This little loop is short but sweet, with just enough hills in it to stretch the legs after your journey and introduce you to the terrain of the Veneto region.

This part of the Dolomiti Friulane isn’t as famous as some of the peaks nearby, but it’s a stunning place to ride a bike with plenty of challenging climbs and quiet roads to explore. Today’s loop involves four prolonged climbs, the shortest lasting for 4.2km and the longest just over 12km. We begin on rolling terrain, heading northeast to Lago di Santa Croce. Shortly after, the the first of our two main climbs begins, bringing us through the woods and meadows of the Val del Gat to the summit at Nevegal. From there, it’s a fast, technical descent in the direction of Belluno, but we’ll veer west before the city in favor of more fun in the mountains. Our second climb winds through bucolic farmland on quiet roads and includes several switchbacks as we ascent to the hamlet of Valmorel. With a little less than 30km to go, more undulating terrain takes us to Sant'Antonio Tortal, where a very fun descent to home awaits – including the iconic hairpins of the Passo San Boldo.

Aside from a couple of short hills, the opening 50km of this route is relatively flat until we reach the historic Passo San Boldo, one of the region’s most iconic mountain passes, connecting the province of Treviso to that of Belluno. Dating back to Roman times, the modern road is known as the "road of 100 days," because of the speed of its construction by Austrian troops during WWI.

The stunning cliff faces of Cinque Torri have stood as sentinels looking over the switchbacks that climb to the summit of Passo Giau for centuries. During the First World War the Italian and Austro-Hungarian soldiers battled each other and the elements for control of the strategically important mountains. These slopes have witnessed grand battles between Fausto Coppi and Gino Bartali, bore witness to the genius of Eddy Merckx and carried the late Marco Pantani to glory.

The climb up Passo Fedaia is one of the most popular summit finishes for the Giro d’Italia. From Caprile the climb is 14km long at an easy average grade of 7.5%. The climb is especially difficult when it pitches up to 18% after a few long days of riding. At the summit, beautiful Lago di Fedaia is perched on the northern flank of Marmolada, the highest peak in the Dolomites. After descending Passo Fedaia there is still a lot of work to do: Passo Sella and Passo Gardena await.

The Quattro Passi – Italian for Four Passes – of the Sella Ronda loop is one of the most popular rides in the Dolomites because it manages to cover four well-known climbs without being too difficult. We’ll tackle the Passo Gardena, Passo Sella, Passo Pordoi, and Passo Campolongo in 52km with 1,800m of climbing. No ride in this part of the world can be called “easy”, but compared to some of the brutes around here, you can look forward to a civilised, fun day on the bike with some incredible scenery.

This is our final morning together and after a leisurely breakfast, it will be time to say goodbye, or at least arrivederci, until we meet again. Transfers to the airport will be arranged by our hard-working crew but if you’re planning on staying a few extra days, let us know if we can help with reservations or a few recommendations.