July 2. Neydens to Leysin. 131km, 2063 metres climbing
n Neydens
I left the car in the hotel car park at Neydens. A convenient start point for the tour. After some confusion getting out of Neydens, I crossed the unmanned border into Switzerland and was soon in Geneva.
The weather was cool and changeable for the first week, but that was very comfortable for making good progress. I traversed the lake shore, crossing back into France unnoticed to Thonon les Bains, where the route turned inland. I crossed the Pas-de-Morgins pass at 1369 metres to re-enter Switzerland,
After a fast and scenic descent into Monthey, I headed north towards Aigle, home of the UCI. A few k before Aigle, I got onto the back of a training group, which gave me a little boost until I turned off onto the Route des Ormonts to head for Leysin, the last climb of the day.
Nearing Leysin, I took a chance and stopped at the roadside bar, the Relais de Vuargny. This proved to be an excellent choice, and I was served a hearty salad which fuelled me to the destination, the sceneic and quiet Chambre d’hôtes les Noisetiers.
After a quick shower and a nap, I had to ride to get dinner in a restaurant in Leysin because the B&B had no restaurant. It’s quite a tough climb. I had a fine Italian meal in La Calabre. After dinner, had a beer and chat with a friend from long ago, alpine guide Terry Ralphs who lives and works in Leysin. It was great to catch up after all these years.
July 3. Leysin to Grindelwald. 154km, 3117 metres climbing
Breakfast is provided in a basket delivered to the rooms at Les Noisetiers. This is good for getting an early start. But the coffee machine was not working. I started on the first climb, the Col du Pillon coffeeless which was not the best start. I soon warmed up though. The scenery was amazing even in the chilly weather:
I descended towards the exclusive mountain resort of Gstaad. Just after the only Porsche dealership in the Alps, I arrived in town. I pushed the boat out and decided I could afford a morning coffee. It was presented in a very Gstaad way!
I quickly pushed on after the coffee, A hard climb to Saanen, and then a very pleasant descent on a quiet road towards Zweisimmen. The Swiss infrastructure is amazing. There was a rail line up the valley, and a new road which was taking car traffic and trucks. The old road was almost empty and perfect for cycling.
At Zweisimmen, I could have continued straight to descend to Lake Thun in under an hour. I thought it must be possible though, to ride a bike from Lenk im Simmental across the ski roads to Adelboden.
This turned out to be extremely difficult. I had to climb the Bühlbergstrasse which becomes unpaved after a few kilometres and has sustained stretches of 20%. With my loaded bike, I actually got 9th overall on the Bühlbergstrasse Strava segment. It was extremely hard.
Towards the top I somehow got off route and had to hike the bike up some footpaths, and then cut across a field to connect to the route I should have been on which descended to Adelboden.
The descent was again very quiet and scenic:
The road from Frutigen to Lake Thun is quite hard. The wether was warming up and I arrived at the lake out of water and energy. I bought some water and some Jaffa Cakes (The Euro equivalent anyway) at a petrol station in Spiez then turned right along the lake shore towards Interlaken.
The bike path is very scenic and at times is right by the water. I had no time to stop though after the detours of the day, so I rode straight through Interlaken and Wilderswill and onto the climb to Grindelwald.
The climb to Grindelwald starts not too steep, but at a certain point, it becomes fairly hard. It turned out my hotel was 4 k the other side of Grindelwald up the road that leads to Grosse Scheidegg. It was a long and hot finish to the day, but eventually I arrived at the Hotel Wetterhorn with a view of the eponymous mountain right opposite:
There’s a restaurant at the hotel, so I had a very restful evening after such a hard day.
July 4. Rest day in Grindelwald.
I had booked a ticket up to the Jungfraujoch today, so I caught the free tourist bus from outside the hotel down to the Grindelwald Terminal where the gondola takes you up to the Eiger Glacier train station.
Be aware that if you book a ticket to the Jungfraujoch, the departure time is the time that the train leaves from the Eiger Glacier station, not the time that you should board the gondola at Grindelwald Terminal. Get there earlier than indicated.
I spent almost the whole day at the Jungfraujoch. It’s amazing the engineering the Swiss have done up there. There is a town built into the mountain. There are of course tourist shops. But it’s a whole shopping centre with multiple restaurants. There are multiple science facilities. Universities from across the world perform atmospheric research, astronomy and cosmic ray research up there.
The air is cold up there, but in the direct sun, it’s warm if there is no wind. I had to wear the only warm clothes I was carrying in lightweight touring mode. I had a merino long sleeved base layer and a rain jacket.
Back in town, I had a quick beer at the cool Avocado Bar before taking the bus back to the hotel
July 5. Grindelwald to Wassen. 103km. 3134 metres climbing.
Another hard day. Only 103 km, but that included the very steep Grosse Scheidegg climb and the Furka Pass. It turned out to be a good thing I chose the Hotel Wetterhorn because it gives you a head start to Grosse Scheidegg. This is a very steep climb, but in the cool morning and on such a quiet road it was very enjoyable. It is closed to almost all traffic, so I felt OK about not wearing my helmet while climbing which helped.
The descent towards Meiringen was a little hazardous. It had rained during the night, and the air was still cold, so I was very cautious until I reached the valley where the loooong climb to the Grimsel Pass began.
The climb to the Grimsel Pass is very long. It’s not too steep, but there are several false summits after which you find a reservoir and more climbing. The road is quite busy and Swiss drivers are not good with cyclists in contrast to French and Italian drivers. There are only a few opportunities to use the old road up the pass:
I was being chased by the cloudy weather:
It was bitterly cold at the top of the Grimsel Pass, and it was lunch time, so I stopped for a big pasta lunch at the cosy Hotel Grimsel Passhöhe.
It was shocking to see that the Rhône Glacier which I remembered from our Italian road trip in 1994 as a huge blue-white glowing block of ice had completely disappeared. All that can be seen now is the scoured granite valley where the glacier used to be:
After the very fast descent to Gletsch, I began the last climb of the day to the Furka Pass. I stopped at the abandoned grand Hotel Belvedere to look back to the Grimsel before continuing to the summit and then descending out of the cold air towards Realp.
Andermatt was a little too expensive, so I descended through the steep and narrow canyon where the Swiss have forced amazing connecting infrastructure though incredibly unlikely landscape. The hotel was a little disappointing with no view, but the meal was good. And there was a dog!
July 6. Wassen to Wiesen. 140km, 2938 metres climbing
I regretted a little descending so far from Andermatt. It was a fairly long climb back, but that was just a warmup for the Overalp Pass. The narrow valley is amazingly engineered by generations of ingenious Swiss determined to create a viable infrastructure:
The climb to the Oberalp Pass isn’t too bad and there’s a very scenic and fast descent.
But the road through Disentis to Ilanz is a bit boring and Swiss drivers are not patient or tolerant of cyclists. It was a relief to turn off onto the quiet road for Bonaduz and Thusis. I stopped for lunch in Thusis before the final climb to Wiesen.
The Aparthotel Muchetta was very nice with a great view. There was a restaurant and spa. I booked the steam room for after dinner to relax the muscles.
7 July. Wiesen to San Valentino. 119km, 2739 metres climbing.
The day starts with a fairly leisurely climb to Davos. I stopped to buy a charging cable for my phone which was refusing to charge from the cheap cable I brought with me. Then I started the big Flüella Pass. This is a long and wild road reminiscent of the Galibier. Except that if you ever ride with another cyclist having a chat, a Swiss motorist will refuse to overtake, but sit behind leaning on the horn until you learn your place and go back into single file.
After a pizza in Zernez, I then tackled the Ofenpass/Passo dal Fuorn with its false summit and descent half way up.
On the descent, I dropped into a pack of racing cyclists on a training ride and shocked them by keeping pace with them on a loaded bike. They took me as far as Glurns where they turned off for the Stelvio while I headed north towards San Valentino.
There’s a beautiful bike trail right by the Adige river leading to San Valentino. Eventually, you get to the lake which feeds the river across which you can see the town. The Hotel Hofer was cheap, comfortable, had a great view and was close to a pizzeria.
8 July. San Valentino to Ponte di Legno. 114km, 3422 metres climbing.
A big climbing day. This was the highlight of the trip. The Stelvio and Gavia passes. The breakfast at the Hofer was excellent and plentiful, so I fuelled up. The cruise down the Adige river was gorgeous:
I was expecting to suffer badly on the Stelvio, but it wasn’t that bad. As long as I kept it in a reasonable gear and kept breathing I could just keep the pedals spinning. The views got more and more amazing the higher I got:
I arrived at the top at lunch time, but it was far too crowded. It was a Saturday and the world and his mate wanted to tick the Stelvio. Many of them on motorbikes. It was cold up there too, so I put on my jacket and descended towards Bormio. The descent seems quite dangerous. There were several tunnels which went round corners and also had water running through them. Be warned.
After a coffee and a snack at the cool bike shop The Stelvio Experience, I headed out of Bormio towards the Gavia. Again, I got on a training group as far as Santa Caterina. But it was there that the climbing really began. The Gavia is harder than the Stelvio in my opinion. The gradient is more variable and there are more steep sections. The descent towards Ponte di Legno is very scenic, but incredibly dangerous. You must be in control all the way down. It’s a single track road, and there are very few barriers.
Ponte di Legno is a cool mountain town. I chilled there and went for a meal at the excellent Ristorante San Marco. The Hotel Bellavista is comfortable and well located and offers an excellent breakfast for cyclists.
9 July. Ponte de Legno to Moniga del Garda. 173 km, 665 metres climbing.
This was the hardest day even though there was the least climbing. Crossing the Po valley from Iseo to Garda proved extremely difficult and confusing.
The day started with a long descent to Edolo, and then a ride through the beautiful Oglio valley. I met up with a rider out training who towed me all the way to Iseo, and that was when the difficulties began.
I made the mistake of using Google Maps navigation in bike mode. Instead of in car mode and avoiding motorways and tolls. Consequently Google sent me up every stony, muddy farm track it possibly could. I zig-zagged my way across country until I finally found the road to Moniga del Garda. By the time I found the B&B, I had lost my sense of humour. Nothing that an apéro and a pizza can’t fix. I met up with Steve Munn, who runs cycling holidays from his apartment in Moniga, and had an excellent meal at the Dogana restaurant.
10 July. Rest day posing round Garda. 56 km, 287 metres climbing.
After a late breakfast, I set off round the lakeshore at a pace where I was barely even breathing. This was a rest day. I stopped at Peschiera del Garda for a capuccino and second breakfast at the Dispensa Ufficiali which is in an area which looks just like Venice and has lots of nice bars and restaurants.
I then cruised round to the east side of the lake for lunch on the lake shore at Garda.
Then a ferry ride back to Salo, and a cruise back to the B&B at Moniga. Another meal with Steve and his cycling clients rounded off a good day!
11 July. Moniga del Garda to Lucino. 164 km, 1208 metres of climbing.
No pictures. This was a transfer day trying to get far enough west that I could reasonably make it back to Geneva by Saturday evening. Quite a hard day of route finding, but helped by using Google Maps in car mode. I stayed at the very comfortable and modern Hotel Cruise outside of Como. Hotels in Como itself being quite expensive.
July 12. Lucino to Gondo. 141km, 644 metres of climbing.
The day started a bit grotty, but it looked like the storm cells were moving away fast.
The hotel tried to advise me against leaving on my bike, but I told them I’d be just fine! I rode quickly across the boring plain north of Milan and finally reached mountains and lakes again at Lake Maggiore. There are some amazing buildings round there in the resorts. Real belle epoque ornate beauties. Some are well maintained – the ones in the resort towns, some are dilapidated. I’d love to buy one and do it up (If I won the lottery!)
I arrived in Domodossola just as the rain started and ducked inside the Ristorante Terminus. This turned out to be a great decision, and I had the best pizza I’ve had in ages and a nice Valpolicella red to go with it.
After lunch, I tried to find the old road towards the Simplon Pass, but it was blocked by concrete blocks. The new motorway tunnel was out of bounds to bikes, so I had to ride back to Domodossola and call a taxi to take me up to Gondo where I had booked into the amazing Hotel Stockalperturm.
The building was originally a castle built in the 17th century as one of a pair of castles at each end of the pass to control trade. The village and its castle were devastated by a landslide a few years ago, and the castle has been rebuilt as a hotel and restaurant. There’s also a small museum inside which tells the story of the gold miners who dug deep into the mountain sides in search of gold until it ran out in the 19th century.
July 13. Gondo to Martigny. 137km, 1766 metres climbing.
The Swiss keep the old roads over the passes secret for “local people” it seems. I had to spend a lot of time on the main road over the pass and went through several terrifying tunnels and snow galleries which amplify the sound of traffic to demonic proportions. Once in the Valley at Brig, on the other side of the pass, it was a headwind all the way down the Rhône valley to Martigny.
The Martigny Boutique Hotel is modern and comfortable with a good restaurant. It also has a good collection of art books which makes it a good choice for a stay.
July 14. Martigny to Notre-Dame-de-Bellecombe. 106km, 2519 metres climbing.
Another day which looks short, but is heavy on climbing. The breakfast at the hotel was good, so I took the two passes between Martigny and Chamonix at a good speed.
Then I inadvertently rode the 2023 Tour time trial from Passy to Combloux where I had lunch.
Then down to Flumet and half way up the col de Saisies to the disappointing Hôtel la Mollinière at ND de Bellecombe. The village altogether seems a bit disappointing. After a lacklustre meal I retired to bed to be kept awake by the 14th July celebrations in the field directly outside the hotel.
July 15. ND de Bellecombe to Neydens. 146 km, 2037 metres climbing
A disappointing breakfast, but I warmed up on the climb back to Megeve. I was caught up by a 90 kilo Belgian guy who I rode through and off with all the way to Samoëns at the bottom of the Joux Plane climb. Halfway up, I bumped into Mike and Kevin Jacoubowsky from Chain Reaction in Redwood City where I got my bike from and who ran the morning training rides when I worked in RWC.
Had a good lunch of Lasagne and red wine at the restaurant at the top of the Joux Plane, and then descended to wait to see The Tour come through. Much better to watch it on TV. The road was full of fat people.
After the Tour came through very late, it was a hard and very hot dash back towards Annemasse and Neydens. I arrived at the hotel exhausted and ready to rest.
July 16. Drive back to Bédoin.
I chose the scenic route back and drove up to the Semnoz summit, and through the Chartreuse range towards Genoble before hitting the motorway to get home. It really made me appreciate how amazing cars are and what a privilege it is to travel in speed and comfort!
Next year? The Dolomites? Italy seems very inviting for bike holidays!
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