homeColle di Sampeyre/Sampeire/Col d’Sampeyre
Colle di Sampeyre/Sampeire/Col d’Sampeyre Height Climbing height - length
2284m 1358m 15.8 km (Ponte Marmora via Elva)
1351m - 17.8 km (Bassura di Stroppo)
1326m - 15.7 km (Sampeyre)
Difficulty Beauty
4-5 (5); (Stroppo road) 4 (5) 4-5 (5)
How to get there From Valle Maira in the south there are two roads to the pass. One goes from Bassura di Stroppo (933m) and is evenly steep and very well paved. It is steep and around 9% most of the time. The road choice from near Ponte Marmora (926m) is the more spectacular and the one used by the locals in the village of Elva. It is very steep however, with gradients up 15% on a slightly dangerous road that is often marked as closed (but the people of Elva apparently always have a shovel with them in the case of stones on the road … ). They have a warning for falling stones higher up which comes across a bit ironic when the whole road is filled with stones at times. The road from the north starts in Valle Varaita at the village Sampeyre (958m) and is also steep – around 9% most of the time with not so good surface.
Other comments

This is a very lovely pass with fine views in most directions at the top. The Elva road is recommended but is very hard and long and you have reasons to fear it for this and the risk of falling stones. The road also has some nice tunnels. See the photos from my Tour of 2006! [The road should be closed as of 2018, but might reopen again.] I am not sure about water on this pass and you better bring with you from below. There is an interesting ridge road (Strada dei Canoni) at the top which crosses the paved road. To the west it ends eventually after passing Colle Terziere (2273m) at Colle della Bicocca/Col d’la Bicoco (2287m), but is cyclable for the most part (from what I have heard).

To the east you could eventually, after collecting many passes on the way, get to a paved continuation at Colle della Ciabra (1723m), taking you down the mountain ridge, but this road is not possible to use with a road bike for most of the way. It is possible to visit the first pass, the Bassa dell’Ajet (2328m), but then you better return. You will go via Colle della Cavallina (1941m) on the south side up to the Sampeyre pass, where the two roads coming up from Valle Máira meet. Colle Bettone (1834m) and Colle San Giovanni (1875m) (see map below) are passes on a path alternative to the Colle della Cavallina road and you can get close to them on asphalt, but not all the way there (as far as I know) and since neither of them are the natural pass destination of the main roads up here they are not included in my lists. (Colle della Cavallina is the modern road alternative to Colle San Giovanni.)


[IT-CN-2284, BIG 684]
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