{"id":5155,"date":"2023-10-14T12:44:12","date_gmt":"2023-10-14T12:44:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.machinistic.com\/magazine\/le-barathon-des-grandes-alpes\/"},"modified":"2023-11-29T10:12:41","modified_gmt":"2023-11-29T10:12:41","slug":"le-barathon-des-grandes-alpes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.machinistic.com\/en\/magazine\/le-barathon-des-grandes-alpes\/","title":{"rendered":"The Route des Grandes Alpes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Four friends, three days, two bars and a dream itinerary. It’s the perfect countdown to a micro road-trip. The first for the Machinistic team, who plan to reach Menton from Thonon-les-Bains via the Grandes Alpes route. Three days? Did we call on Thomas Pesquet and the European Space Agency to move so quickly? Almost. BMW has provided us with a ground-to-ground rocket, a kick-ass three-series in which we can pack all our stuff: the latest M3 Touring. Ready to take on the most beautiful passes in the French Alps, loaded down with local cheeses and photo equipment, between the bar of our friends from Classique Autowerks and Benzin’s, we set off for a barathon with a difference.<\/p>\n\n

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Oh, it’s so good to get out on the road. The journey really begins just before Annecy, where we’re due to meet up with K\u00e9vin. Aboard the M3, Yannick, Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric and I get our first taste of life when the suspended A40 road offers us the first beautiful panorama of the trip. “Wow that’s rad!”; that’s just the first one. Once the team is complete, we quickly head for our first stop for the evening, at Classique Autowerks.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

Stage 0 – Autowerks Classic<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n

Just outside Thonon les Bains, we arrive at a place that immediately appeals to us. Johann and Samuel have built a bar around what they love and their business of selling custom parts for vintage vehicles. It’s Classique Autowerks, and we’re welcomed like royalty by Johann, his girlfriend Louanne and Uhini the Dachshund. Craft beers, Mont d’Or: paradise. The bar is housed in a tastefully decorated former forge, with an industrial ambience. As the discussion progresses, it becomes clear that creating a place to live in the automotive world has not been easy. Administrative obstacles and a very tight budget resulted in a flurry of good ideas to make the spot really cool. We feel right at home here, and even if the M3 raises a few debates about the future of the car [more on that later], it’s right at home with us, at the foot of the bar, between the Chesterfields and the brick walls. After a good evening, which, like all good evenings, passed too quickly, we left our friends with full bellies and heavy hearts to return to the arms of Morpheus, for one last night in a bed before three days of bivouac…<\/p>\n\n

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Stage 1 – Thonon-les-Bains – Valloire<\/s> Bourg-St-Maurice<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n

The bedroom windows are fogged up, it’s early and daylight filters through the blinds. It’s time to get moving! We have a mission to complete, new lands to explore. Tonight we have to be in the Maurienne, and on board our ship we have a list of passes to pass. Like good tourists, we stop off at the kilometer zero stele on the Route des Grandes Alpes. If the trip goes well, we should land on its twin sister in Menton in three days’ time. An opportunity for Yannick, still dizzy from the previous evening, to do some gymnastics, and above all to enjoy a beautiful view of Lake Geneva. <\/p>\n\n

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The drive starts well, we draw lots to see who gets to drive the car first… and, without cheating, I win the driver’s seat. Incredibly, we cross the Gorges du Pont du Diable. It’s a bit crowded, but the car’s power, even when loaded to the roof, means we’re soon out of traffic. We take turns at the wheel, and everyone becomes aware of the weapon of mass destruction that is the M3, while the others enjoy the scenery as it flies by. The Cols des Gets, Colombi\u00e8re and Aravis are passed with flying colors, and we don’t dawdle too long as we have a date to keep.<\/p>\n\n

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Jessy is waiting for us in Beaufort, where we have to stock up on cheese and Savoy wine for the sunset. A mission within a mission, so to speak. The little CRX of our videographer friend, a local guide with an encyclopedic knowledge of the region’s roads, serves as our hare. Heavy bombardment as far as the Roselend dam. If, up until then, the road had been beautiful, we’ve suddenly changed universes.<\/p>\n\n

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The lake water is turquoise and the setting sun gives us the ochre light of October. It taps. Naturally, we take the opportunity to get to know Jessy better, and take some pictures together. After a stop at Chapelle de Roselend, we enjoy an aperitif at Le Cormet, the sun offering us a little more warmth on its final descent. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

We set out with the idea of a bivouac in mind, but equipped like good tourists (yes, again), we quickly realized that it was too cold to spend the night at this altitude. Once again, it’s with a heavy heart that we leave Jessy, with whom we would have liked to have spent more time. Next time, with his S2000, for a different experience! We decide to drive towards Bourg-Saint-Maurice, where we find a grassy spot along the Is\u00e8re to spend the night. On the spot, we open the map, and realize how far behind schedule we are… ” Hello earth, we’re going into afterburners.”<\/p>\n\n

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“We find a grassy spot along the Is\u00e8re to spend the night. On the spot, we open the map, and realize how far behind schedule we are… ” Hello earth, we’re going into afterburners.””<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n

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