Col de Turini, France (as seen in Top Gear)
Posted: Mon Dec 24, 2007 1:11 pm
The legendary stage of the Monte Carlo Rally is the best public road I have ever dríven. I drove it in my Citroen C4 1.6 HDi hire car on 2/12/07.
My previous best was the Run from Hobart - Queenstown - Strahan in Tas.
It stretches from Sospel, through Moulinet, to La Bollene-Vesubie in France, just North of Monaco.
Top Gear only featured the run up the hill from Moulinet to the top (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CuNzk2dGHbQ), but i reckon the D70 section continuing downhill on to La Bolllene-Vesubie is the best stretch. This half is blessed with a fantastic surface with countless hairpins and delicious scenery. As Jeremy Clarkson said, because it doesn't lead to anything in particular, there's hardly any traffic. We'd be lucky to have passed 5 cars along the entire 36km.
The Citroen did a commendable job, though this road would be glorious even in a Trabant. Given the tightness and abundance of the bends, it would be an absolute dream in an MX-5, and you'd rarely get out of second gear. A definite must do when in the South of France.
See Sebastian Loeb attack it in the Xsara WRC:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fl1Z2lOJp1o
We did the drive from Turin, heading to Monaco. One of the greatest surprises of my whole trip was the SR20 road from Torino to Sospel. This was the most direct route to Sospel from Torino, and turned out to be equally fantastic to my drive through the Swiss Alps along the St Bernard's passes (Muira road from Italian Job opening) 4 days prior. Some wonderful cliffside villages and a seemingly endless array of jaw dropping scenery.
In fact, the drive from Martigny, Switzerland - Turin - Monaco has to be one of the ultimate drives to do in this world. It was an enthralling experience.
My previous best was the Run from Hobart - Queenstown - Strahan in Tas.
It stretches from Sospel, through Moulinet, to La Bollene-Vesubie in France, just North of Monaco.
Top Gear only featured the run up the hill from Moulinet to the top (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CuNzk2dGHbQ), but i reckon the D70 section continuing downhill on to La Bolllene-Vesubie is the best stretch. This half is blessed with a fantastic surface with countless hairpins and delicious scenery. As Jeremy Clarkson said, because it doesn't lead to anything in particular, there's hardly any traffic. We'd be lucky to have passed 5 cars along the entire 36km.
The Citroen did a commendable job, though this road would be glorious even in a Trabant. Given the tightness and abundance of the bends, it would be an absolute dream in an MX-5, and you'd rarely get out of second gear. A definite must do when in the South of France.
See Sebastian Loeb attack it in the Xsara WRC:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fl1Z2lOJp1o
We did the drive from Turin, heading to Monaco. One of the greatest surprises of my whole trip was the SR20 road from Torino to Sospel. This was the most direct route to Sospel from Torino, and turned out to be equally fantastic to my drive through the Swiss Alps along the St Bernard's passes (Muira road from Italian Job opening) 4 days prior. Some wonderful cliffside villages and a seemingly endless array of jaw dropping scenery.
In fact, the drive from Martigny, Switzerland - Turin - Monaco has to be one of the ultimate drives to do in this world. It was an enthralling experience.
Apparently the next trip planned is for Spain.