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The climate of Alpe d’Huez (France)
Alpe d’Huez is a real cyclingmountain. As soon as the weather permits every day toiling cyclists can be found aganinst the slopes of the mountain trying to conquer the giant with the 21 bends. For years on end the Alp has been a constant value in the Tour de France and many a stage was determined on the way up. The course is difficult, it is about 1850 meters altitude, 14 kilometers long and is has 21 hair-pin bends. These bends each have a number and a memorial tablet of their own. Every bend has been named after a winner of the stage up. So on your way up you count down slowly. The beginning of the climb is immediately fairly tough. The first part of the way up starts with a square bend that makes it hardly possible for you to speed up before starting to climb. The part to the first bend is also one of the longer and steeper parts which often makes you loose courage quickly. Arriving at the bend you can take it somewhat wider to rest your legs for a while ( watch out for descending traffic) or you can go for the speed and take the bend on the inside. In the first couple of bends, 21, 20, 19, 18 you climb fairly quickly and soon you have a splendid view of the valley, Bourg d‘Oisin situated in the valley and Les Deux Alpes. From bend number sixteen it gets somewhat better and less steep and the legs can rest a while.

Here the road also turns into the mountain and the view of the first part of the mountain disappears. By the traffic you can see where the road runs above you and that can have a depressing effect. This part is somewhat steeper again but it is nothing compared to the beginning. You cycle mainly through the trees here. After bend number seven you turn further into the mountain and for the first time your ultimate aim comes into sight, some people start moaning then because you can perfectly see how far it still is, to others it can be a motivation to make a strong final spurt. On a busy cycling-day it is an impressive sight to see all those cyclists in front of you plugging up the mountain. From here there is also less vegetation and gradually you exceed the tree-line. From bend number four you can also see the situation of the village and there is more and more cultivation. This can be very deceptive however and then it is still quite a distance upwards. From bend number three it also gradually gets somewhat steeper and the final part upwards is a repetition of the part you started with. By then it does not make much difference anymore, you are almost up then and pushing on for those last couple of meters does not matter anymore. You have finally made it!

The climate on Alpe d’Huez is an alpine climate. Take into account that on the way up the temperature gradually drops and that the difference in temperature between the valley and the top can be some 6 degrees. Particularly if you are going to decend the same way after the climb it is sensible to take some warm clothes. The wind during the descent makes it freezing cold and even on a fine warm day the way down is considerably fresh.

 

 

Climate information
The data below is based on registered weather data and applies to Alpe d’Huez:

average
 maximum
temperature (°C)

average
minimum

temperature (°C)
average
hours of sunshine

per
day
average days with precipitation
per month
average
mm
precipitation
per month
average
sea
temperature (°C)
January -1 -6 3 14 n/a
February 0 -6 3 13 n/a
March 5 -4 4 14 n/a
April 9 -2 5 20 n/a
May 14 6 7 14 n/a
June 22 11 8 13 n/a
July 27 12 8 8 n/a
August 26 12 7 11 n/a
September 21 10 6 19 n/a
October 14 5 5 19 n/a
November 4 -2 2 12 n/a
December 1 -6 2 13 n/a
= 0-5 mm ● = 6-30 mm ● = 31-60 mm ● = 61-100 mm ● = 101-200 mm ● = over 200 mm
= 0-0.2 inches ● = 0.2-1.2 inches ● = 1.2-2.4 inches ● = 2.5-4 inches ● = 4.1-8 inches ● = over 8 inches

More climate information
Climate figures are very useful but don’t present a general impression of the climate and the eventual weather circumstances within a certain period. The figures don’t always reflect the chance of wintry weather, extreme heat or hurricanes. That is why we offer useful extra climate information for each month of the year:
 

chance of
(very) hot

weather

chance of
(very) cool
weather
chance of
long-term

precipitation
chance of
hurricanes
(cyclones)
chance of
sunny days

UV-index

January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
click here for the explanation of the symbols

Disclaimer
The information at this site was carefully composed from climate data collected by meteorological services, meteorological offices, climate experts and other sources. “More climate info” is based on statistics, climate data and personal experience. No rights can be derived from this site. Weather has no memory and gives no guaranties. Nothing is as changeable and unpredictable as the weather. The authors of this site feel in no way responsible for any damages caused by misinterpretation or other circumstances that may influence your holiday or trip to a certain destination. We provide information, it’s up to the reader to use it to it’s benefit.

 

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