Italy (all)

A photo album of mountain passes in the Alps

Several cycling travel stories and detailed descriptions with profiles of 17 of the most beautiful climbs in 7 different European countries.

Includes Rome-Venice, Amalfi Coast (including a video clip), Genoa-Pisa-Florence, Aosta Valley.

Everything you have ever heard about bicycling in Italy is true. The weather, terrain, roads, and cities are all perfectly suited for bike touring.

For those of you who're planning to go to Italy by bike and specifically to cross Lombardia region near Como's lake, you can't miss such a place: there are many types of reason that can get you to go there.

You know, this is an ascent that from both sides has the last part quite demanding although short: a good test to evaluate your ``grimpeur'' attitude. At the top look at right side of Como's Lake and at the two mountains named Grigne in front of you.

Even if you're not catholic, do enter the little church (free entrance) : it's also a cycling museum. It's up to you saying a prayer before starting the visit as a sign inside suggests. You'll find here the originals used by Bartali, Coppi, Merckx: looking at the Merckx one, see the gear he used ... There's also the bicycle Moser used in Mexico City in 1984 to improve hour record and last, sadly, the Fabio Casartelli's bicycle used in Tour 1995 (Fabio born not so far from here). Again there's a lot of original maillot (pink , yellow, rainbow) belonging to all time champions. Every year on december 24 there's a religious meeting celebrating great champions that are no more here in this world.

For three years ``Lombardia 's Tour'' has been choosen to be the last race of World Cup and even if its path has been changed, it always includes Ghisallo: take the opportunity to ride along a piece of one most popular Italian cyling races.

La Flaminia Minor, ancora oggi oggetto di studio, fu costruita dalle truppe del console romano Gaio Flaminio nel 187 a.C., due anni dopo la fondazione di Bologna avvenuta nel 189 a.C. Questa strada aveva il ruolo importante di unire le aree a nord dell'appennino con quelle a sud, partendo da Claterna (odierna Maggio, frazione di Ozzano) fino ad arrivare ad Arezzo.

Alberto has ``read all the books'' and writes beautifully (alas, in Italian). This travel story from the Alps in the North-East, West across the Alps, and then South to the Mediterranean on the coast of Tuscany, is a must.

A tour of the Alps - 2190 km and nearly 50km gain in 16 days.

Now accompanied by a biggish Photo Album.

Firenze - Siena - Montepulciano - Assisi - Gubbio - Urbino - Rimini. Km.: 550 - Giorni: 6 - Periodo: Maggio.

Rick and Monica's plans are stymied by awful weather at first. But they make up for this with a great tour of Tuscany, including San Gimignano, Pisa, and then Trentino and Lombardia. Very nicely illustrated.

San Gimignano is the most striking of the walled cities. It has a skyline of towers built centuries ago that has earned the nickname of ``the Manhattan of Italy''. The town can be seen for miles and miles away and is truly a ``not to be missed'' site. Our maps paid off as we cycled over the seldom used back roads throughout the Tuscan region. We passed hundreds of manicured vineyards. We rode by ancient castles, olive groves and fields ablaze with sunflowers. We enjoyed the hills, the scenic narrow roads and the warmth of the Italian sun. At last the weather had improved!

A small guide to getting out of Torino without being run over by too many cars.

A two days ride among great mountains. Green meadows and scattered masi (wooden small houses for the storage of hay) is the characteristic landscape of Comelico valley; the road continues along the Piave river (mild climb) up to Salafossa mines (closed) and a tunnel puts us on the climb to Sappada. This reach of road is excavated on the rocky side of the valley which here is a very narrow gorge and there is the impressive sight of the Orrido Acquatona in which the river Piave flows on the bottom of the gorge (here very deep and narrow).

Has a section for on road and off-road tours in Sardinia (Sardegna)

Extensive data about Patrick's extensive tours in the Alps from 1991 to 2005: includes reports, maps, diagrams... a must-see for the Alpine cyclist. Contains a list of passes in the Alps and the Jura, true stories about cycling, and some pictures.

iVoyage en bicyclette de Losone (Locarno) à Palerme via Bologne, Florence, Bolsena, Rome, Naples, Pompei, Paestum, Taormina, Cefalù.

L'idea di questo viaggio è da attribuire a Pietro Angeloni di Golino per degnamente festeggiare i suoi 50 anni. [...]
Il tempo è sempre stato molto clemente, senza pioggia, la temperatura sino in Calabria è stata piuttosto fresca ed il vento generalmente in nostro favore. La foschia e la parziale mancanza di sole ha un po' penalizzato la qualità delle fotografie (in particolare le vedute della Costiera Amalfitana) ma non si può avere tutto!
Man mano che si andava verso Sud il traffico diventava più caotico, il lato stradale meno pulito, i prezzi più abbordabili e la gente più calorosa.

L'idée de ce voyage est à attribuer à Pietro Angeloni de Golino qui désirait fêter dignement ses 50 ans. [...]
Le temps a toujours été clément, sans pluie. La température jusqu'en Calabre a été plutôt fraîche et le vent généralement en notre faveur. Le manque de soleil et une légère brume ont un peu pénalisé la qualité des photos (en particulier sur la côte Amalfitana), mais on ne peut pas tout avoir!
Plus nous nous dirigions au sud, plus le trafic devenait chaotique. Les bords de routes étaient moins propres, mais les prix plus abordables et les gens plus chaleureux. Cela se confirmait, on ne peut pas tout avoir!

Ogni descrizione, parola, aggettivo sulla bellezza dell' itinerario sarebbe superflua, essendo questi paesaggi alpini i più fotografati al mondo; mi limiterò solamente a consigliarlo ad un cicloturista allenato!

Reports and pictures from various mountains of Europe, America, and Australia. Partly in Dutch.

Camino de Santiago realizado en bicicleta de montañiendo de Roma (12 de junio) hasta Santiago (31 de julio). He seguido los siguientes itinerarios:

• La Vía Francigena, en Italia, desde Roma hasta Montgenevro. Itinerario señaternita di San Jacopo. El itinerario pasa por las regiones: Lazio, Toscana, Emilia-Romagna, Liguria y Piemonte.
• La antigua Vía Domitia, en la actualidad Sendero de Gran Recorrido GR 653D, que comienza en el Puerto de Montgenevro para conectar en Arles con la Vía Tolosana-Chemin de Arles. Itinerario señation Française de la Randonnee Pedestre FFRP. El itinerario transcurre por la Provence-Cote d´Azur (Hautes Alpes, Alpes de Haute Provence, Vaucluse y Bouche du Rhone).
• El Camino Francés del Mediterraneo o Vía Tolosana, en la actualidad Sendero de Gran Recorrido GR 653D. Comienza en Arles, pasa por Montpellier y Toulouse (de la que recibe su nombre), para cruzar los Pirineos y entrar en Españomport. Después de recorrer el Camino Aragonés, conecta con el Camino Frances en Puente la Reina. Itinerario señation Fçnçaise de la Randonnee Pedestre FFRP. El itinerario transcurre en Francia el Languedoc-Rousillon y Midi-Pyrenees, en Españrra.
• El Camino Francés en Españe la Reina. Realizado en bicicleta de montañ20 al 29 de Julio dentro del viaje de Roma a Santiago. El itinerario transcurre por Navarra, La Rioja, Castilla y León y Galicia. Desde Santiago continua hasta Muxía pasando por Fisterra (30 y 31 de Julio) finalizando a orillas del Atlántico en la Costa da Morte.

Travesía de los Alpes de este a oeste, que une Trieste y Ventimiglia . Circula Cinco países: Italia, Eslovenia, Austria, Suiza y Francia. Los macizos montañosos más conocidos de los Alpes: A. Julianos, A. Cárnicos, Dolomitas , Adamello-Pressanella, Ortler, Engadina, Bernina y Bregaglia, lagos de Como y Maggiore, Monte Rosa, Mont Blanc, Gran Paradiso, Monviso, Alpes Marítimos y Mercantour. Recorrido realizado en solitario en 43 días (del 4 de julio al 15 de agosto de 2009). Son unos 2.100 kilómetros y cerccerca de 60.000 metros de desnivel (media diaria: 50 km. y 1.400 m.). Coincide en muchos tramos con al Vía Alpina, Alta Vía Cárnica, Tour del Monte Rosa, Tour del Mont Blanc, Alta Vía del Valle de Aosta y Vía de la Sale. Cruza collados por encima de los 2.500 metros (Tarscher Pass, Stelvio, Cassana, Turlo, Salati, Bettaforca, Nana, Malatrá, Chavannes, Chivasso, Longia y Sibolet). Cicloturismo de montaña en estado puro. El sueño de todo biker de atravesar todos los Alpes.

Viaggio in stile islandese?

Perché la nostra esperienza dei viaggi in Islanda ci ha fatto inventare un nuovo modo di viaggiare in MTB: il viaggio assistito. Tu viaggi leggero con il GPS e noi ti portiamo i bagagli, i viveri e l'occorrente per il viaggio. Con questo spirito abbiamo progettato uno splendido giro di 2 giorni.

In sintesi il viaggio proposto:
partenza dalla nostra sede di Brisighella il venerdì sera, sosta per la cena e la notte a Casa di Ponte nel comune di Tredozio; via per i boschi del fantastico parco delle Foreste Casentinesi; sosta con cena e pernottamento a Fiumicello nel comune di Premilcuore; secondo giorno in quota per toccare il monte Falco e il Falterona, famoso per dare vita all'Arno, e discesa adrenalinica fino alla valle del Sieve per prendere il treno e fare ritorno a Brisighella.

Tutti i particolari li trovate sul sito: www.ibasprengisandur.it

An insider look at one of Italy's most beautiful areas from a backroad cycling point of view. Do the names Montalcino, Chianti, Pienza, Montepulciano ring any bells with you?

Cycling in Northern Italy? Visit this new website offering both accommodation in, and information about, the stunning region hosting the 2008 Road Cycling World Championships. Resources include detailed itineraries for spectacularly scenic mountainbike routes, photos, links to local weather forecasts, train timetables and much, much more.

Alpencross Bericht einer Mountainbike-Extremtour von Oberstdorf zum Gardasee, 7 Tage (davon 4 Regentage)/440km/14000 Höhenmeter.

Alpencross-Bericht einer Mountainbike-Extremtour von Oberstdorf zum Gardasee, 7 Tage (davon 4 Regentage)/440km/14000 Höhenmeter.

Photos and reports of transalp mountain bike tours from Bavaria to Italy. Alpine traverses between Oberstdorf and Lake Como and Tegernsee and Lake Garda.

Trailsource has started a collection, among others, of European Mountain Bike Trail Descriptions. Mountain Biking TrailSource is your online adventure guide to the best mountain bike trails around the globe! You'll find over 4,000 singletracks in 100 countries.

We flew from Stockholm to Geneva. Then we biked along the southern shore of Lac Leman, crossed Pass des Morgines, headed up the Rhone valley, and made a side trip to Zermatt. Then, we continued to Brigg, Davos, St Moritz, Livigno, Canazei, and Cortina. From Cortina we headed south to Lago di Garda. Reaching the Plains of Po approaching Milan we spontaneously decided to take a train to San Reno, and continue from there to Monaco, Nice and up through the mountains to Chamonix, ultimately heading back to Geneva for our return flight to Sweden. There are plenty of excellent reports on cycling along these roads [...] and we feel we have little to contribute. Instead these pages are focused on the possibilities of single track riding.

Includes trail descriptions in Switzerland, Italy and France.

We flew from Stockholm to Geneva. Then we biked along the southern shore of Lac Leman, crossed Pass des Morgines, headed up the Rhone valley, and made a side trip to Zermatt. Then, we continued to Brigg, Davos, St Moritz, Livigno, Canazei, and Cortina. From Cortina we headed south to Lago di Garda. Reaching the Plains of Po approaching Milan we spontaneously decided to take a train to San Reno, and continue from there to Monaco, Nice and up through the mountains to Chamonix, ultimately heading back to Geneva for our return flight to Sweden. There are plenty of excellent reports on cycling along these roads [...] and we feel we have little to contribute. Instead these pages are focused on the possibilities of single track riding.

I live in the middle of the largest flat area of Italy [...] every time I want to do a nice ride I have to go by car at least as far as the nearest Prealps mountains. So, having planned a mountain bike trip for a Sunday of late autumn, I left from my flat city that day, even if the weather was not so good. [...] I arrived at my planned bike starting point (Rotzo village, on Altopiano di Asiago, Veneto region) while the sky was releasing a nice amount of rain. [...] I took a downhill road, the speed increased along with the humidity of my clothes; soon my hands (protected by not so good cycling winter gloves) became colder and colder and so my feet. [...] The downhill road is very long and I went down fast enough to lose the sensitiveness of my hands and feet. Even my limbs, after a while, became hard to move! [In the end] my fleece sweater was quite wet and so my polypropylene jersey but my body was still warm! Of course it took a bit of time to recover the complete functionality of my legs and arms, hands and feet but I was helped by a good fireplace and a big hot wine glass!

La Val Casies una stupenda valle laterale dell'Alta Pusteria, lontana dal turismo di massa anche nei periodi di punta [...] agli amanti della bicicletta, ed in particolare della MTB, [...] offre opportunità veramente uniche di stupendi itinerari tra il verde delle malghe ed il silenzio dei boschi. Tra questi itinerari abbiamo scelto un classico, la ``Via Romana'', che si presta, per le due varianti che descriveremo in seguito, sia a biker mediamente allenati, che ad esperti amanti del single-track tra radici di abete ``spaccapolsi''.

I'm pretty sure that no matter where you live, there is one trail among your home ones that is generally considered as the trail, a classic of the genre.

For Trento, the place where I live, the choice of most local bikers would fall on the Santa Colomba trail. Easily doable starting from the town, not really difficult but with some challenging sections, it offers a small selection of the standard ingredients of an off-road ride. Mind you, it is not a spectacular trail, such as the ones you can find higher up in the Dolomites. But it's an excellent choice for a half-day ride, which means that on Sunday afternoons you have to line up to ride it!

This is a tour over the spectacular Passo San Giacomo, between Italy and Switzerland.

The ``mountain of Trento'' offers some challenging trails for local bikers. Have a look at what's in store.

A mountain bike ride from Mittenwald to Bolzano/Bozen in five days.

Monte Conero is an impressive mountain with an elevation of 572 meters jutting into the Adriatic Sea just south of the port of Ancona. [...] [It] is a fovorite spot for local mountain bikers and can be explored by numerous trails.

[...] ho cercato di mettere insieme alcune delle mie esperienze per preparare un percorso che permetta di vedere quelli che sono a mio modo di vedere alcuni dei posti piu belli della costa veronese del lago di Garda