Tour Climbs: The complete guide to every mountain stage on the Tour de France. Chris Sidwells

      This climbs starts in the busy resort of Ax-les-Thermes, a place that was established as a hospital in 1260 by St Louis to treat soldiers wounded in the Crusades. The hospital grew as more people tried the cures of the sulphurous thermal water that comes from deep beneath the town. It later fell from popularity and all that is left of the hospital today is the Bassin des Ladres, which is across the road from St Vincent’s church. It’s still nice to dangle your feet in the warm pool though.

      Today Ax-les-Thermes is famous for skiing, and Plateau de Bonascre is one of the local areas in which this winter activity takes place. The resort on the Plateau is called Ax-3Domaines, which can be a bit confusing when you look at the Tour de France history books, because the Tour has included this climb three times, once calling it the Plateau de Bonascre and on the other two occasions referring to it as Ax-3Domaines. They are all the same climb.

      Plateau de Bonascre starts just at the point where the road turns away from the Aiège river and after a relatively easy first two and a half kilometres the next three are the hardest of the climb as they fluctuate between just under ten percent and just over 11 percent. After that the gradient eases to five percent for one kilometre before getting steep, easing and steepening again to the top. The road is also full of twists and turns, which makes it hard to find a good climbing rhythm.

      The Plateau is a wide open space bordered by a circle of mountains and dissected into an elongated strip of high country by the Savignac and Ariège valleys. It’s also a sporting paradise with tennis courts, jogging and walking routes, mountain bike tracks, and of course loads of ski pistes in winter.

      For the road rider though, the finish of the climb is as far as you can go. However, the Tour climbs of the Col de Chioula and the Port de Pailhères both start in Ax-les-Thermes and climb the opposite side of the valley. So off you go and try them.

       WHICH WAY?

      Ax-les-Thermes is 36 kilometres southeast of Foix on the N20. The road to Plateau de Bonascre is the D820 and it is on your right just as you enter Ax-les-Thermes from the direction of Foix. The climb is signposted from the main road too. Ax-les-Thermes is 15 kilometres southeast of Les Cabannes, so this climb can be combined with the Plateau de Beille.

       Plateau de Bonascre has hosted a stage finish in the Tour de France three times. The first was in 2001 when a Colombian rider, Felix Cardenas, won.

       The Spaniard Carlos Sastre won here in 2003. Over the last few years Sastre has been a climbing specialist who has come close to winning the Tour. His ability in the mountains gets him into a good overall position, but his time trialling lets him down. Many think that a Tour de France with more mountains and less emphasis on time trials could see the Spaniard run out as overall winner.

      When he crossed the line in 2003, Sastre stuck a baby’s dummy in his mouth, which was meant as a greeting to his newly born daughter. Victory celebrations in cycling often have references to what is going on in a racer’s life.

      First bend of the climb

      The Tour is over 100 years old

      You’re on your way up

      Enthusiastic Spaniards swell the crowds in the Pyrenees © Luc Claessen

      Col de Port

      ‘THE HISTORY CLIMB’

       2 STARS

      Length: 17 km

      Altitude: 1250 metres

      Height gain: 777 metres

      Average gradient: 4.6%

      Maximum gradient: 9%

      WHAT TO EXPECT

       A good introduction. The Col de Port makes a great introduction to the Pyrenees for an inexperienced climber. It has a good dollop of Pyrenean character without any horrendously steep sections that other famous climbs in the range have.

       Don’t be put off. The northern approach to Tarascon does not show the town to its advantage. All you can see is a tangle of cement works, railway sidings and the local sewage plant. That the graffiti on the town sign reads, “Welcome to the perfumed air of Tarascon,” says it all really. Don’t be put off, the town is quite nice really and the Eastern Pyrenees are beautiful. Trust me.

       Round trips. Try climbing the Port, descend to Massat, turn right on the D15 to climb the Port de Lers and descend to Tarascon for a round trip of 74 kilometres.

      Not particularly long or steep, the Col de Port is a major climb

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