Mudslide hits route of Tour de France queen stage to Alpe d’Huez

Footage shared by Météo Oisans on Monday shows mud and debris flowing across the mountain road at the same location that was affected only a few days earlier. A previous mudslide struck the road during the night of June 25-26, forcing drivers heading towards Alpe d’Huez to turn around. Road crews cleared the debris and reopened the road later that day.

The latest incident comes less than four weeks before the Tour is scheduled to use the Col de Sarenne during its decisive final weekend. 

Starting in Le Bourg d’Oisans, the 170.9km stage features some 5,450m of climbing. The riders will tackle the Col de la Croix de Fer, the Col du Télégraphe and the Col du Galibier before reaching the foot of the Col de Sarenne.

The Sarenne will provide the final major test of the 2026 Tour de France. Its eastern ascent measures 12.8km at an average gradient of 7.3%, with several sections approaching double figures. The summit, at an altitude of 1,999m, comes with just 14.4km remaining. From there, the riders will head towards Alpe d’Huez before joining the final 3.8km of the traditional ascent.

It will be the second consecutive finish at Alpe d’Huez. One day earlier, Stage 19 will take the peloton from Gap to the resort via the original and best known approach. That stage concludes with the classic ascent from Le Bourg d’Oisans, featuring the famous 21 bends and 13.7km of climbing at an average of 8.1%.

It is not the first time the Col de Sarenne has made headlines ahead of the 2026 Tour. 

After the route was unveiled, a petition calling for the climb to be removed from stage 20 attracted almost 6,000 signatures by late November 2025 and passed 10,000 by January. Campaigners warned that the expected influx of spectators, vehicles and television helicopters could disturb wildlife and damage fragile vegetation in the protected Ferrand Valley.

The controversy echoed the Tour’s previous visit to the area in 2013, when a similar petition attracted more than 12,000 signatures.

That stage remains the Col de Sarenne’s only appearance in the Tour de France, with the road used as a descent. During stage 18, the riders first climbed Alpe d’Huez via the traditional route and then continued to the top of the Col de Sarenne. From there, they descended the eastern side of the pass into the valley before returning for a second ascent of Alpe d’Huez.

Frenchman Christophe Riblon of AG2R La Mondiale claimed the stage victory at the summit, finishing ahead of American Tejay van Garderen (BMC Racing Team).