Pichachen Pass

Overview

Pichachen Pass is a short, uncompromising climb that trades length for sheer steepness. At just 1.1 km, it is over almost before it begins, but the numbers make clear this is no warm-up: an average gradient of 9.73% and a maximum of 10.06% mean the road tilts hard from the base and simply refuses to relent. You start at 1567 m and finish at 1674 m, a net gain of 107 m packed into barely a kilometre. Rated Category 3, it sits in the middle of the classification scale, but its consistently brutal pitch makes it feel harder underfoot than the label suggests.

How the Gradient Unfolds

The defining feature of Pichachen Pass is its uniformity. There is very little variance between the average of 9.73% and the maximum of 10.06% — a spread of just 0.33 percentage points. In practical terms, that means the climb never offers a false flat, a switchback breather, or a merciful ramp-down. It is a single sustained wall from bottom to top. Because the summit sits only 107 m above the start over 1.1 km, you can see the challenge for what it is almost immediately: pure, unbroken effort with no tactical variation to exploit or fear.

Pacing Notes

With a climb this short and this steep, pacing is less about conservation and more about controlled aggression. There is no room to sit up and recover, so the entire 1.1 km should be ridden close to or just above your threshold. Effort here is best measured against your FTP: expect to hold something in the region of your one-kilometre power rather than a settled hour-long tempo. If you do not know your threshold, the FTP estimator will give you a working figure to anchor your pacing. Go out too hard on the lower slopes and the near-constant 9.73%–10.06% grade will punish you well before the 1674 m summit; find a rhythm you can sustain and simply hold it to the line.

Gearing

A gradient hovering around 10% for its full length demands genuine climbing gears, even over a short distance. A compact 34-tooth chainring paired with a 34×32 cassette is a sensible baseline for strong riders who want to keep a firm cadence on the steepest pitches. If you prefer to spin rather than grind, or you are tackling this on tired legs, a 34×34 gives you that extra bailout ratio and keeps the effort in your legs rather than your joints. Given the relentless 10.06% max, err toward the easier option — you will never regret having one more sprocket in reserve on a wall like this.

Summary

Pichachen Pass is a compact, ferociously steep test: 1.1 km that never eases below its punishing average. Short enough to attack, steep enough to respect, it rewards riders who commit early and hold a hard, even effort all the way to the top.

Length: 1.1 km
Average gradient: 9.73%
Max gradient: 10.06%
Start: 1567 m
Summit: 1674 m
Net gain: 107 m
Total ascent: 80 m
Category: 3