It is not known who was the first to complete this route in the Val di Susa – which is surprising, as the 3,131-metre-high Mont Chaberton is considered the highest point in the Alps that can be reached by mountain bike. And a summit at that! But people probably assumed back then that further summit discoveries would follow. Yet that’s how it remained: you cannot go higher than Mont Chaberton by mountain bike in the Alps.
A challenge even on an e-MTB
But let’s be honest: even in the age of e-MTBs, you couldn’t really say that Mont Chaberton was fully rideable. Its classic ascent from Fenils stretches for 13 kilometres, climbing nearly 1,900 metres in altitude. Steep, boulder-strewn, crumbly and, in places, exposed. There are steep, scree-covered hairpin bends where, with too much thrust, the front wheel would simply slip out and the rear wheel would spin. The ‘split rock’ was the key section. Here, the military track – which has been eroded away to nothing but a narrow ledge – squeezes its way through a rock formation. A safety rope in the rock face helped with the crossing.
A reader wrote to us a few years ago saying that, although he’d managed to get past the split rock, he was so physically and mentally drained by the climb that he gave up at the Col du Chaberton – just 450 metres below the summit. Despite the unrivalled reward that was already within reach. This is probably how it went for quite a few people, because the final hairpin bends up to the summit really are particularly treacherous and gruelling. Especially if you haven’t brought enough water (there’s nowhere to top up along the way!), provisions and warm clothes to protect against the biting, icy wind.
The access road to Fenils has been blocked since 2019
However, in 2017 and 2019, mudslides occurred on this steep slope, burying large sections of the path. Since then, it has unfortunately no longer been possible to access the route from Fenils, starting at Pra Cloud. The restoration work would be extremely costly and, given the terrain, would probably not last very long anyway.
But there are, of course, reasons why cyclists still struggle their way up here from Claviere: for one thing, the panoramic view from the summit is unbeatable, but the main attraction is the ‘Crown of the Cottian King’. In 1898, the Italians blasted away the summit of the mountain to install eight huge gun turrets here, creating Europe’s highest military fortress. A complex which, after 15 years of construction, was only used against France during the Second World War and which you can now climb around.
The highlights of the Mont Chaberton circuit
- The panorama: Take a spin round and take it all in: Mont Blanc to the north, the Barre des Écrins and La Meije to the west, Gran Paradiso to the north-east, Monviso to the south-east, and on particularly clear days you can even catch a glimpse of Monte Rosa.
- History: The actual summit of the mountain was blasted away by the Italians in 1898 to make way for the eight gun turrets, creating what was then Europe’s highest military fortress. 400 soldiers toiled on the project for 15 years with the aim of destroying the opposing forts on the French side. However, by the time the complex was operational in 1913, a peace treaty had long since been signed. It was not until the Second World War that the turrets were put into action under Mussolini. That was until they were destroyed by the French forts after just a few days in June 1940, and the mountain was ceded to France in 1947.
- The descent: You glide down the muddy hairpin bends to the Col de Chaberton, then turn left onto the trail towards Claviere: the first 130 metres of descent may be too steep and blocked with debris to ride. Beyond that, however, it gets better and better. If you’ve got the riding skills for difficulty levels S2–S3, you can easily ride all the way to Claviere from here.
There’s also a cosy pizzeria in Claviere. If you fancy a spot of trail riding after your stop for refreshments, simply turn off the valley road and back into the woods just before Fenils.
Total route: 32.3 kilometres / 1,945 metres of elevation gain / Trail section: 4.9 kilometres
We have submitted an enquiry to the tourist board asking whether and when the access road from Fenils is due to be repaired. We will keep you updated.
Legendary MTB tours as a BIKE series:
Gitta Beimfohr
Editor