Set out this morning intending to climb Pala Barzana (842m) from Poffabro. I rode through Maniago, then the fantastic gorge of Bus di Colvera, and up Val Colvera. A few months ago when I descended from Pala Barzana the main road was closed from Pian della Merie to Poffabro, and traffic was diverted through Valdifrini. So today just before Poffabro I decided to take the deviation through Valdifrini in case the main road was still blocked. The narrow lane has been recently repaved and is quite nice. Still steep as the dickens for about a half kilometer though- as you can see below, it surpasses 16% at points. I was compelled to stand which was a good test of my back's recovery- didn't feel any pain.
At the junction with the main road another surprise. They were having some sort of timed car race over Pala Barzana to Poffabro, so no one was allowed to turn westward. Luckily I had arrived a few minutes before the start, so they let me ride east through Pian dell Meria to Poffabro. It was a lovely autumn day with the leaves turning color so I still enjoyed my ride. Especially pleasing was the roar of white water through Bus di Colvera following recent heavy rains. And I made it home early enough for a nice hike with the pups on our local pista ciclabile. Nice Saturday!
Torrente Colvera roaring through Il Bus
Autumn leaves along the old road above Bus di Colvera
Water-carving rock in progress
Forest of Monte Jouf above west wall of Bus di Colvera
I wish I had a more exciting story to tell about my injury, like this fellow:
But my accident was quite lame. I'm on a drug to control my brain tumor, and among other side-effects it causes postural hypo-tension, similar to standing up too quickly and feeling dizzy, but worse. So a few weeks ago I woke up in the middle of the night and got up to go to the bathroom. The stairs are adjacent to the bathroom door, and I apparently blacked-out and plummeted down the stairs (15 in all). I came-to lying on the ground floor, with a loud ringing sound in my head. Marilyn was woken by the clatter and helped me back to bed. The next morning I was sore all over, with bruises, knots and lumps everywhere. The worst was my mid-left back which was very sore. I took it easy, hobbling around stiffly and felt a little better after a couple of weeks, though sadly unable to ride on those cool, clear October days. One day I took an easy flat bike ride to Maniago and Vajont, which went well, and took the dogs on some long walks around the local pista ciclabile. They are great physical therapy aides.
Finally today I felt fit enough to try a bit of climbing. I decided to try the longish gradient up Val d'Artugna, which starts easy and very gradually steepens to 8%, then 10% and more, before slacking a bit past the barrier above Il Chalet restaurant. Pavement ends around 560 meters. I did not push myself at all, nor did I stand on the steeper bits because I wanted to avoid pulling upward with my left side. No problems noted.
I'll be trying to commute to class in Pordenone (14 miles) when the weather cooperates. I put street-shoe pedals on the old Trek, and may even add a rack and fenders if I get inspired (it has mounting eyelets). It's a slightly upgrade ride home and should help strengthen my weakened back muscles.
Pian dei Buoi is a lovely meadowy area on the shoulders of the Marmarole Group above Lozzo di Cadore, with fantastic views of surrounding peaks.
I left early and arrived around 0800 at Lozzo di Cadore (753m) on the Piave River north of Longarone. The climb starts almost immediately, but luckily I lost my way and warmed-up briefly riding around the town. The initial section is not too steep, and many people were taking their morning walks on this pleasant narrow lane through the forest.
Soon the road steepens to 7-10%. Felt great in the cool morning air- really a wonderful climb. It continued like this for around 10km, until the deteriorating road surface gives out completely and it becomes a dirt road at 1700 meters. Still it's rideable with a skinny-tired road bike- no problems.
Now the road enters the beautiful rolling meadows of Pian dei Buoi (Plain of Oxen). I continued on the dirt road a bit further until the trailhead for Rifugio Ciareido, where a family of asini were enjoying their sunny morning. The dirt road reportedly continues for another 6 km to Col Vidal (1880m), a pre-WW I fortress said to have spectacular 360-degree views. I'll have to try to reach the end of the road next year, as I was in a hurry to get home for a prior commitment.
The descent was quite rough- can't get up much speed because of bad pavement, drainage channels, narrowness and twistiness. But the ascent and scenery are so good it makes the descent worth enduring. I'll certainly be returning in 2012.
Monte Antelao (3264m)
Marmarole Group (2932m)
Monte Ciareido (2504m)
Pian dei Buoi meadows and distant mountains to northeast
In May I climbed Slovenia's highest pass, Vrsic (1611m), from Kranjiska Gora to the north. It was a good climb, but not real steep. I noticed the descent on the south side seemed much steeper. So today I decided to try it before the snow arrives next month.
I drove across the Slovenian border to Boveč (450m) and started the 20km warm-up to Trenta. It's a gorgeous secluded ride along the Soča River, surrounded by forested mountains. At Trenta you enter Triglav National Park, and begin the climb. It features a couple of dozen tornanti scaling the steep slope, with lengthy stretches of 13-14% and short bits even steeper.
At the summit it was quite cold, with a surprising number of mountain bikers. Not so many road bikes. Plummeting down the tornanti was fun, and I was well-refreshed for the rolling ride back to the car. This is a challenging climb with wonderful scenery- check it out.
Returned to the border of Dolomiti Bellunese and Alto Adige today after a week of rain, scheduling conflicts etc. Felt good to be back in the mountains.
Passo Falzarego is at the crossroads of Cortina- Alta Badia and the road from Caprile. I decided on the southern approach from Caprile (998m) because it starts closer to home. The road begins climbing a set of switchbacks almost immediately, so I didn't warm up sufficiently. It was quite a chilly, shady morning so I tried standing in the pedals to generate heat, but the grade was only 7-8% so standing didn't help much. Around 1500 meters you emerge from the mountains' shadow and cold is no longer an issue. Now you begin the actual ascent of the pass, with a series of 17 tornanti carrying you through meadows, forest and finally rocky alpine-scape to Passo Falzarego (2117m). Some lovely peaks here- Sass di Stria and Lagazuoi (2752m) standing out. Continued another couple of kilometers upward to Passo Valparola (2192m). Wonderful views from the pass to the north, south and west.
I headed down the descent into Alta Badia- first beautiful San Cassiano then La Villa (1420m). The shady curves were damp- it had snowed earlier in the week, and though the roads were cleared I worried there might be black ice from snowmelt and low temps at night. No problems though.
After La Villa the road climbs gradually toward Corvara (1522m). Here I repeated the climb over Passo Campolongo (1875m) as on the previous ride of Sella Ronda. At Arabba (1600m) I headed down the rolling main road toward Digonera and Livinallongo (1470m). From here it's a fun descent down into the gorgeous valley of Torrente Cordevole to Saviner di Lasta, Rocca Pietore and Caprile.
This is a fun ride, not too steep. I'd love to ride it clockwise someday, as the climb from La Villa to Passo Valparola looked quite inviting.
Lovely villages in the meadows west of the climb from Caprile
Marmolada glacier from afar
Lagazuoi (2752m)
Sass di Stria cliffs, right
Cloud capped reddish mountain to northeast
View south from Passo Valparola
Lavarella (3055m) on descent toward San Cassiano
Close up of tower on Cima Del Lago (2654m)
Sound of Music town in meadows below Pieve di Livinallongo
Another gorgeous village above Val Cordevole
Gruppo Sella capped by clouds
Torrente Cordevole
Climb from Caprile to Passo Falzarego
Over the pass to Passo Valparola, down to La Villa, then up
to Corvara and Passo Campolongo
