Day 1: Friedrichshafen (D) - Dornbirn (AT)
After the official welcome and tour briefing, the participants set off on the route in their teams. From our starting point in Friedrichshafen on Lake Constance, we first roll comfortably on the Lake Constance cycle path along Germany's largest lake. We pass through charming lakeside villages and reach Lindau, where a short detour to the beautiful peninsula with harbor promenade is definitely worth it. Back on the mostly busy lakeside cycle path, we cross the border to Austria a short time later. We continue along the lakeshore to Bregenz with its impressive opera lake stage and great waterfront promenade. Behind Bregenz, the route takes us directly over the river Rhine, which is still very narrow here and which, constrained by dams and channeled, finds its way into the nearby lake. A little later we come across the untamed Old Rhine, which we follow to Gaißau and cross the river into Switzerland. Now we head into the Appenzell hills and now we feel the Transalp feeling for the first time. However, the approximately 250 meters in altitude shouldn't pose any major challenges to anyone and it quickly turns back down into the wide Rhine Valley. We follow the river for a while before we say goodbye to it for the day and reach our destination in Dornbirn.
Track 2: Behind Lindau we turn into the back country and after a trip through the hills we reach Bregenz's local mountain, the 1064 m high Pfänder, with a fantastic view over Lake Constance. After a rapid and winding descent we re-join track 1 near Bregenz.
Day 2: Dornbirn (AT) - Davos (CH)
The first part of the stage takes us along the river Rhine again. Sometimes we cycle on the Austrian side, sometimes on Swiss territory and finally we cycle through Liechtenstein. Vaduz, the capital of the principality, is an ideal place for a sightseeing and coffee stop today. After we have left Liechtenstein, the first little challenge of the day is the Luzisteig. At Maienfeld we pass the Heidi Village, a great opportunity to take another break and experience our childhood heroes up close. We now meet the Landquart River and the second, more demanding part of the stage starts. We now pedal continuously up the river up to an altitude of 1600 meters. Via the well-known ski resort of Klosters we finally reach Davos, our destination for today.
Track 2: We bypass the capital of Liechtenstein and instead climb high up to Triesenberg, from where we can enjoy a fantastic view into the Rhine Valley. A winding descent takes us back down into the valley, where we meet track 1.
Day 3: Davos (CH) - Chiavenna (IT)
The third day holds the queen stage for Track 1. From Davos we first cycle along the Landwasser river. Unfortunately, on the way we have to cycle through the 2.7 km (!!) long Landwasser Tunnel. Good front and rear lights are essential for safety reasons! Fortunately, we enter the tunnel downhill, so we don't have to stay there any longer than necessary. Behind the tunnel we reach Filisur, which is the gateway to the Albula Pass. Now it goes continuously, sometimes with quite a decent gradient, uphill to the top of the pass at 2315 m, which marks the highest point of the journey. Again and again we see the magnificent railway viaducts, which allows to cross this mountain thanks to the technical and architectural masterpieces of the Rhaetian Railway. You can replenish your energy reserves in the mountain inn at the top of the pass before setting off on a rapid descent down into the Engadine. We now cycline along the river Inn and reach St. Moritz. Anyone who feels like shopping will definitely find what they are looking for here and since we no longer have to climb a mountain, the additional weight doesn't necessarily bother us. At Silvaplana we pass several beautiful lakes that are often frequented by kite surfers. Now we reach the well-known Maloja Pass, which is almost impossible to recognize as such from this side and has no relevant gradient. The (very long) way down into the valley initially takes us through many serpentines before the route becomes a little less steep and less curvy. But here too we can continue to let the wheels roll almost by itself. About 10 km before our destination for the day we cross the border into Italy and now almost arrived.
There is no separate track 2 today!
Day 4: Chiavenna (IT) - Barzano (IT)
We roll through the now ever-widening valley towards Lake Como. We cycle comfortably on the cycle path that accompanies the Mera River. At Collico the time has come, Lake Como comes into view and lies before us in all its beauty. We pedal along the road on the east side of the lake, where traffic is to be expected. At Varenna we take the ferry to Bellagio, which lies on an extensive peninsula in the lake. It's a great place to have a coffee on the harbor promenade before we set off for the last part of the tour. Behind Bellagio we climb into the mountains one last time and suddenly the Madonna del Ghisallo chapel is in front of us. This chapel, dedicated to cycling, should definitely be visited before we set off through the hilly hinterland of Brianza to our tour destination in Barzano.
Track 2: Behind the Ghisallo pass we reach the village of Sormano via numerous hairpin bends, which gives its name to the infamous Muro del Sormano. If you still have enough energy saved, you can tackle this ultimate challenge on a car-free route with an average gradient of 17% and a maximum of 25% over 1.7 km. The actual track leads around the outside of the regular country road and is significantly less steep. After the descent to the lakeshore near Nesso, we cycle on the lakeside road to Como and, with a few final hills, continue through Brianza to our tour destination.
Day 6: Barzano (IT) - Friedrichshafen (D)
After breakfast the shuttle bus will bring the participants and their bikes back to the tourstart location in Friedrichshafen.
