Bédoin - Mont Ventoux

Département: Vaucluse

Altitude: 1,909m/6,265ft

Mont Ventoux is situated in the northwest of Provence in the latitude of Orange to the east of the Rhône, from which it is separated by the Valley of the Ouvèze.

Mont Ventoux (Provençal Mont Ventour = windy mountain), which takes its name from the frequent and violent storms that are experienced in the area, is a long limestone ridge, geologically a continuation of the Pyrénées. It towers in impressive isolation over the surrounding countryside, its summit completely bare and devoid of vegetation, evidence of the drastic deforestation which the whole mountain has undergone. Above 1,500m/4,923ft there are extensive ski slopes. According to tradition, on April 24, 1336 the poet Francesco Petrarch climbed Mont Ventoux. This first ascent of a mountain for its own sake - albeit totally from religious and spiritual motives - reflects the increasing feeling for nature of a new age.

From 1902 until the 1960s the present road (D974) on the southern slopes of Mont Ventoux was a motor racing course of international repute.