Why this ride
173 km from Saint-Jorioz to Saint-Jorioz, about 3 h 18 of riding. It goes by way of Baie de Châtillon, Lac d’Aiguebelette and back through Baie de Châtillon. The line favours views over speed.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Secteur des Mongets and Lac d’Aiguebelette
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 173 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 3 h 18
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. 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
Baie de Châtillon → 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 38 km. The line follows the shore because there is nowhere else for it to go.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 43 km
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Secteur des Mongets
Sevrier, on the western shore of Lake Annecy, is home to an unusual industry: bells. The Paccard foundry, which has been casting bells since the late eighteenth century and moved to Sevrier in the 1980s, has made bells for churches and carillons all over the world, and its museum explains how they are designed, cast and tuned. It is a curious contrast to the quiet lakeshore just below the village, where the Secteur des Mongets marks the remains of a prehistoric village built on the edge of the lake, now under water. It is one of the sites included in the World Heritage listing of the Prehistoric Pile Dwellings around the Alps, and divers have found wooden piles, pottery and tools in the lake bed.
Read the complete Secteur des Mongets write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Secteur des Mongets 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 about 43 km into the recorded legs. Next is Lac d’Aiguebelette.
3. 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
about 86 km into the recorded legs you reach Lac d’Aiguebelette. Next is back through Baie de Châtillon.
4. 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 Secteur des Mongets.
5. Secteur des Mongets
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Secteur des Mongets write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Secteur des Mongets. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Secteur des Mongets to Baie de Châtillon
Secteur des Mongets → Baie de Châtillon is 43 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Baie de Châtillon to Lac d’Aiguebelette
Baie de Châtillon → Lac d’Aiguebelette is 43 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Lac d’Aiguebelette to back through Baie de Châtillon
Lac d’Aiguebelette → back through Baie de Châtillon is 43 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Baie de Châtillon to Secteur des Mongets
back through Baie de Châtillon → Secteur des Mongets is 44 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.