Why this ride
239 km from Saint-Jorioz to Saint-Jorioz, about 4 h 33 of riding. On the way it passes Baie de Châtillon, Littoral de Tresserve, Lac d’Aiguebelette and Baie de Grésine.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Le Crêt de Chatillon and Baie de Grésine
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 239 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 4 h 33
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
The recorded total and the leg detail need reconciliation. Inspect the leg notes before using this record for timing or navigation. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Scenic road chapters
Littoral de Tresserve → Lac d’Aiguebelette
Slow enough to look. The surface follows the shoreline, so the corners arrive where the water decided, not where an engineer did. Water arrives beside the road and stays for 23 km. The line follows the shore because there is nowhere else for it to go.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 23 km
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Le Crêt de Chatillon
The Crêt de Châtillon is the summit of the Semnoz, the long wooded mountain that rises above the western shore of Lake Annecy, and from the top, at around 1,700 metres, the view on a clear day is one of the finest in the French Alps: the whole lake below, the Bauges and the Aravis around, and, to the east, Mont Blanc in all its glory. Sites with names like Châtillon and Les Mongets along this shore preserve the remains of villages built on the edge of the lake thousands of years ago.
Read the complete Le Crêt de Chatillon write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Le Crêt de Chatillon is where the day begins. Next is Baie de Châtillon.
2. Baie de Châtillon
At the northern tip of the Lac du Bourget, the largest natural lake entirely in France, the shore curves into a shallow bay below the village of Châtillon and its castle. In the shallows, divers and archaeologists have found the remains of prehistoric lake villages, and the Baie de Châtillon is one of the French sites included in the UNESCO listing of prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps. The castle, perched on a rocky hill above the bay, was the seat of local lords in the Middle Ages and has a commanding view over the lake.
Read the complete Baie de Châtillon write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Baie de Châtillon comes up 26 km in. Next is Littoral de Tresserve.
3. Littoral de Tresserve
The Lac du Bourget is the largest natural lake entirely in France, a long blue trough in the Savoie Prealps, and the shore at Tresserve, just south of Aix-les-Bains, is one of the quiet places to see it. Beneath the water here lie the remains of prehistoric lake dwellings, villages of timber houses built on piles along the shore thousands of years ago. The site is part of the UNESCO-listed Prehistoric Pile Dwellings around the Alps, a series of more than a hundred settlements in six countries. There is nothing to see above the surface, but knowing it is there changes the way you look at the reeds and shallows.
Read the complete Littoral de Tresserve write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
52 km in you reach Littoral de Tresserve. Next is Lac d’Aiguebelette.
4. Lac d’Aiguebelette
Motorboats are banned on the Lac d'Aiguebelette, and on a calm summer morning you notice the difference straight away: rowers sliding across water so still it mirrors the wooded slopes above, swimmers heading out from small beaches, and no engine noise beyond the occasional car on the shore road. The lake, in Savoie just west of Chambéry, is one of the largest natural lakes in France, and its clean water is among the warmest of the alpine lakes in summer. It hosted the World Rowing Championships in 2015.
Read the complete Lac d’Aiguebelette write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Lac d’Aiguebelette, about halfway. Next is Baie de Grésine.
5. Baie de Grésine
Lac du Bourget is the largest natural lake in France, a long, deep lake in Savoie between the Jura and the Alps, and the poet Alphonse de Lamartine made it famous with his poem Le Lac, written after a love affair that began on its shores. The Baie de Grésine, near Brison-Saint-Innocent on the eastern shore, is one of the prehistoric pile-dwelling sites of the lake, part of the Prehistoric Pile Dwellings around the Alps listed by UNESCO in 2011. As with other such sites, the remains lie underwater, but the bay and its surroundings are a beautiful place to stop.
Read the complete Baie de Grésine write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Baie de Grésine sits at 104 km, about halfway. Next is back through Lac d’Aiguebelette.
6. back through Lac d’Aiguebelette
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Lac d’Aiguebelette write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Lac d’Aiguebelette comes up 130 km in. Next is back through Littoral de Tresserve.
7. back through Littoral de Tresserve
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Littoral de Tresserve write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
156 km in you reach back through Littoral de Tresserve. Next is back through Baie de Châtillon.
8. back through Baie de Châtillon
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Baie de Châtillon write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Baie de Châtillon, late in the day. Next is Le Crêt de Chatillon.
9. Le Crêt de Chatillon
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Le Crêt de Chatillon write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 239 km.
Leg by leg
Le Crêt de Chatillon to Baie de Châtillon
Le Crêt de Chatillon → Baie de Châtillon is 33 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Baie de Châtillon to Littoral de Tresserve
Baie de Châtillon → Littoral de Tresserve is 18 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Littoral de Tresserve to Lac d’Aiguebelette
Littoral de Tresserve → Lac d’Aiguebelette is 23 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Lac d’Aiguebelette to Baie de Grésine
Lac d’Aiguebelette → Baie de Grésine is 30 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Baie de Grésine to back through Lac d’Aiguebelette
Baie de Grésine → back through Lac d’Aiguebelette is 30 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Lac d’Aiguebelette to back through Littoral de Tresserve
back through Lac d’Aiguebelette → back through Littoral de Tresserve is 23 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Littoral de Tresserve to back through Baie de Châtillon
back through Littoral de Tresserve → back through Baie de Châtillon is 18 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Baie de Châtillon to Le Crêt de Chatillon
back through Baie de Châtillon → Le Crêt de Chatillon is 33 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.