Cycling round trip: Fer-à-Cheval round trip

The Fer-à-Cheval Cirque is one of the most spectacular corners of the French Alps.

Direction of travel: clockwise

Landmarks and connections: Châtillon-sur-Cluses; Taninges (separation with Circuit de la Ramaz n°38 and Circuit de Joux-Plane n°36); Samoëns (separation then junction with Circuit du Giffre n°39)
Description: The largest mountain cirque in the Alps, the Fer-à-Cheval is made up of 5km of walls up to 700m high, dominated by 3000m peaks. It's in June, when the snow melts at its peak, that the spectacle is at its most grandiose, with some thirty waterfalls leaping down these impressive vertical cliffs included in the Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval nature reserve. The itinerary to see the cirque is shared with Circuit du Giffre no. 39 as far as Samoëns, then continues back and forth to Plan des Lac (end of the road). It therefore includes the easy crossing of the Col de Châtillon and the crossing of Taninges. After Samoëns, the slope steepens somewhat as you climb up the upper Giffre valley to its source. After Samoëns, you return along the left bank to the RD902, which takes you over the Col de Châtillon again and down to Cluses.