Summary
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Trail in numbers
- Distance: 35 km
- Total climb: 1223 m
- High point: 2597 m
- Ridable: 90%
- Duration: 4-6 h
Highlights
- Bike Park Tonale. If you have the time, make sure you try out the trails of this amazing bike park. It includes lots of very diverse trails, from fast and flowy to rugged and technicals. My favorite trail is a combination of two sections, called “Black Shadow” and “Red Carpet”, respectively. A 6.3 km, 700m descent at first rocky and winding, then rooty and full of features in the woods. Spectactular!
- Adamello Range. The mountains part of this massive group cannot go unnoticed if you pass by these parts. They reach above 3500 meters with scenic, awe-inspiring vertical walls and snow-capped tops. There are many hiking opportunities for you to try out, or you can also hop on the Presena cable car that will take you to Cima Presena at 3000 meters, offering incredible views over the Adamello range.
Useful info
- When to go: June-September. You will need to stick to the summer months for obvious reasons. Consider that Bike Park Tonale typically opens on the second-last weekend of June.
- Trail options:. There are quite a few variants. We relied on public transport (bike bus) to close the loop and cut some 15km of tarmac road with significant climbing, but if you fancy pedaling you may want to pedal it all. Make sure you check the bus timetables as the bike bus does not run frequently. We preferred to catch it in the morning so that we did not have to stress about making it to the stop on time on the way back. Also, you could take a chairlift at the beginning of the trail, which would save you some climbing. Consider that the first 200 meters of climbing require mostly pushing your bike, so it could be a smart move.
- Food and Water: Once you leave Pass Tonale, you are on your own for approx 4 hours. Make sure you carry a packed lunch and plenty of water in your hydration pack.
- Recommended gears&bike: full suspension bike, all-mountain / enduro. You could also use a hardtail but likely you will not have the same amount of fun.
- Starting point: We started precisely from Pass Tonale, which we reached by Bike Bus from the town of Fucine.
In this article you will read about the amazing adventure planned with ItalyBike Adventures that took place in the Tonale valley, in the heart of the Italian Alps.
Photostory
It’s July 7th, we are in Milan, Italy, and it is baking hot. The heat wave hit us a few weeks ago and it is still hovering over the city like a heavy, thick pocket of humid air granting sleepless and sweaty nights to the unlucky ones who have no air conditioning in their flats.
I have no air conditioning and I am longing for the weekend. I can bear the heat alright, but I cannot stand the idea of spending a summer weekend home complaining about the weather or (worse!) wasting my days at the shopping mall freaking out about the sales season that just began.
This weekend, also, Maria is not around as she’s in China for business. Despite being sad for not seeing her, this happening offers me the opportunity of joining the folks for a full throttle biking weekend! The destination is “Passo del Tonale”, some three hours drive from the city, and we are determined to make it a memorable one. As you will see in the photos below, I am sure you will concur with me.
Passo del Tonale is a mountain pass at an elevation of about 1880 meters separating Lombardy from Trentino Alto Adige. It is tucked at the northern tip of Val Camonica, a valley in the province of Brescia and known for its ancient artifacts from the post-paleolithic age. The pass is surrounded by towering mountains, the biggest peak being Mount Adamello with its 3539 meters. The views are amazing here, ranging from lush forests to rocky desolated landscapes and impenetrable glaciers.
On saturday I wake up early in the morning and gather directly there with the other riders. I am joined by Luca and Jacopo, co-founders of ItalyBike Adventures, an association specialized on adrenaline biking in the most beautiful spots of the country. We spend the first day shredding at Bike Park Tonale, which is just amazing. The trails are many, long and very fun to ride, mostly flowy with lots of features but also a few little technical sections. Besides, the area is so vast that it really feels like going skiing! In any case, I will save the bike park experience for another post, whilst here I will concentrate on the outdoor adventure that Jacopo and myself completed on sunday.
It’s saturday night, and the weather forecast is not promising: light rain in the morning and possible thunderstorms in the late afternoon. We are unsure until the very sunday morning, when the sun is shining after a crazy night downpour. We decide to take our chances and go for the adventure. The trail is called “Camos” and will take us from Passo del Tonale (1880m) to a Mountain Hut in the Stelvio National Park (Rifugio Bozzi, 2400mt), then to the majestic Val Pejo in Val di Sole, Trentino Alto Adige. The tallest point will be the saddle dividing Lombardy from Trentino, at 2664 meters (Forcella di Montozzo), then we will have some 1600 meters downhill! Look at the map down below for details.
After the early wake up call and the useless Italian style breakfast we hit the car and get directly to where we will end our trail. From here we hop on a very handy bike bus that takes us back to the summit of the mountain pass and its majestic monument, a memento of WWI that was fought in these mountains, once dividing Italy from Austria. From here we begin our adventure, with the weather still on our side.
The first section is a steep ascent from the pass to the Negritella mountain hut, some 200 meters above us, only a small part of which is actually ridable.
Soon after the hut, the actual trail begins: a beautiful long and smooth single track traversing the mountain, following its contour line at 2000 meters heading towards Lombardy.
The trail becomes more and more exposed as we circle around the mountain. The views are just stunning.
Sometimes there are some gentle descents, perfect for going at full speed…but better not to fall off the trail!
After some kilometers, the trail goes uphill, and it is not a ridable gradient. We have to push our bikes for some 30 minutes and gain some further 200 meters in elevation.
After this section we officially enter the beautiful Stelvio National Park. Now it is mostly uphill, slowly climbing the last 300 meters along the single track leading us to Rifugio Bozzi, at 2400 meters.
We get to the Refugio bang on time. We had planned to stop for a quick pasta and a glass of wine, but some dodgy clouds are starting to close in, so we decide to skip the stop and just keep going.
The tallest point of our day is now within reach: the Forcella Montozzo lies at 2664 meters and separates Lombardy from Trentino Alto Adige. During WWI it was an actual border between Italy and Austria, a border that was full of trenches whose remains can still well be seen nowadays.
We finally get to the saddle point and..what a view!
However, there is no time to waste. The clouds are closing in fast, the wind has picked up remarkably and we can spot rain in the distance. We had luck so far with the weather, but now things are changing quickly and it looks like we will not have to wait until late afternoon for the thunderstorms to come! We take two minutes to swallow our sandwiches and energy bars, and off we go! This is definitely not the place we want to be when it will start thundering, so we just let go of the brakes and go full throttle!
The descent is pure adrenaline. Partly because of the approaching thunderstorm, partly because it is just damned fun, we shred as fast as we can and give no break to our hands, legs and arms, stopping just to take a few quick photos. We encounter a few hikers along the way…I really would have not wanted to be in their shoes up there, with no shelter, when the lightnings began to strike!
Finally we are in the forest! We are still rather high up, probably 1800 meters, but at least we have the trees sheltering us from the rain and lightnings!
Once deep in the woods, the worst has passed…and just in time! Soon after entering the forest, a few loud thunders opened the sky for a massive downpour. Just the time to wear our raincovers and coats to limit the damage, and in no time we are soaked wet.
From this moment onwards there is no picture to witness the trail, which is gorgeous despite of the rain. The single track is flowy but doesn’t lack rocks, roots and corners, and proves to be challenging when ridden at speed!
We finally get to the town of Pejo Fonte, and we find shelter from the showering rain below a roof. This is a typical summer storm, so after one hour the sun is shining again and we can hit the road. From here, a long and enjoyable cycling track takes us back to our car…mission accomplished!
Maps and Stats
Max elevation: 2597 m
Total climbing: 1223 m
Video
Relive ‘Tonale – Rif. Bozzi – forcella di Montozzo – Lago Pian Palù – fonti di Pejo’