Col de Vars from La Condamine-Châtelard (South side)
Col de Vars, elevation 2108 m (6916 ft) is a high mountain pass in the Alps between the departments of Hautes-Alpes and Alpes-de-Haute-Provence in France. It connects the Ubaye Valley with the Queyras valley and Embrun. The pass is open only from May to October. It is traversed by highway D 902, which leads from Saint-Paul-sur-Ubaye in the southeast to Vars and on to Guillestre in the northwest. The pass has been included in the Tour de France more than 30 times since 1922, when Philippe Thys crossed the pass for the first time. The ride starts just after the turnoff to Sainte-Anne la Condamine and the (unpaved) Col du Parpaillon. The climb starts out with false flat, but gets harder to the top. The last 5 kilometers are around 9% on average!
Region: Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
City: La Condamine-Châtelard
Distance: 16.83 km
Elevation Gain: 826 m
Elevation Loss: 6 m
Difficulty: 653 (Moderate)
FIETS Index: 3.97 FIETS
Avg Grade: 4.86 %
Max cat climb: HC
Min elevation: 1293 m
Max elevation: 2110 m
Ride Category: Climb