Col de Palaquit

From Saint-Égrève, to the south-west, the climb travels via the D105 to the village of Quaix-en-Chartreuse before dropping down again to join the D57. Over the entire distance of 16.2 km (10.1 mi), the climb gains 931 m (3,054 ft) in altitude, at an average gradient of 5.7%.^[2] The 2014 Tour de France climb commences on the outskirts of Saint-Egrève and is thus shorter, at 14.1 km (8.8 mi), gaining 859 m (2,818 ft) in altitude, at an average gradient of 6.1%.^[3]

After leaving Saint-Égrève, the climb has sections in excess of 10% before a descent after Quaix-en-Chartreuse. The final section has several hairpins separated by 12% ramps.^[4] Overall, the climb has in excess of 1,000 m (3,300 ft) of climbing.^[4]

The col can also be accessed direct from Grenoble via Le Sappey-en-Chartreuse, using the D512. This climb is 14.8 km (9.2 mi) long, gaining 939 m (3,081 ft) in altitude, at an average gradient of 6.3%.^[5]

On 18 July 2014, the Tour de France cycle race crossed the col for the first time en route from Saint-Étienne to Chamrousse.^[3][6] The leader over the summit was the Italian, Alessandro De Marchi.^[7] On the descent, Jakob Fuglsang crashed, putting him out of contention for a podium place.^[8]