France ride: Col du Galibier

( If you have not read the prologue, start here ) In the fourth week of my bicycle journey through France, I was based in Grenoble and riding in the Alps. Today was the day I would take on the biggest mountain pass of the trip: a 35km climb with 2,200m of elevation gain. The giant of the Alps, the Col du Galibier. My younger companion Nikhil wanted a little warm-up, so I dropped him in a town…