La Farrapona
Despite being a relative newcomer to the Vuelta a España, La Farrapona has quickly become a favourite among cycling fans. Coming immediately after the Puerto de San Lorenzo, the Farrapona offers the chance for long range attacks, with a gradient which gets steeper towards the top. In 2014, Alberto Contador all but won the race on La Farrapona, following Chris Froome up the climb before riding away from his rival in the final kilometre. The main reason for La Farrapona’s fame, however, is not so much its slopes as its location set inside the stunning Somiedo Natural Park - surely the most wild and undiscovered part of Western Europe. The mountains here are dotted with just a few small villages, and the surrounding countryside is home to numerous brown bears, wolves, vultures, golden eagles and lynx - making the Somiedo a truly unique ecosystem in Europe. In terms of both its challenge as a climb and its unique scenery, La Farrapona is hard to beat.
Region: Principado de Asturias
City: Asturias
Distance: 18.78 km
Elevation Gain: 1098 m
Elevation Loss: 35 m
Difficulty: 886 (Hard)
FIETS Index: 6.15 FIETS
Avg Grade: 5.75 %
Max cat climb: HC
Min elevation: 640 m
Max elevation: 1709 m
Ride Category: Climb