Cyclopaat, an alter ego with a twist
Posts with info on more famous cols, all of which (must) have been cycled by me
In June last year, at the end of my Giro d’Italia 2015, I rode an entirely ‘Swiss Stage’ including the Gotthard (Tremola road), the Furka and the Grimsel.
You can read a report on that stage here – it offered some of the most stunning views I have encountered so far and I am determined to get back there for more, during a longer stay.
The Grimsel pass (2,164 m, summit sign 2,165 m) connects the cantons of Valais to the south and Bern to the north; it crosses the continental divide between the Mediterranean Sea and the North Sea.
It’s part of the most famous routes – or round trips – of the Alps and is combined with the Furka pass, which it ‘meets’ in Gletsch in most of those.
There’s a loop with the Susten pass (north), or with the Nufenen and Gotthard passes (south).
It connects the cantons of Valais and Uri.
It’s part of the most famous routes – or round trips – of the Alps and is combined with the Grimsel pass, which it ‘meets’ in Gletsch in most of those.
Other than traversing the Gotthard tunnel, you can travel the new Tremola if you want to enjoy some of the views from within your car or on your motorcycle, while not losing too much time.
However, that also has some (long) tunneled sections and the far more interesting – and better cycle-able – road is the old Tremola between Airolo in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, and Hospental in the German-speaking canton of Uri.
The Grossglockner High Alpine Road – or Großglockner-Hochalpenstraße – is named after Austria’s highest mountain (3,798 m).
For cyclists, the road doesn’t get up that high, but the cobblestone (side-)road up to the “Edelweißspitze” reaches a respectable 2,571 meters.
(I noticed the map above reads 2,572 m, but both in 2009 and 2017, the “official” summit sign read 2,571 m, as also mentioned on most other info pages.)
Since this side-road – starting at 2,394 m from Fusher Törl – is a dead-end, the ‘official’ pass height is at the Hochtor (2,504 m) making it the highest pass in Austria, ranked 7th in Europe.
The Grossglockner features (annually) in the Tour of Austria and was also visited by the Giro d’Italia twice (1971 and 2011).
The Grossglockner’s most popular stretches are:
In 2009, I cycled up the Grossglockner Hochalpenstrasse from Bruck, including the Edelweißspitze and the KFJ-höhe – report on that trip here.
I revisited the Grossglockner in 2017, after I participated in the Marmotte Hochkönig two days before.
I planned on tackling both ends in one ride – skipping at least the fork up to the KFJ-höhe – but I was unable to complete that mission, due to fatigue and hot weather.
So I settled for a round trip from Bruck to the Hochtor, with the Edelweissspitze on the return – report of that trip here.
