Wed, 8 July 2015
Minimum altitude: 192 meters
Distance: 59 km
Slope Aspect: South-West
Vertical Climbed: 1,778 meters (5,834 feet)
Vertical Descended: 1,778 meters
This loop divides naturally into three sections, beginning with the long climb from Intra through Bee and Premeno towards Piancavallo.A steep switchback descent to Aurano then a fast winding valley ride back to Intra and beyond.
From Intra, the road climbs through a series of hairpins to the village of Bee, then continues towards Premeno and Piancavallo. It is a wide road with some traffic and is not excessively steep, averaging less than 7%, although the gradient is far from uniform and there are some ramps of over 10%.
Today it was cold and foggy on the climb. Strange for the 8th of July, perhaps, but fairly typical of early morning weather around Lake Maggiore.
Above Premeno, the road passes beneath the little Pian di Sole ski area on the slopes of Sasso Corbè. The lifts were still operating when I rode through in 2015, but the area closed a couple of years later and has since been dismantled, another low-altitude Alpine ski area affected by increasingly unreliable winters. The old pistes are still clearly visible.
There is also a Via Panoramica which may make a more interesting alternative to the main road, which largely bypasses Premeno before arriving at Pian di Sole.
Beyond Piancavallo the road descends slightly before climbing again, gaining around 385 metres at close to 10% average towards the high ground below Monte Piancompra, which reaches 1,307 metres. At the junction near the top there are extensive views over Lake Maggiore.
From here the route crosses the Alpe Segletta area before beginning the descent towards Aurano. The road becomes progressively steeper, dropping through a spectacular series of switchbacks with villages clinging to the mountainsides. It is a great descent, although some care is needed with oncoming cars.
The Alpe Segletta climb from the Aurano side was used by the Giro d’Italia in 1992. The road is extremely steep in places, something that is much more obvious when riding it in the opposite direction. The route also passes close to the Lake Maggiore Zipline, which is heavily advertised around the valley.
The area returned to the Giro in 2015, although on a different route. Stage 18 finished in Verbania on 28 May 2015 after climbing Monte Ologno from Cannero Riviera, officially 10.4 km at around 9%. The race then crossed the high ground around Piancavallo before descending towards Verbania. Philippe Gilbert won the stage, while Alberto Contador attacked his general-classification rivals on Monte Ologno.
After Aurano you are in the Valle Intrasca, where the road follows a long false-flat descent towards the lake. There are several interesting climbs branching off on the right-hand side of the valley for anyone wanting to explore the area further.
The road eventually arrives at Trobaso, where a short hog's-back climb through Bieno brings you back towards Fondo Toce. This final section is quite busy compared with the quieter roads higher in the mountains.
Foggy in the morning clearing up during the morning
