Valle del Mis

I've wanted to visit Valle del Mis for several years, ever since a friend told me about his wedding party by a gorgeous lake.   So this morning I left early and drove past Belluno to Ponte Mas, parked, and started riding.  Even the approach is pretty, rolling meadows with wooden houses, flower-covered balconies.  A beautiful monastery, La Certosa di Vedana, sits atop a hill overlooking the meadows.  Shortly you arrive at Lago del Mis, a manmade lake stretching for miles in the mountain valley.  The road follows the shoreline, with frequent short tunnels, 5 or 6 long enough to need a headlight and rear flasher.  It was still dawn as I rode along the shady lake edge, though the rugged mountains in the distance were beginning to be lit by the sun.  Almost deserted out here, except for a young mountain goat near Torrente Falcina, an inlet west of the lake.

The lake narrows and you cross Torrente Mis then begin cycling for miles in a spectacular gorge.  Numerous rapids and waterfalls interrupt the silence.  You're gradually gaining altitude, almost without knowing it.  Then around 500 or 600 meters the gradient picks up a bit, climbing at 8-10% up to Tiser at 950 meters where you join the road to Don di Gosaldo.  Because of the August traffic jams (especially on Sunday) I opted out of crossing Passo Cereda and descending to Fiera di Primiero.  Instead I turned  northeast and crossed Forcella Aurine (1299m) above Agordo.  Great views up here of Pale di San Martino (2982m), which was engulfed in clouds when I circled it last summer.

I got a bit lost at this point, despite printing out a map last night.  The signs were using different names than the map, so I erred on the side of caution and kept searching, till I found myself at Agordo (600m).  The places on the map were nowhere to be seen so I resolved to return to Ponte Mas through the busy tunnels of the main road.  Luckily as I was leaving Agordo I saw a sign for Valle del Mis.  It took a bit of climbing to regain altitude to Tiser, but the gradient wasn't bad.

The descent was fun, though the the road was now getting crowded (1030).  I don't want to think about what it's like this afternoon.  But not all the traffic is cars and motorcycles:  lots of cyclists were on the roads as well.  I will ride this again soon and find the hidden road above Agordo. 

La Certosa di Vedana monastery

Dawn Lago del Mis

Close up sun-lit peaks  in the distance

Torrente Falcina inlet

Looking back down Torrente Mis

Close up of peaks to south

Even closer up

Gorge narrows to 3 or 4 meters; waterfall on left after the narrows

Another view of the mountains above the gorge

Mountains to south toward Feltre; highest peak Piz di Sagron (2486m)

One small portion of the massive Pale di San Martino

Close up Pale di San Martino towers

Pale di San Martino peaks

More of the Pale

A close up 

Pale di San Martino Loop

Pale di San Martino (2982m) first caught my eye while descending Passo Duron toward Agordo last year.  With its spires and towers and sheer cliffs it seemed like a craggy castle from Lord of the Rings floating in the sky above Agordo.  Then I read several accounts of rides around the Pale, similar to Sella Ronda's circling around Gruppo Sella.  When I looked closer at the climbs I realized riding it clockwise would be easier than counterclockwise, so I chose the easy route.

I started by warming up from Cencenighe (774m) toward Agordo.  The long busy Listolade tunnel is on the route, but they've retained the original road along the river bypassing the tunnel (just watch for falling rocks).  At Agordo (611m) turn right toward Passo Cereda.  You're going to Forcella Aurine first, but the 2 passes are close together, like Falzarego and Valparola, so they just list one.  The climb is very gentle and an excellent warm up.  Gorgeous views of little villages with flowers in window boxes, rolling green meadows, and towers of the Pale high above.  Clouds were already forming around the peaks so didn't get many pictures.

After Forcella Aurine (1299m) you descend briefly and continue along false flats to the start of the climb to Passo Cereda.  This one was a bit steeper, but still not bad.  After the pass (1369m)  a steep curvy descent toward Fiera di Primiero, with great panoramas of Vetta Feltrine across the valley.

At Fiera di Primiero (716m) turn right toward Passo Rolle.  This was the longest continuous climb I recall ever doing- 22km.  The gradient is easy (averaging 5.6%) but the unending effort is quite tiring.  Traffic was pretty heavy until San Martino di Castrozza (1452m), but luckily most people stay in these tourist centers, leaving the mountain roads to the rest of us.  I had a flat tire here, which was both annoying and restful at the same time.  Around 1800m the beautiful spruce forest thins out and soon you're climbing a stack of switchbacks up a grassy bald (1973m).  Wanted to take a foto of the Swiss  cows (with bells) munching on the grass and multicolored wildflowers but worried I would spook the cows being so close.

Great looping switchback descent, soon returning to spruce forest with white water streams.  Take another right at the Passo Valles sign (1552m) and begin a gradual climb through wonderful Parco Paneveggio (see http://www.parcopan.org/it/gallery.html) .  This would be a great place to picnic, walk along white water streams, etc.  After 3 peaceful km the inevitable steepness begins, never extreme but much 9-12%.  Again you exit the forest and enter the treeless pass area, topping out at 2033m.  Now begins the long descent, first steep and fast (85kph) to the junction with San Pellegrino climb, then down to Falcade and eventually Cencenighe.  There's another long fairly busy tunnel (galleria le Anime) just above Cencenighe, but I used the old road bypass along Torrente Cordevole, like last year.  It also has a shorter, carless tunnel, which they've now installed lights in for hikers, bikers.  This is great because last year I was terrified riding through the blackness here (you couldn't see daylight from the tunnel entrance or exit because of curves).

Great ride, though tiring.  Now I've got to build the endurance to climb it counterclockwise.    

Farmhouse on road to Forcella Aurine,
with Pale di San Martino above

Vetta Feltrine (2334m) mountain range above Fiera di Primiero

Southern end of Pale di San Martino above Passo Cereda

Grassy bald of Passo Rolle

Shrinking glaciers of Pale di San Martino, smaller every year for decades.
Continued global warming will likely eradicate them soon.

Torrente Travignolo in Parco Paneveggio

Cloudy spires of the Pale from Falcade