Austria (all)

Several cycling travel stories and detailed descriptions with profiles of 17 of the most beautiful climbs in 7 different European countries.

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A huge collection of altitude profiles of cols and climbs.

Extensive data about Patrick's extensive tours in the Alps from 1991 to 2005: includes reports, maps, diagrams... a must-see for the Alpine cyclist. Contains a list of passes in the Alps and the Jura, true stories about cycling, and some pictures.

Jobst's 1960 tour started and ended in Tuscany. The Net was not in place yet, so the report had to wait...

Well, there's a first time for everybody, and Jobst too had to discover the Alps once. If you are looking for the inspiration to do it yourself, just go ahead and read this glorious report.

I had asked Mr Cinelli what the greatest road in the Alps was, to which he replied without hesitation, the Stelvio, but that I might not like it because it was unpaved. That especially caught my interest so here I was heading up the Valtellina at Tirano where the road to the foot of this great pass starts its climb.

I arrived in Bormio at 3:30 and decided to go to the top in beautiful afternoon sunshine. After a snack at the store I headed up the road that ran out of pavement at the city limit and became a coarse gravel and grey powdery road that, with a little rain, was pretty solid. I discovered that standing up easily caused wheel spin, so I pulled my straps tight and worked on a smooth stroke to keep traction.

Farther up the Braulio canyon the road went through several tunnels for avalanche and rockfall protection. These stone arch tunnels wind along the wall with ventilation holes near the floor that give a little light, and because they are not straight, I could only see where I was going from reflections from the wet floor. Everything was dripping and water rushed in drains under the walls. The amazing part is that these are one lane tunnels in which uphill traffic has the right of way, as is common here. Therefore, downhill drivers had to assess when to enter by watching what went in from below, something that is possible from the lay of the land.

I was discovering why Pirelli named their top racing car tire the Stelvio. This has a special meaning to people who know this road. At the end of the Braulio canyon the road goes up a wall in a series of traverses with tight hairpins to reach the upper Braulio Valley at Bocca di Braulio, that ends at a ridge over which the Umbrail pass from Switzerland joins the Stelvio, about three kilometers below the summit.

Alpencross-Bericht einer Mountainbike-Extremtour von Oberstdorf zum Gardasee, 7 Tage (davon 4 Regentage)/440km/14000 Höhenmeter.

Alpencross Bericht einer Mountainbike-Extremtour von Oberstdorf zum Gardasee, 7 Tage (davon 4 Regentage)/440km/14000 Höhenmeter.

Photos and reports of transalp mountain bike tours from Bavaria to Italy. Alpine traverses between Oberstdorf and Lake Como and Tegernsee and Lake Garda.

An excellent report, also from a technical point of view.

an excellent collection of mountain bike routes by the Landesforstdirektion Tirol - Landschaftsdienst.

Jamtalhütte, Piz Puin, Inneres Bergle, Heilbronner Hütte, die Greitspitz, Silvretta-Skigebiet: six mountainbike tours with pictures.

The Bike \& Board site has the following goal: ``Das wollen wir mitteilen: in den Bergen gibt es viel mehr für die Seele als man denkt. Geht in die Berge und respektiert sie, seid wach und nehmt nach Hause ein Erlebnis mit, das dem Leben mehr Sinn geben kann.'' Among the mountain bike trail descriptions in Germany, Austria and Italy: Lagorai/Latemar (in German and in Italian), and Transalp 2000 (in German): an Alpine crossing from Germany to Italy.

A mountain bike ride from Mittenwald to Bolzano/Bozen in five days

This site has a number of excellent tour descriptions at all levels in Austria, with maps and useful practical information.

A massive travel site, this guy has been everywhere.

Hier finden sich einige deutschsprachige Reiseberichte von Fahrradtouren, die hoffentlich unterhaltsam und informativ sind, aber auch vielleicht die eine oder andere Anregung für Leute geben, die selber einmal so etwas machen wollen. Für englischsprachige Radtourenberichte habe ich hier auch einen Anfang gemacht, ebenso für schwedischsprachige Radtourenberichte, wobei noch ein bißchen auf norwegisch und dänisch dabei ist, aber diese drei skaninavischen Sprachen sind so ähnlich, daß man entweder alle drei ein bißchen lesen kann oder eben keine davon.

An enormous collection of bicycle tours all over the world.
Eine enorme Sammlung von Fahrradtouren in der ganzen Welt.

A large list of cycle tours, 30 at the last count. Most are in Germany, but others go all over central and northern Europe. See the overview page. English translations are available for all pages.

[The author travels around the world and reviews hostels, and has built up a large hostel directory.]

What are hostels?

The quickest answer I can give to you is that hostels are budget accommodations where you share a room with other travelers. To be more specific though and to give you a better idea of what to expect I will say that a hostel room is like a hotel room but instead of being just one bed there are a couple (or a few) bunk beds. There are also (gasp!) other people. People you do not know! These other people are travelers who are most likely very much like you in the sense that they are exploring and traveling and doing it as absolutely cheaply as possible. Hostels have been around a long long time. There are over 20,000 of them around the world. Hostels are very much a part of the culture of Europe, and are starting to be known in the USA as well. Hostels are a cheaper way of staying in a city where you do not live.

A Web site devoted to the challenges of getting you and your bicycle on a train and to your destination in Germany, Austria, and the Czech Republic. Specific ``how-tos,'' detailed photos, hints and tips, useful links, etc.

Walk, bike or ride along the undiscovered byways of Bohemia and Moravia and help preserve the natural and architectural heritage of the region. Visit Central Europe's greatest treasures: Prague and Vienna.

The Prague-Vienna Greenways is a network of 100-year-old hiking trails between Prague and Vienna. Travelers can walk or bike between historic towns and villages, visit romantic castles, medieval churches and monasteries, discover old Jewish sites and savor some of the most picturesque countryside in Europe.

The routes stretch 250 miles along the Dyje River Valley in Southern Moravia and the Vltava River Valley in Southern Bohemia, the settings of numerous folk and music festivals. The new wine trails connect Moravia with the Austrian wine region Weinviertel on the way to Vienna.