Top 19 Mountain Passes around Saint-Bonnet-Le-Troncy

Beautiful pass at 736 m, quite gentle, 6.1% average. Nice to do by mixing with the 76 gravel hiking trail.

For a little refreshing break between 2 passes

Col de la Croix des Fourches, in the middle of the forest, on the heights of the village of Saint-Just d'Avray.

“Each of these crosses can tell its own story and what prompted people to erect “their” cross at this point. (...) These wayside crosses were erected as visible signs and attract the attention of many people. The cross is a symbol of life. It stands as a sign of our Christian hope and wants to direct our gaze to Jesus Christ, who has overcome death (...). The cross is part of our life as it was in the life of Jesus. So I wish that many people … visit the crosses, whether as places of stillness and breathing space before God, whether as places for community gatherings, prayer and praise to God.” (Text source: Dean Rainald M. Ollig in: “Crossroads. Small sacred monuments as a sign of popular piety")

Nice pass to do from Lamure sur Azergues, Le Perréon, Le Papilloud (road of the ridges but you can climb from Vaux too). On the Lamure side, the view is absent but it is relatively hard with some good percentages. If you start from the Perréon you take the start of the Col de la Croix Rosier, magnificent... From the Papilloud the climb is very short but there is no shortage of views over the Beaujolais. At the top the view is not very present but the forest atmosphere is very pleasant, we enter the upper Beaujolais...

To do from Chambost-Allières, Rivolet. In the fog, the climb seemed very long to me. The percentages are low but the climb is quite long, 7 km at 4.5%. At the top you can go for a walk in St Cyr le Chatoux, take your gravel or mountain bike to go on the paths, go climb the Pyramid, eat and drink at the restaurant, continue on the ridge road which goes to the North by chaining the collars.

3 or even 5 possible climbs: from Azergues via Grandris 3: the main one, a small annex in less good condition from Grandris Haut and a terrible variant via Gondras with passages at 25% from Grandris bas. They all return to the main road before the pass. The main road and on a road in fairly good condition, little gradient 3/4% for about 9 km with beautiful landscapes and quite a few clear views. On the Rhine valley side, you can climb from Cublize (approximately 5% average but much shorter) or from Magny via Meaux la Montagne. On the latter the climb to Meaux is quite steep at 7/8% then after Meaux the slope is gentle not far from 2/3%. On these faces the landscapes are less clear but still appreciable. In summer be careful because good parts of the pass especially from the Rhine are in full dodger for quite a long time.

Quite an easy pass on the Ronno side. The beginning of the Col du Pilon is quite frequented by cars, then you turn onto a quieter road. The scenery is not very present, but the atmosphere in the forest is great, especially in damp weather. On the Saint-Just-d'Avray side, from the Azergues valley, the climb is long but progressive. The percentages really become interesting from Saint-Just onwards. On this side, the landscapes are more open before turning for the last part where you enter the forest with an even steeper percentage: 6 and 7% with the same refreshing atmosphere, especially in summer. You can reach the crests forest road by gravel or mountain bike.