Where is Tunnel du Galibier?
France, europe
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N/A
moderate
Year-round
Okay, buckle up, because the Tunnel du Galibier is a wild ride! This historic tunnel punches through the mountains at a serious altitude. We're talking way up there, on the border of the Hautes-Alpes department in southeastern France.
Before 1976, this tunnel was *the* only way through. Seriously! Then it closed for a while for some much-needed TLC and didn't reopen until 2002. In the meantime, they built a new road over the top.
The tunnel itself is about 365 meters long – a meter for every day of the year! It's a single lane, so traffic lights control the flow. Just a heads up: being so high up, even in the summer you might run into some snow at the summit.
It's usually closed from late October until late May or early June, and it's off-limits to the really big trucks. But get this: right before the tunnel's entrance, there's this cool little bar-restaurant. And near the south entrance, there's a memorial to Henri Desgrange, the guy who started the Tour de France! He loved the Galibier, saying it was so huge you had to "take your hats off and bow." So, yeah, it's a pretty epic spot with some serious history.
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