Gallery: the Monte Carlo rally and its epic scenery

Last weekend, world rallying’s new era was ushered in as the 2017 WRC kicked off in the icy cold hills above Monte Carlo.

You can read exactly what happened in our Monte rally report, but in summary, four-time WRC champion Sebastien Ogier stepped straight from his old VW Polo R and into M-Sport’s new Ford Fiesta without losing his winning ways. His exuberant driving was as quick as it was entertaining to watch.

Another star of the Monte Carlo rally, though, was the location. A week on from Ogier claiming the top step of WRC 2017’s first podium, it seems a good time to reflect on the brilliantly varied stages that make Monte such a legendary round on the rallying calendar.

You can do that right here with these excellent shots by Drew Gibson. The scenic hills, picturesque villages, unyielding road surfaces and spine-tingling night stages have all been captured by his little Leica. A Leica M 242 with a 50mm F1.4 lens, for all you camera geeks reading. There's some detailed stuff from the short lulls of action between stages, too, as drivers get a brief respite from Monte's challenges.

Click through and see Monte 2017’s highlights from an alternative angle. Thought we’d better start with Seb and his co-driver Julien Ingrassia, mind…

Images: Drew Gibson (see Drew's Instagram feed here)

The Ford Fiesta WRC of Elfyn Evans dips more than a mere wheel off the road. Some drivers’ lines are hair-raising to watch up close. Most of the time, though, they know what they’re doing. Most of the time…

Kris Meeke didn’t have a spiffing Monte Carlo rally. But when his Citroen C3 WRC was running, it looked utterly fantastic. Perhaps the best stance of any car in the running order, and with Kris at the wheel, perhaps the most spectacular shapes that were being thrown, too.

See? Kris and his C3 looking utterly balletic on one of the iciest, diciest stages of the whole rally.

This was Monte 2017’s second stage. It’s around midnight here, it’s blooming cold, yet the hillside is teeming with spectators. As with any motorsport, watching at night gives the action an especially exciting edge. The sights and sounds as a car passes seem so much more vivid.

Point proven. Look closely at this Citroen: brake discs glowing, front wheels displaying opposite lock, lamp pods piercing the darkness.

Of course, back in the light of day, you can savour the scenery in the short gaps between cars. If you can take your eyes off the mountains, there’s a Citroen DS3 to spot in this image.

If you couldn’t find the Citroen, then the Ford Fiesta RS of Eamonn Boland should be somewhat easier to spot here…

Three Abarth 124 Spiders started the Monte; one finished. To our dismay, they weren’t nearly as sideways as we hoped.

Perhaps their drivers are still getting a feel for their front-engine/rear-drive setup; they were certainly less wild to watch than the all-wheel-drive WRC cars. Still, give any car a bit of snow and it’ll slide a bit…

Finding the perfect place to watch takes intense planning. And a daily struggle to wake up very early. But combine the two, and you can be rewarded with sights like this just after sunrise.

Thibaut Poizot drove this little Clio with such commitment that it’s a surprise it finished the rally in one piece. It sounded nuts, and spat big flames as Thibaut barreled around the stages with the bit between his teeth. Superb effort.

Juho Hanninen’s Toyota Yaris WRC on a stretch of road between stages. From the front, you get a small glimpse of the wee Yaris’s utterly bonkers aero profile.

The rear, though, is where everything happens. Some feared the extreme aerodynamics of 2017’s WRC class cars might mean they stuck to the road and cornered with little drama. From where we watched the Monte Carlo rally, it doesn’t look like there’s too much to fear.

Hyundai is fielding full-bore WRC cars, but there’s also this R5-spec i20, too. Here, Kevin Abbring negotiates a corner in the hills above Luceram, as the rally winds its way to the famous Col de Turini hairpins.

The town of Luceram up close. There’s another 1,000m to climb before you top the Col de Turini, the temperature dropping and the snow levels rising as you do so.

A little bit more night action. Once the big-hitting WRC cars have passed through, there are dozens of lower-budget entries which follow, many driven with barely less commitment.

Among them are plenty of little Peugeot 208s like this one. Being front-wheel drive, drivers can’t be shy with the handbrake to get them around Monte’s tighter turns.

This Skoda Fabia not only has a shamelessly retro livery, but some wondrously boxed wheel arches, which seem to hark back to the legendary Lancia Delta Integrale. You ought to be aware that’s no bad thing.

Ott Tanak uses the short time between stages to look pensive and speak to his crew…

…while Monte winner Sebastien Ogier uses the same period to get his hands dirty and do some manual labour himself. Here, he’s fixing radiator blanking strips to his Fiesta WRC.

No cars, just a mightily colourful sunset. When the sun drops up here, you’d better have some extra layers ready.

Monaco may be most famous for hosting Formula 1, but it’s also the start and end point of the Monte Carlo rally. This is parc ferme, the area where all the cars which finished Monte 2017 gathered. See if you can spot the one Abarth that made it to the end intact...