Col de Port is a mountain pass

Mountain pass

A mountain pass is a route through a mountain range or over a ridge. If following the lowest possible route, a pass is locally the highest point on that route...

 in the French

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 Pyrenees

Pyrenees

The Pyrenees is a range of mountains in southwest Europe that forms a natural border between France and Spain...

 between Massat

Massat

Massat is a commune in the Ariège department in southwestern France.It is situated on the former Route nationale 618, the "Route of the Pyrenees".-History:...

 and Tarascon-sur-Ariège

Tarascon-sur-Ariège

Tarascon-sur-Ariège is a commune in the Ariège department in southwestern France.-Population:Inhabitants of Tarascon-sur-Ariège are called Tarasconnais.-External links:*...

 in the “massif de l'Arize”. It links the Couserans and Ariège valleys.

The pass is used occasionally in the Tour de France

Tour de France

The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The...

 and is popular with touring cyclists.

The name of the pass is tautological as Col means pass in French

French language

French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...

 and Port means pass

Mountain pass

A mountain pass is a route through a mountain range or over a ridge. If following the lowest possible route, a pass is locally the highest point on that route...

 in Occitan.

Details of the climb

Starting from the D 8/ D 618 junction, (Tarascon-sur-Ariège) (east) the Col de Port is 17 km long. Over this distance, the climb is 777 m. (an average of 4.6%). The steepest section is 9.2%.

Starting from Massat, (west) the Col de Port is 12.8 km long. Over this distance, the climb is 601 m. (an average of 4.7%).

From Massat, the D18 to the south links with the route from Aulus-les-Bains

Aulus-les-Bains

Aulus-les-Bains is a commune in the Ariège department in southwestern France.Situated at the head of the Garbet valley and beneath Guzet Neige ski resort, the village is best known for the thermal springs and spa complex. There are several Belle Époque buildings, some still offering hotel...

 and Vicdessos

Vicdessos

Vicdessos is a commune in the Ariège department in southwestern France.-Population:Inhabitants of Vicdessos are called Vicdessosiens.-References:*...

 between the Col d'Agnes

Col d'Agnes

The Col d'Agnes is a high mountain pass in the French Pyrenees in the department of Ariège, between the communities of Aulus-les-Bains , Massat and Vicdessos .-Details of climb:...

 (1570 m.) and the Port de Lers

Port de Lers

The Port de Lers is a high mountain pass in the French Pyrenees in the department of Ariège, between the communities of Aulus-les-Bains , Massat and Vicdessos .-Details of climb:...

 (1517 m.)

Tour de France

The Col de Port was first used in the Tour de France in 1910. The first cyclist over the summit was Octave Lapize

Octave Lapize

Octave Lapize was a French professional road racing cyclist and track cyclist.Most famous for winning the 1910 Tour de France and a bronze medal at the 1908 Summer Olympics in the men's 100 kilometres, he was a three-time winner of one-day classics, Paris–Roubaix and Paris–Brussels.In his first...

.

Appearances in the Tour de France (since 1947)

The Tour de France has crossed the summit 10 times since 1947, including on stage 15 of the 2007 tour

2007 Tour de France

The 2007 Tour de France, the 94th running of the race, took place from 7 July to 29 July 2007. The Tour began with a prologue in London, and ended with the traditional finish in Paris. Along the way, the route also passed through Belgium and Spain...

. The 15th stage was selected for the 2007 L'Étape du Tour

L'Étape du Tour

L'Étape du Tour is an organised mass participation cyclosportive event that allows amateur cyclists to race over the same route as a Tour de France stage...

, in which amateur and club riders ride over a full stage of the tour.

Year	Stage	Category	Start	Finish	Leader at the summit
2009 2009 Tour de France The 2009 Tour de France was the 96th edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It started on 4 July in the principality of Monaco with a individual time trial which included a section of the Circuit de Monaco...	8	2	Andorra la Vella Andorra la Vella Andorra la Vella is the capital of the Co-principality of Andorra, and is located high in the east Pyrenees between France and Spain. It is also the name of the parish that surrounds the capital....	Saint-Girons Saint-Girons Saint-Girons is the name or part of the name of several communes in France:* Saint-Girons, Ariège, in the Ariège department* Saint-Girons-d'Aiguevives, in the Gironde department...	Sandy Casar Sandy Casar Sandy Casar is a French professional racing cyclist.Casar turned professional in 2000 after riding for Jean Floch-Mantes as an amateur. As a professional he has always ridden for FDJ.Severo...
2007 2007 Tour de France The 2007 Tour de France, the 94th running of the race, took place from 7 July to 29 July 2007. The Tour began with a prologue in London, and ended with the traditional finish in Paris. Along the way, the route also passed through Belgium and Spain...	15	2	Foix Foix Foix is a commune, the capital of the Ariège department in southwestern France. It is the least populous administrative centre of a department in all of France, although it is only very slightly smaller than Privas...	Loudenvielle Loudenvielle Loudenvielle is a commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées department in south-western France.Its inhabitants are called Loudenviellois.Located in the Louron Valley, Loudenvielle is a popular tourist resort, with a lake, campsite, thermal spa and waterpark...	Juan Manuel Garate Juan Manuel Gárate Juan Manuel Gárate Cepa is a Spanish professional road racing cyclist. He currently rides for the Rabobank team. He is perceived to be a climbing specialist, and to date his greatest achievements have been in the Giro d'Italia, where he placed fourth overall in 2002, fifth overall in 2005 and won...
2002 2002 Tour de France The 2002 Tour de France started in Luxembourg on July 6, 2002, and ended in Paris on July 28. France was visited counter-clockwise, so the Pyrenees were there before the Alps...	12	2	Lannemezan Lannemezan Lannemezan is a commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées department in south-western France.-Geography:The Petite Baïse has its source in the commune.Lannemezan is around 30 km east of Tarbes, and around 100 km south-west of Toulouse.-References:*...	Plateau de Beille Plateau de Beille Plateau de Beille is a ski resort in the Pyrenees. It is situated in the Ariège department, in the Midi-Pyrénées. The winter sports station lies at a height of 1790 meters....	Laurent Jalabert Laurent Jalabert Laurent Jalabert is a French former professional road racing cyclist, from 1989 to 2002. Affectionately known as "Jaja" , he won many one-day and stage races and was ranked number 1 in the 1990s...
1998 1998 Tour de France The 1998 Tour de France, also called the Tour du Dopage , was marred by doping scandals throughout known as the Festina affair, starting with the arrest of Willy Voet, a soigneur in the French Festina team. Voet was traveling into France when he was arrested and found with large quantities of...	11	2	Bagnères-de-Luchon Bagnères-de-Luchon Bagnères-de-Luchon , also referred to as Luchon, is a spa town and a commune in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern France.-Geography:...	Plateau de Beille Plateau de Beille Plateau de Beille is a ski resort in the Pyrenees. It is situated in the Ariège department, in the Midi-Pyrénées. The winter sports station lies at a height of 1790 meters....	Roland Meier
1997 1997 Tour de France The 1997 Tour de France was the 84th Tour de France, it took place July 5–27, 1997. Jan Ullrich's victory margin, of 9' 09" was the largest margin of victory since Laurent Fignon won the 1984 Tour de France by 10' 32"...	10	2	Bagnères-de-Luchon Bagnères-de-Luchon Bagnères-de-Luchon , also referred to as Luchon, is a spa town and a commune in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern France.-Geography:...	Andorra Andorra Andorra , officially the Principality of Andorra , also called the Principality of the Valleys of Andorra, , is a small landlocked country in southwestern Europe, located in the eastern Pyrenees mountains and bordered by Spain and France. It is the sixth smallest nation in Europe having an area of... -Arcalis Vallnord Vallnord is a ski/snowboard resort in the Pyrenees mountains in the country of Andorra, close to the border with Spain at Tor, Pallars.It encompasses the linked sectors of Pal and Arinsal and the Ordino-Arcalis sector some kilometres away.All the separate sectors within Vallnord contain...	Laurent Brochard Laurent Brochard Laurent Brochard is a retired professional road racing cyclist from France. In 1997 he won a stage of the Tour de France and became world road champion in San Sebastián, Spain....
1976 1976 Tour de France The 1976 Tour de France was the 63rd Tour de France, taking place June 24 to July 18, 1976. The total race distance was 22 stages over 4017 km, with riders averaging 34.518 km/h.It was won by mountain specialist Lucien Van Impe...	13	2	Font-Romeu	Saint-Gaudens Saint-Gaudens Saint-Gaudens is a commune and a sub-prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern France.Saint-Gaudens lies at an altitude of 405 m on a ledge overlooking the valley of the Garonne...	Roland Smet
1968 1968 Tour de France The 1968 Tour de France was the 55th Tour de France, taking place June 27 to July 21, 1968. It consisted of 22 stages over 4684.8 km, ridden at an average speed of 34.894 km/h...	13	3	Saint-Gaudens Saint-Gaudens Saint-Gaudens is a commune and a sub-prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern France.Saint-Gaudens lies at an altitude of 405 m on a ledge overlooking the valley of the Garonne...	La Seu d'Urgell La Seu d'Urgell La Seu d'Urgell is a town located in the Catalan Pyrenees in Spain. La Seu d'Urgell is also the capital of the comarca Alt Urgell, head of the judicial district of la Seu d'Urgell and the seat of Bishop of Urgell, one of the Andorra co-princes...	Andres Gandarias Andres Gandarias Andres Gandarias was a Spanish professional road bicycle racer. He finished in the top 10 of the Tour de France twice.- Palmarès :1968*...
1965 1965 Tour de France The 1965 Tour de France was memorable for a number of reasons. In his first year as a professional, Felice Gimondi, a substitute replacement on the Salvarani team, captures the overall title ahead of Raymond Poulidor, last year's second place finisher...	10	3	Bagnères-de-Bigorre Bagnères-de-Bigorre Bagnères-de-Bigorre is a French commune in the south-western Hautes-Pyrénées department, of which it is a sub-prefecture.-Notable people:Bagnères-de-Bigorre was the birthplace of:*Alan Brooke, 1st Viscount Alanbrooke...	Ax-les-Thermes Ax-les-Thermes Ax-les-Thermes is a commune in the Ariège department in the Midi-Pyrénées region in southwestern France.It lies at the confluence of the Ariège River with three tributaries, 26 miles SSE of Foix by rail...	Rik Van Looy Rik Van Looy Henri van Looy is a Belgian former professional cyclist of the post-war period, nicknamed the King of the Classics or Emperor of Herentals...
1957 1957 Tour de France The 1957 Tour de France was the 44th Tour de France, taking place June 27 to July 20, 1957. It was composed of 22 stages over 4665 km, ridden at an average speed of 34.250 km/h....	17	Uncategorized	Ax-les-Thermes Ax-les-Thermes Ax-les-Thermes is a commune in the Ariège department in the Midi-Pyrénées region in southwestern France.It lies at the confluence of the Ariège River with three tributaries, 26 miles SSE of Foix by rail...	Saint-Gaudens Saint-Gaudens Saint-Gaudens is a commune and a sub-prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern France.Saint-Gaudens lies at an altitude of 405 m on a ledge overlooking the valley of the Garonne...	Désiré Keteleer Désiré Keteleer Désiré "Dis" Keteleer was a Belgian professional road bicycle racer. Keteleer was born in Anderlecht and was professional from 1942 until 1961, winning the inaugural Tour of Romandie in 1947 and La Flèche Wallonne in 1946...
1947 1947 Tour de France The 1947 Tour de France was the 34th Tour de France, taking place from 25 June to 20 July 1947. The total race distance was 21 stages over 4,640 km, ridden at an average speed of 31.412 km/h...	14	2	Carcassonne Carcassonne Carcassonne is a fortified French town in the Aude department, of which it is the prefecture, in the former province of Languedoc.It is divided into the fortified Cité de Carcassonne and the more expansive lower city, the ville basse. Carcassone was founded by the Visigoths in the fifth century,...	Bagnères-de-Luchon Bagnères-de-Luchon Bagnères-de-Luchon , also referred to as Luchon, is a spa town and a commune in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern France.-Geography:...	Albert Bourlon Albert Bourlon Albert Bourlon is a former French professional road bicycle racer. He was born in Sancergues. In 1947, Bourlon won the 14th stage of the Tour de France. Almost directly from the start, he broke away, and rode solo for , the longest solo in post-war Tour de France history.- Palmarès :1947- External...

See also

• List of highest paved roads in Europe
• List of mountain passes

External links

• Profile on climbbybike.com
• le col de Port dans le Tour de France
• Very detailed summary of the climb