New! Garmisch - Lake Como

From Grainau we reach the Loisachtal, continue through the wild and romantic valley of the Neidernach to the Plansee and finally along the Heiterwanger See to the village that gives it its name. Following the Bike Trail Tirol route we reach Weißenbach am Lech on beautiful forest roads and follow the beautiful wild river upstream. While we add up about 800 meters of elevation gain in the first two-thirds of the route without any exceptionally long climbs, a full 960 meters of elevation gain follow up to Hahntennjoch at 1,894 meters in just fifteen kilometers. The narrow and little-traveled mountain road winds through the impressive Hahntennental valley with its steep flanks covered in deep green mountain pines and gray gravel slopes. Once we reach the top of the pass, the road descends rapidly to Imst.

Full of energy and without fuss, we crank up almost 1,000 meters of altitude directly after breakfast from Imst to the first pass. A sporty but varied mix of asphalt, forest and meadow paths leads us to Wenns, where we already have the first 300 meters of altitude behind us. The remaining stretch to the Pillerhöhe is now on village roads and the narrow, less frequented mountain road. At the top of the pass at 1,558 meters, a magnificent view of the Inn Valley awaits us. The following descent is rapid. We have two options. Either we follow the scenic road over Kaunerberg or we follow the forest road through the mountain forest down to Prutz. We continue along the Inntal cycle path into the Swiss Engadine, where we take a detour along the cycle route to one of the typical charming villages. From there, in addition to the beautiful old Engadine houses and the quiet village atmosphere, an impressive view of the Engadine Dolomites and the Inn Valley awaits us. A magnificent panoramic path finally leads us down to Scuol.

Today it will be high alpine. Three passes are located at an altitude of over 2,200 meters. We penetrate deep into the lonely nature between the Swiss National Park and the Stilfser Joch National Park. Some stretches will require increased attention and driving technique. The efforts will be rewarded with unique panoramic views and wonderful gravel stretches through the pristine mountain world. From Scuol, a road first takes us for about 12 kilometers and 700 meters in altitude through the spectacular Clemgia Gorge to the small remote mountain village of S-charl on the edge of the Swiss National Park. Here the official road ends and a gravel path continues to meander along the course of the stream through the kitschy, beautiful alpine landscape of Val S-charl. We pass through fragrant pine forests and open alpine meadows. At the Pass da Costainas at 2,251 meters we have already covered 23 kilometers and 1,150 meters of altitude. A short, very steep descent follows, on which we push down about 100 meters in altitude. Afterwards, we continue downhill on a beautiful forest road to the village of Lü, where, with good visibility, we have an impressive view of the Val Müstair and the Ortler in the background. At Tschierv we change the side of the valley and overcome almost 700 meters in altitude on the way to the 2,234 meter high Döss Radond through the Val Vau with its imposing rock walls and picturesque waterfalls. At the top, the picture-book landscape of the remote Val Mora and fantastic gravel passages await us, which are interrupted for about three kilometers by a predominantly well rideable single trail to the Italian border. The last climb of the day takes us from Lago di Fraele on an old military road to Passo di Alpisella at 2,299 meters. From the pass, the partly steep descent leads directly down to Lago di Livigno where we treat ourselves to pizza and gelati in great quantities to celebrate the adventurous day.

Today's stage is long, but much easier than the previous day due to the nature of the route. First we follow the well-maintained asphalt bike path out of Livigno to the south and have the opportunity to warm up in a relaxed manner over the first few kilometers. Before we reach the end of the valley, we make a short detour to the idyllically situated Alpe Vago. We then reach the Via Forcola pass road, which we follow on a moderate incline to the top of the pass at 2,315 meters. After an espresso at the top of the pass, we quickly start the wonderful descent to the Swiss customs station. The 300 meters of altitude directly following lead to the Bernina Pass at 2,329 meters. We look down on the glaciers of the Bernina massif and can't help but be amazed. The highest peaks of the Eastern Alps with their impressive glaciers spread out before us like a panoramic poster. As far as Pontresina, we partly follow the magnificent Bernina Express trails, which are a lot of fun as easy single trails and tip-top maintained gravel paths. In the undulating up and down it goes to St. Moritz and through beautiful pine and larch forests past the deep blue Upper Engadine lakes to the Maloja Pass. Now it's (almost) all downhill. After leaving the spectacular serpentines behind us, we leave the road and follow the historic Via Bregaglia steadily losing altitude to the charming Italian town of Chiavenna. The last kilometers to Lake Como run flat past the picturesque Lago di Mezzola through fields, biotopes and typical villages to Lake Como.