Puerto de Gyirong

Puerto de Gyirong cycling climb profile

Puerto de Gyirong is a climb that has to be treated as a sustained survival effort rather than a conventional mountain pacing exercise. The headline numbers explain why: 18.1 km at an average gradient of 17.29%, rising from 1515 m to 4645 m, with 3130 m of net elevation gain listed in the profile data. The climb is classified HC, and on these figures that classification is not just justified - it is the central fact that should shape how you ride it.

The supplied profile does not give a kilometre-by-kilometre breakdown, so there is no honest way to claim where the hardest ramp arrives. But the overall shape is clear enough. An average of 17.29% across 18.1 km means there is very little room for sustained recovery. This is not a climb where a rider can expect long sections of moderate gradient to reset the legs. The listed maximum gradient of 24.69% also tells you that the road does not simply sit at one severe pitch. It has ramps that go well beyond the already demanding average.

How the gradient rides

From the bottom at 1515 m, the climb asks for control immediately. On a climb this steep, the cost of riding above threshold is amplified because speed is low, cadence is harder to protect, and any over-gear choice turns quickly into muscular fatigue. The middle of the climb should be approached as a long pressure-management problem, not as a place to chase speed. If the average is 17.29%, then even the easier parts are likely to feel like climbing rather than respite.

The upper section is where pacing discipline matters most. The summit is listed at 4645 m, so the climb finishes very high relative to its start. The profile data also lists total ascent as 3024 m and net elevation gain as 3130 m, which should be verified before route planning because those two figures do not align cleanly. For the rider, the practical conclusion does not change: this is a very large vertical effort compressed into 18.1 km.

Pacing and gearing notes

Ride the first part below the effort you think you can hold. On this gradient, a small early mistake becomes expensive later because there is nowhere obvious to coast it back. If using power, anchor the effort around sustainable climbing power rather than chasing pace. A rider working from /glossary/ftp should think in terms of durability: the goal is to keep producing power when cadence is compromised and the road stays steep.

Gearing should be chosen for the 24.69% maximum, not the 17.29% average. If your easiest gear only feels comfortable on ordinary climbs, it is probably not low enough here. Prioritise a setup that lets you stay seated as much as possible, because standing repeatedly on gradients this steep can spike effort and make pacing unstable.

The right way to ride Puerto de Gyirong is conservative early, patient through the middle, and defensive near the top. The climb is long enough to punish aggression and steep enough to punish bad gearing. Respect both numbers.