From a distant church tower, the irregular ringing of a bell penetrates the sleeping Gümeler's room. One eye blinks, the ringing fades, the cyclist dozes off again. The bell rings again. Both eyes are open. Bellinzona, six o'clock in the morning. There's no way to get a landlord out of bed this early, but the station buffet is already open and exudes the aroma of freshly brewed coffee. The thermometer reads twenty degrees on this summer morning. High time to set off before the valley turns into a sweltering oven. Bündner Pässetour - a crazy idea for non-cyclists, a passion for cyclists. The second day is already the toughest: the most kilometres, the most metres in altitude. But it starts quite easily. The cantonal road swings gently into the Valle Mesolcina, the mountains that form the head of the valley are still a long way off.
You can find these routes in the PDF download:
DAY 1: Gently to the south
(two passes, 120 kilometres, 1,400 metres in altitude, maximum gradient of ten percent)
Andermatt - Oberalp Pass - Disentis - Lukmanier Pass - Bellinzona
DAY 2: The beautiful and the busy
(two passes, 145 kilometres, 3,500 metres in altitude, maximum gradient of ten percent)
Bellinzona - Passo del San Bernardino - Thusis - Tiefencastel - Julier Pass - Silvaplana
DAY 3: Return to the north
(two passes, 140 kilometres, 2,300 metres in altitude, maximum gradient twelve percent)
Silvaplana - Susch - Flüela Pass - Davos Dorf - Surava - Filisur - Albula Pass - La Punt
DAY 4: In the Swiss National Park
(two passes, 90 kilometres, 1,800 metres in altitude, maximum gradient of eleven percent)
La Punt - Zernez - Ofenpass - Santa Maria - Umbrailpass - Bormio
DAY 5: Italian journey
(four passes, 80 kilometres, 2,000 metres in altitude, maximum gradient of twelve percent)
Bormio (1,217 metres) - Passo di Foscagno - Trepalle - Passo d'Eira - Livigno - Forcola di Livigno - La Motta - Bernina Pass - Pontresina
DAY 6: Art road on the Splügen Pass
(two passes, 125 kilometres, 1,900 metres in altitude, maximum gradient of 13 percent)
Pontresina - St. Moritz - Maloja Pass - Chiavenna - Splügen Pass - Splügen village - Thusis
DAY 7: Along the wild Vorderrhein
(one pass, 100 kilometres, 1,500 metres in altitude, maximum gradient of ten percent)
Thusis - Bonaduz - Versam - Ilanz - Disentis - Oberalp Pass - Andermatt
Downloads:
PDF: Switzerland: Graubünden
