café** ](1299637) Café restaurant with bathroom for patrons. Located at the roundabout just off the bike path.

## Sights
@poi[**Hôtel de Ville**](1298931) This is your start point, Annecy's Town Hall. Built in the mid-1880s, this impressive building with is an example of neoclassical architecture. It has public bathrooms, and parking underneath.

@poi[**Gift shop of the Abbaye de Tamié**](3908912) The main event here is the monastery's own cheese, well known throughout the region. There's also an array of other local edibles, books and postcards. Bathrooms in the gift shop as well as in a small hut near the parking lot.

@poi[**Abbaye Notre-Dame de Tamié**](3915836) This monastery, founded in 1133, is now home to 30 Trappist monks. You can't go inside the monastery, but you can enjoy it from the outside.

@poi[**Church of the Abbaye de Tamié**](3923396) The church is available for visits free of charge. I asked if it was okay to go inside wearing bike clothes, and I was told it's fine as long as there isn't a service happening at the time. Services are open to the public and the schedule is posted on the [Website](http://www.abbaye-tamie.com/l_accueil/horaires_offices_tamie/vue).

@poi[**Fort de Tamié**](3892329) This 1872 fort was an important military installation. On the same site, there's also an "Acrofort" or adventure park with trampolines and zip lines. The fort can be visited free of charge, while the park has an entrance fee. You can also get a scoop of the [**Glaces & Cows**](http://www.glacesncows.fr/en/) artisanal ice cream made just a few metres away on the Col de Tamié.

## Beaches and Picnic Areas

@poi[**Beach, Bathrooms and the Côté Plage Restaurant**](1299029) Public beach and restrooms, with a restaurant attached. Lots of bike parking outside.

@poi[**Public Beach**](1299060)  Free public beach with grassy expanse to sit and relax. No lifeguard. Free, and a  bit less crowded than the well-known beach near the Imperial and the other two beaches a bit closer into town. Good place for a picnic or a swim. There is a porta-potty but it was closed last time I was there.

@poi[**Picnic Area**](1299061) Small grassy park with a bench and picnic tables

## Bike Shops

@poi[**Sévrier Sport**](1299246) 65, Place de la Mairie, Sévrier.  Just a few hundred yards off the bike path, next to the church and the Sevrier pharmacy. You'll pass it on your way from the bike path to the start of the climb to Col des Leschaux. Open every day 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Telephone: 04 50 52 42 68. This shop has a wide range of rentals available--including high-performance bikes and trailers to haul a child in behind your bike. It's friendly, and handy if you have a flat or mechanical problem on the bike trail.

@poi[**Coup de Pompe**](1298873)  400 Route du Taillefer, Doussard. Tel: 04 50 05 54 95. This is a café which also has bike rentals and repairs. See description under Food, Water and Bathrooms.

## Hotels
I've marked three hotels at about 20 kilometers into the ride, making them ideally located if you want to leave Annecy in the afternoon, have a relaxing evening and a good meal, then leave ample time the next day for exploring the monastery and heading back to Annecy. Another plan would be to explore the col and the monastery the first day, then stay overnight in Albertville, where there are multiple hotel options.

@poi[**Auberge Blanche**](3849020) 1407 Route de Montmin, Faverges. Telephone:04 50 05 04 55. [Website. ](http://www.auberge-blanche.com/)Friendly family run B&B with very clean comfortable rooms and a shared terrace with a stunning mountain view. Lovely place to stay partway through a bike trip. My room had a small kitchen. You can eat dinner with the family (for a fee, called La Table de Hôtes) or bring your own.

@poi[**Au Refuge de Blanche**](1296744)  37 Passage des Prés d'Arin, Frontenex. Telephone: 06 73 86 85 43. [Website](http://www.refuge-de-blanche.com/). Small B&B with great online reviews for hospitality, food and price. Named for the chef and owner, Every time I call, they are booked. If you want to stay here, plan well ahead.

@poi[**Au Gay Séjour**](3894087). Telephone: 04 50 44 52 52.[ Website.](http://www.hotel-gay-sejour.com/) Located in the town of Seythenex. Comfortable friendly hotel with an excellent restaurant. Run by chef Bernard Gay and his very friendly wife. Its location near the base of the Col de Tamié makes it an excellent night stop for cyclists coming from Annecy who want to do the Col de Tamié route over two days.

## Important Reminders

The hairpin turns down the Col de Tamie are as sharp as they are enjoyable; Keep your speed under control, and be especially careful if the pavement is wet. On the bike trail, stay a steady course and do not veer to the left without looking first.

**Special caution:** As you turn onto the bike path leaving Albertville @point[at the 50.9 kilometer mark](d,50858.53) after crossing the Arly river, be very careful as the first section is hazardous ramp.

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