Colláu de Lenito Bajo

Overview

Colláu de Lenito Bajo is a long, deceptively gentle-looking category 1 climb that stretches 24.4 km from a start elevation of 696 m to a 1709 m summit. On paper its 4.16% average gradient reads as a tempo effort you could hold all day. The reality is more complicated. Over those 24.4 km the road piles up 1013 m of net elevation gain against 988 m of total ascent, meaning the route is almost relentlessly uphill with very little in the way of respite or false-flat recovery. It is the kind of climb that rewards patience early and punishes bravado, because the single defining number here is a max gradient of 32.48% — a wall steep enough to stall a rider who has spent too freely before reaching it.

How the Gradient Unfolds

A 4.16% average across 24.4 km hides enormous variation. With a peak of 32.48%, the climb is clearly not evenly graded: long stretches must sit well below the average to make room for a pitch more than seven times steeper than the mean. Expect the profile to lull you into a rhythm, then bare its teeth. The gap between the 1013 m of net gain and the 988 m of measured ascent is small, which tells you there is barely any downhill mixed in — nearly every metre of the 24.4 km is spent climbing. Treat the shallow sections as opportunities to eat, drink, and settle your breathing before the gradient spikes.

Pacing Notes

On a climb this long, discipline beats aggression. Anchor your effort to your FTP and aim to spend the bulk of the 24.4 km slightly below threshold, banking energy for the 32.48% ramp where power demands briefly explode. If you do not know your threshold, run the numbers through the FTP estimator before you ride so your pacing targets are grounded in real data rather than feel. The overall 4.16% average means steady riders can hold a metronomic pace, but the steepest pitch will force short, high-torque surges no power meter can average away — plan to absorb those in reserve.

Gearing

Gear for the wall, not the average. A 4.16% mean is comfortable on almost anything, but a 32.48% pitch late in a 1013 m climb demands the lowest ratio you can fit. A compact 34×32 is the sensible floor for strong climbers, and most riders will be far happier with a 34×34, which keeps cadence alive on the steepest ramp without wrecking the legs for the kilometres that follow. Given the 24.4 km length and 988 m of ascent, err toward the easier 34×34 — you will never regret spinning up the hardest section.

Summary

Colláu de Lenito Bajo is a category 1 test of endurance and composure: a long, mostly uphill 24.4 km haul with a brutal maximum pitch that defines the whole day. Pace conservatively, gear generously, and respect the 32.48% wall.

Length: 24.4 km
Average gradient: 4.16%
Max gradient: 32.48%
Start: 696 m
Summit: 1709 m
Net gain: 1013 m
Total ascent: 988 m
Category: 1