Orcières-Merlette, an iconic Tour de France climb
Orcières-Merlette is a ski resort at an elevation of 1.823m (5,980ft) above the sea level, located in the Hautes-Alpes department in southeastern France.
Located in the French Alps, the road to the summit is paved but steep. It’s called D76. The road has a reasonably consistent gradient, hitting a 9.0% through some of the ramps, and features 8 hairpin turns.
Situated on the edge of the Ecrins National Park it has been a summit finish for Tour de France stages on multiple occasions. Starting from Orcières, the ascent is 5.8km long. Over this distance, the elevation gain is 405 meters. The average percentage is 6.98 %.