Reports by Andreas Caranti

A nice little valley in Südtirol.

I stop to open a gate, a recurring event here, and start the final climb to the top. Some short walls, with rather uneven road-bed, force me to dab now and then, but soon I'm on top, at about 2200m, after a 1000m gain. The view of the Dolomites, unimpeded in all directions, is really magnificent. I skip the pleasure of Südtiroler cuisine at the hut, and begin the descent. It will be a 2000m drop from here to Bolzano/Bozen.

What do you do if you have just two or three hours free for a ride? Well, if you live in Trento, your favourite choice is probably the small range of Marzola, which reaches 1738m (5702ft).

One of my favourite training rides. A fast downhill section becomes steeper and trickier when I meet deep, stone-ridden sand. It's worthwhile to slow down, or stop altogether, to take a look at the simple but really nice landscape around here, that will be missed at speed. Vineyards with the colors of autumn, little streams, small valleys that let you feel you are away from the world. And the town is just over there, behind a rocky hill.

At 1872m I find ice on the road, no problem though in negotiating it. I then get to the alpine pass Passo degli Oclini/Jochgrimm, at 1989m. It's full of hikers up here, and with good reason. The view on the twin peaks of Corno Bianco [White Horn] and Corno Nero/Schwarzhorn (Black Horn) is great, and looking to the South you think you could touch Latemar and Catinaccio[/Rosengarten].

A general introduction to this prime area for mountain biking. (This was the first report ever to be posted on the Trento Bike Pages.)

One of my favourite trails, with a great singletrack section. The single track is really beautiful. It goes through a very varied terrain, slightly desolate at the start, then surrounded by sparse trees. A particularly nice spot occurs when crossing a creek near to a ``malga'', a wooden Alpine hut. At a couple of rough spots I prefer to walk for a few meters, so I have a chance for looking at the scenery. On such technical tracks I should really remember to stop every now and then anyway, to avoid the risk of looking only at the trail in front of me in search of the best path, and missing the scenery entirely.