After finishing the previous six-day bike tour with Breaking Away, Mary and I returned to the Novotel Malpensa in Cardano al Campo near the Milan Malpensa airport. We spent three nights there and biked on our own for three layover days. We then did this second bike tour with Breaking Away for the next seven days in July 2011. The first five days were in the Dolomite Alps, while the last two days were in the higher Alps of Italy further west. We biked 90 miles on our layover days and 352 miles with 45,300 ft of climbing during the tour. There were 11 guests in total plus four guides: Greg and Teri Hogan, Glen Allen, and Oleg Bozhor.
Here is the itinerary for the tour.
Day -2 (Friday, July 1): On our first layover day we do a longer ride along the Canale Naviglio Grande than we did before the previous tour. We bike 45 miles.
Day -1 (Saturday, July2): We have saddle sores and bike only 10 miles from Cardano al Campo to Femo and back. For extra exercise, we run 5 miles and swim 400 m.
Day 0 (Sunday, July 3): We go back to the Canale Naviglio Grande and bike the opposite way alongside the Fiume Ticino. We bike 40 miles and run 5 miles. Mary does a 400-m bonus swim.
Day 1 (Monday, July 4): Take a long shuttle to Levico Terme. Then bike 47 miles with 4,000 ft of climbing to finish at Albergo Antico in Bellamonte.
Day 2 (Tuesday, July 5): Bike over Passo Rolle (1,984 m) and Passo Cereda (1,369 m) to finish at Sporthotel Europa in Alleghe, where we spend three nights. We bike 55 miles with 6,500 ft of climbing.
Day 3 (Wednesday, July 6): Bike the Grande Strada della Dolomiti, a big loop over five passes: Passo Falzarego (2,105 m), Passo Valparola (2,192 m), Passo Gardena (2,136 m), Passo Sella (2,240 m), and Passo Pordoi (2,239 m)! The first two passes are right next to each other. We bike 68 miles with 9,000 ft of climbing.
Day 4 (Thursday, July 7): Bike most of the Alleghe Sud loop over Passo Duran (1,605 m) and Passo Staulanza (1,773 m) with an out-and-back to Passo Giau (2,236 m). We shuttle a downhill stretch because the road is wet. We bike 55 miles with 10,000 ft of climbing!
Day 5 (Friday, July 8): Bike through the Sottoguda gorge, over Passo Fedaia (2,054 m), and over Passo Costalunga (1,752 m) to finish at Hotel Stiegl-Scala in Bolzano. We bike 51 miles with 5,000 ft of climbing and swim 400 m afterward.
Day 6 (Saturday, July 9): Do a long shuttle to Lasa. Then bike 42 switchbacks up the 6,200-ft climb to Passo dello Stelvio (2,760 m or 9,055 ft), the second highest paved pass in the Alps! We finish the day with a long downhill to Bormio, after 35 miles of biking with 6,200 ft of climbing.
Day 7 (Sunday, July 10): Bike one more big climb over Passo Gavia (2,652 m) to finish in Edolo after 41 miles of biking with 4,600 ft of climbing. Do a long shuttle back to Novotel Malpensa in Cardano al Campo to end the tour after 17 successive days of biking in Italy and Switzerland!
Photos and commentary follow.
Day 2: Tuesday, July 5. We get our first views of the spectacular Dolomite Alps! 
We bike over Passo Rolle. 
Then we go down a twisty descent through this ski resort. 
Seven very fit bikers pose at the top of Passo Cereda, our second pass of the day. 
We have lunch at this inn at the pass. 
After we go down another twisty descent, Mary enjoys a flat ride along a valley road. 
We bike around this tunnel via the bypass to the right. 
Mary does one last climb for the day. 
We spend the first of three nights at Sporthotel Europa in Alleghe.
Day 3: Wednesday, July 6. Soon after we start biking, we come to this complicated road junction. We take the road to Passo Falzarego. 
Mary nears the final switchbacks below the top of the pass. 
Mary is just below the pass with the glacier-topped Marmolada in the distance. 
We summit Passo Falzarego, the first of five passes on this epic day of biking! 
After only another mile, we go over Passo Valparola. 
We enjoy a long descent and then begin climbing again as we near La Villa. 
We have lunch in Corvara, the town far below, and then climb these switchbacks to Passo Gardena. 
Mary does a little extra climbing to stand by the sign at the top of the pass. 
The view down the other side is spectacular! 
Mary descends the other side. 
Then we climb again and are treated to this view of the Marmolada. With an elevation of 10,968 ft, it is the highest peak in the Dolomite Alps. 
We summit Passo Sella. 
And then we go over Passo Pordoi, the fifth pass of the day! 
We have a long, long descent to get back to Alleghe in the valley below. This has been our most incredible day of biking!
Day 4: Thursday, July 7. Mary climbs Passo Duran. 
We make it to the top. 
We go down a twisty descent and then summit the higher Passo Staulanza. The road ahead is wet, so we shuttle to the start of the next climb. 
We get on our bikes again at the start of the climb to Passo Giau. 
Mary nears the top of the pass. 
We celebrate reaching the top of our third pass of the day!
Day 5: Friday, July 8. We go right at this road junction through the Serrai di Sottoguda. It is a narrow gorge that is only open to bikers and hikers. 
Mary bikes through the gorge. 
We rejoin the road for cars on the other side and climb to the top of Passo Fedaia. The grade is 13% near the top. 
Our second pass of the day is Passo Costalunga. 
We finish our ride with a long descent into Bolzano, the largest city in South Tyrol. This is the main square. 
Mary checks out the fruit and vegetables in this open-air market.
Day 6: Saturday, July 9. Mary starts the long, 6,200-ft climb up Passo dello Stelvio! 
We pass this picturesque church. 
Mary pedals higher on one of the many switchbacks. 
As we near the top, we see these switchbacks dotted with bikers below. 
We savor the top of Passo dello Stelvio! 
Going down the switchbacks on the other side is a real treat. We use care going through the dark tunnels further down. 
We spend the night at Hotel San Lorenzo in Bormio.
Day 7: Sunday, July 10. We get an early start on our bikes to climb Passo Gavia before a local race does the same climb. 
The motorcycle escort for the lead racers catches Mary. Spectators cheer us on along the way 🙂 
Mary nears the summit of this big climb. 
We enjoy our last summit of the tour. We then do a long downhill ride to Edolo where we finish our incredible 17 successive days of biking in Italy and Switzerland!
Wayne Pfeiffer 