Col du Ballon d'Alsace – Ballon d'Alsace loop from Petitmagny

Road cycling routes

France

Bourgogne-Franche-Comté

Territoire-de-Belfort

Kleinmenglatt

Col du Ballon d'Alsace – Ballon d'Alsace loop from Petitmagny

Hard

4.6

(11)

237

riders

Col du Ballon d'Alsace – Ballon d'Alsace loop from Petitmagny

03:40

75.2km

1,020m

Road cycling

Hard road ride. Very good fitness required. Some segments of this route may be unpaved and difficult to ride. The starting point of the route is accessible with public transport.

Last updated: August 24, 2026

Tips

The surface along some of this route may not be suitable

Some segments of your route comprise a surface that may not be suitable for your chosen sport.

After 22.7 km for 451 m

After 32.5 km for 331 m

Waypoints

Start point

Bus stop

Get Directions

11.7 km

Col du Ballon d'Alsace

Highlight (Segment) • Mountain Pass

The ascent of the Ballon d'Alsace from Sewen stretches over 13 kilometers.

This 9-kilometer segment includes 700 meters of elevation gain, an average of 7.5%.

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22.6 km

When you are at the top of the Ballon d'Alsace, the view is your first reward. The Auberge du Ballon d'Alsace is the second. With its traditional dishes, its panoramic terrace, and its friendliness you will be well. Ideal place for a gourmet break.

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23.1 km

Borne René Pottier

Highlight • Other

René Pottier was the first to cross the Ballon d'Alsace in the Tour de France in 1905 (supposedly at an average speed of 20 km/h) and thus became cycling's first unofficial mountain king. In his honor, a stone with an inscription and his photo was placed at the top of the Ballon d'Alsace pass. However, in 1905 he did not win the stage over the mountain or the Tour de France itself - he had to retire due to an injury. In 1906 René came back, was first at the top of the pass again and was then also at the front in Paris. In his Tour victory he also won five stages, four of them in a row. Perhaps he could have repeated his success more times. In January 1907, just six months after his Tour triumph, Pottier took his own life by hanging himself in the garage of the bicycle factory whose bikes he rode. Employees found him hanging on the hook where his bike used to hang. Lovesickness was assumed to be the reason. He was 27 years old.

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23.2 km

Ballon d'Alsace

Highlight • Natural Monument

Here René Pottier conquered the first pass of the Tour de France on July 11, 1905. The Ballon d'Alsace then remained unrivaled for five years - until the much harder passes in the Pyrenees were discovered.

At 1,247 meters, the pass is by no means the highest in the Vosges and today no one would include it on the list of important passes - but there is still a certain magic about it.

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26.5 km

La Gentiane

Mountain Pass

32.6 km

Lac d'Alfeld

Lake

33.0 km

Alfeld Lake

Highlight • Lake

Een schilderachtig stuwmeer langs de beklimming van de Ballon d'Alsace, omringd door de beboste hellingen van de Vogezen. 🚴⛰️🌲

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33.7 km

Serpentine Road in Parc naturel régional des Ballons des Vosges

Highlight • Cycleway

A spectacular hairpin bend on the climb to the Ballon d'Alsace. As the road winds its way up the slope, beautiful views open up over the wooded valley of the Vosges.

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35.7 km

Sewen Lake

Highlight • Other

A picturesque mountain lake at the foot of the Ballon d'Alsace, surrounded by forests and steep slopes. 🚴‍♂️🏞️⛰️

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37.3 km

Doller Trail — From Masevaux to Sewen

Highlight (Segment) • Cycleway

This cycle path follows the Voie Verte of the Doller valley and follows the route of an old railway line. Over 2 kilometers, the route is interrupted and you have to take cycle lanes along the D466 road.

The slope is constant and quite low, at around 1%.

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65.1 km

Bois Charague

Forest

75.2 km

End point

Bus stop

Way Types & Surfaces

Way Types