Cycle Tour Veneto – Tyrol – Swabia

The weather forecast predicted a rainy day. So we put on our rain gear right away.

In Pieve, we cycle 50 meters downhill from the town center to the start of the cycle path. By then, we're already quite wet.

The cycle path is paved and, as a former railway line, mostly flat. Between Tai and Valle di Cadore, there's a detour due to the construction of the bypass road. Beyond this, we cycle briskly through Valle di Cadore, and then we cycle gently downhill.

At Vallesina, we pass the first tunnel. Beyond it, a wide view over the valley opens up. The rain takes a break.

From Vodo di Cadore, the gradient increases slightly. Unfortunately, there's little to see. The 3000-meter peaks around us are hidden in the clouds.

At Venas, we pass a collection of brightly painted old bicycles lined up along the side of the path.

Before Acquabona, the good quality of the trail ends. The route descends into the forest on a bumpy and slippery path. Then we climb back up to the road and after a few meters next to the SS51 we descend again. There we come to a construction site that blocks the cycle path. Water is spraying from a pipe. The excavator driver kindly holds his shovel over the water to avoid splashing us. But the meadow next to the excavator is flooded, and so we return to the trail with wet feet. At the next opportunity, we deviate from the route and cycle up onto the SS51 and continue along it. After 400 meters, we rejoin the route, which runs right next to the road here. And we have asphalt under our tires again. This makes the remaining five kilometers to Cortina easy to cycle. However, the rain has started again.

Wet and cooled down, we arrive in the center of Cortina. We lock up our bikes in front of a café and treat ourselves to a hot drink and a piece of cake.

Three kilometers beyond Cortina, the asphalt ends. We continue cycling through the forest on compacted pavement. After four kilometers, we pass through a tunnel. A recess in the ceiling was probably made for a smoke vent. Shortly afterward, we cross the Ponte sul Felizon. The railings of the bridge are covered with tarpaulins, making it impossible to see into the gorge below.

The route approaches the SS51 at the Refugio Ospitale. It starts to rain again.

A little later, we reach Lago de Rufiedo, which is beautiful to look at even in this miserable weather.

The Gemärk Pass marks the highest point of the day's stage at 1,540 meters above sea level. There, we cross the border between the province of Belluno and South Tyrol.

From now on, we cycle and roll downhill. It's very bumpy at times and occasionally a little slippery. A quick photo stop at Lake Dürrensee.

Unfortunately, there's not much to see at the Dreizinnenblick today.

At around 3:00 p.m., after almost six hours, we reach our hotel in Toblach. The bikes are stored in the ski room in the hotel basement. And we thoroughly enjoy the warm shower.