ABOUT
The Alps Divide Project
Katie-Jane and Lee are bikepackers, mountain professionals and keen travellers who have explored some of the wildest and most remote corners of the planet. Yet every time they came home, the Alps still stood out. The landscapes, villages, regional food, history and wildlife could rival anywhere on Earth.
They had travelled the western Alps extensively for work and pleasure, yet it was only during the 2020 lockdown, they realised the route they wanted didn’t exist. They had ridden the Route des Grandes Alpes, the paved road route from Lake Geneva to the Mediterranean over the highest passes of the French Alps. They had hiked the GR5 along the same line. What they wanted sat in between: a journey that avoided the busy road cols but was far more rideable than the GR5. So they set out to build one.
Over three years they explored gravel roads, quiet lanes and short sections of singletrack, linking them until they had a route they loved. Their original plan was simple: a website where riders could download the route files.
At its heart, Alps Divide is a cycle route for riders to tour at their own pace. Free route files, a logistics guide and several route variants remain available to anyone who wants to take their time on the TOUR.
However, the project soon grew. They founded the Cycling Association Alps Divide, a non-profit sports association, and their appetite for a hard challenge also led them to launch the Alps Divide ULTRA, which ran in 2024, 2025 and 2026. It was a test of body and mind against the cutoffs, alongside other strong-willed (and slightly crazy) ultra-cyclists. Knowing ultras aren’t for everyone, they added the RALLY in 2025. It had no trackers and no deadlines, just like-minded riders enjoying the scenery, each other’s company and the joy of pedalling.
From 2027, the Alps Divide ULTRA will be organised by Gavin Kaps through his company Ultro Events Ltd. Katie-Jane and Lee will run one final RALLY in July 2027, after which they will continue to act as caretakers of the route, keeping the route files up to date and freely available for anyone who wants to ride it as a TOUR.
Gavin photographed all three editions of the ULTRA from the media car, meeting riders all along the route, and always stayed out to welcome the last finisher into Thonon. For him, it was as profound an experience as it is for the riders. When Katie-Jane and Lee three years of organising the event were up, he couldn’t accept that as the end, so he offered to take it on. He is grateful for their trust in letting him carry forward what they created. It was their shared belief that every rider’s experience matters as much as the fastest rider’s that first brought the three of them together, and the Alps Divide ULTRA will continue in that spirit.
Find Out More About The Team
Katie-Jane L'Herpiniere
Lee Townend
Gavin Kaps
I’m a British adventure girl living in the French Alps. I have been an avid bikepacker since 2015, when I entered the Transcontinental Bike Race and got bitten by the unsupported ultra bug. I have since gone on to finish the Silk Road Mountain Race 2018, Atlas Mountain Race 2022, Italy Divide 2022, Hellenic Mountain Race 2023 and many other bikepacking events.
In addition to bikepacking, I have completed over 30,000km of unsupported human-powered expeditions, including several world firsts, in some of the most remote regions on Earth. From the Sahara Desert to the Arctic Ocean, the Himalayas to the Andes and many places in between.
Besides my own expeditions, I have also provided routing, logistical support and project management for other people’s journeys over the years; ranging from world first crossings of Antarctica, record-breaking ocean rows, to route creation for an 18,500km charity cycle.
I am also a qualified International Mountain Leader, working predominantly as a multi-day mountain trekking guide in the Alps, on routes such as the Haute Route and the Tour du Mont Blanc.
Katie-Jane
I have been based in the French Alps for over 20 years working full-time as a professional off-piste ski instructor. Guiding clients not only in the Alps but mountain ranges across the world.
When the snow disappears, the bike comes out. Our home is surrounded by the infamous big cols of the Tour de France, which led me to start out as a roady. However, in the past 6 years, I have found a great love for exploring the path less travelled, even if that means carrying and pushing my bike up unrideable terrain in order to explore new pastures and the freedom of quiet remote places!
I have successfully completed the Transatlantic Way 2019, Silk Road Mountain Race 2018, Atlas Mountain Race 2022, Hellenic Mountain Race 2023 and several other events. Of course, many more are on my wish list.
Lee
I’ve been part of the Alps Divide team since its inception, and I’ve been photographing and filming endurance events since 2018, when I made a documentary about Sean Conway’s unsupported Trans Europe record. Since then I’ve been lucky enough to work on a lot of the kind of events and projects I’d only ever read about.
I originally started taking photos to document my own trips, and eventually swapped my job and house in the city for life in an old converted truck. After working across a range of adventurous disciplines, I found my home in bikepacking.
I became fascinated by the psychology of ultra-distance riding and found a shared reverence for people and places within our community, and I’m now lucky to work full-time in our little niche.
See you in Menton, and however long it takes you, I’ll see you in Thonon too.
Gavin
Gavin
A short film project with Clara Domas and Gaby Thompson, to showcase women who build bikepacking routes. There aren’t that many of us around, and the aim of the project is to help women build confidence to not only build their own but also share them with the community.