Bob on BAC Trans Alps 2008

Please visit August 29 slideshow

Church in Agordo

Our start today was much easier than the previous two days. We left the ski town of Alleghe at 8:40, rode beside its lake for a couple of kms on the main road, and then branched off onto a secondary road. We followed the river that came out of the lake downhill for another 18 kms for a descent of 1100 feet. We had to ride on the main highway for very short stretches, but our main route was away from cars, busses and motorcycles. It was very peaceful and quiet.

After we went through the town of Agordo, we branched off of the main road again and began a 1250 foot climb in 5 miles. This climb was very gradual and had many switchbacks. We had shade most of the way which was becoming valuable. We went through a few small villages and finally reached the top and rode along the ridge for a couple of miles.

Tunnels along the Mis River

We reached the bottom of the Mis Valley after a steep descent of 7 miles and 1700 feet. Here we started riding along the Mis River. There were hardly any cars on the narrow road. We passed through a series of ten short, unlit tunnels carved under the cliffs alongside the road. One long tunnel had a curve in it so light wasn't showing from the end. It turned pitch black and I had to stop until the headlights from a car coming from the other direction gave me enough illumination to ride forward out the end of the tunnel.

The narrow valley finally ended at a dam where people were picnicking and fishing. We passed through the villages of Mis and Mas and had several short climbs and descents into Belluno. The directions to our hotel were complex. We met several riders in our group at the outskirts of Belluno, so we all were able to share our navigational skills to get to the Albergo Capello e Cadore.

After showering, Jeff and I wandered around the hotel's vicinity trying to find a pizzeria for lunch. Ironically, we found one next door to our hotel. Other riders in our group were also eating there. We each had a beer and whole pizza. The wood-fired pizzas were large, but the thin crust made them lighter than most US pizzas.

Old buildings in Belluno

After a short nap, we did some more city wandering. Jeff took pictures of the old buildings. The city was not very impressive in terms of old buildings and churches. There were very few people in the streets and almost no traffic.

Dinner was on our own tonight. We ate in La Taverna, a nice restaurant in an old timbered building. We shared bruschetta and white beans for appetizers. Jeff had thin noodles with a pesto sauce for his main course while I had flat noodles with a ragu sauce. Desert for Jeff was tiramisu. Mine was panna cotta with chocolate sauce. Everything was good except the soggy bruschetta - the tomatoes were too juicy.