The whole body says: STOP! But we are going to Innsbruck by bike
Last year I went bikepacking in South Tyrol with CYCLOsportive at the invitation of IDM Südtirol. Something immediately became clear to me, I have to share this with as many other adventurers as possible. And so this year the first South Tyrol Expedition was on the program. A very beautiful and difficult adventure in the Dolomites. With start and finish in Innsbruck, we traveled through the mountains for four days and slept in mountain huts at an altitude of 2300 meters. We had to walk for a while because it went up or down too steeply. Overcame material problems, but above all had a lot of fun! The story of day four.
Text & image: Gerrit Vermeulen
The descent is steep and my brakes are screaming. Not from pleasure.
All great adventures come to an end, and so does the South Tyrol Expedition. After spending two days in mountain huts at an altitude of over 2,000 meters, we now wake up in Hotel Sachsenklemme. We had nothing to complain about in the Pfitscherjochhaus and in the Dürrensteihütte. These mountain huts are basic, but equipped with all necessary amenities (shower, toilet, restaurant, bed). But spending the night at Hotel Sachsenklemme in Fortezza is a different story. Still, it's nice to experience a little more luxury after the mountain huts. And we earned it. We are at the start of day four. We now have more than 300 kilometers and almost 6,000 meters of elevation behind us. One more day of fun and we are back at Hotel Penz West in Innsbruck.
The body says: stop!
During dinner the day before, it became clear that the Expedition was starting to take its toll. Bob indicates that he does not want/cannot go any further. The body is empty and morale has dropped below freezing point. The problems with his bicycle are largely to blame for this. Although he also admits that he underestimated the South Tyrol Expedition. This bike packing adventure is for very well trained toughs. And I certainly don't want to say that Bob isn't a very well-trained tough guy. He is well trained and mentally strong. But he's encountered quite a bit in recent days. It's safe to say he took all the bad luck on himself. Was there a fall? Bob lay there. Was there a material problem? Then it was on Bob's bicycle. And yet this strong guy continued to fight. Respect! But there comes a time when body and mind agree with each other. FUSES!
We are going to Innsbruck by bike
Bob actually wants to take the train to Innsbruck. But that's not how we got married at CYCLOsportive. We all started this adventure together and we will all finish it together. I give Bob a number of options. 1 we get on the train together and cycle the last 40 km to Innsbruck. 2 we remove a tough gravel climb from the route and cycle the alternative route to Innsbruck together. 3 we cycle to Fortezza train station and put Bob on the train to Innsbruck. But arriving in Innsbruck by bike is of course the most beautiful end to our South Tyrol Expedition. After a night of sleep, Bob made a choice. It will be option 2. Bikkel!
Bob's choice means that the group is split in two. Pascal, Rick and Klaas-Jan take the route over the Brenner Grenzkamm. Bob and I ignore that one. It saves us a lot of height and unpaved meters. The best choice for Bob's body and bike. We can cycle with the entire group up to the Brenner Grenzkamm. The route follows a quiet cycle path with a view of the Brenner Pass. Not a bad view. When people say that this route is also very beautiful, I say that we already cycled here on the second day of our trip. “Huh? Are you serious?" Yes, only then we had the mountains at our backs. “Damn you're right!”
Smear for the church
Shortly after Vipiteno our paths part. That's why we decide to have a cup of coffee in the center of this cozy town. The town is more than worth a visit. The historic center is beautiful and the terraces are pleasantly full. And of course the coffee is more than good. After all, we are in Italy! When leaving the terrace, my eye falls on a participant of the trip (I will not mention his name). After being in the wilderness for a number of days, there is apparently no sign of any gene anymore. Four days of cycling, it does something to your body and mind. The area surrounding the libraries in particular is suffering heavily. Chamoise cream is the solution to care for and relieve this part of the body. But to take care of the bibs with this cream, in the middle of a busy shopping street, against a church, with your hand in your pants, is going a bit too far ;-). Fortunately, the unnamed participant just took the trouble to stand with his back to the shoppers.
Descend nine kilometers to Austria
After this smear scene we can get back on the road. The aforementioned three head towards the Brenner Grenzkamm and Bob and I drive quietly towards Brenner. The route is not difficult and goes upwards along a quiet cycle path until the border. Every now and then we leave the road to grab a piece of gravel. As soon as I hear the gravel crunching under my tires, the main road is immediately far away. How wonderful it is to be away from the hustle and bustle! At Brenner, Bob and I enjoy a plate of pasta before starting a long descent. We don't have to pedal a meter for more than 9 kilometers. Also nice after all those horrible altitude meters of the past few days. At Stafflach we duck under the railway line and reach another beautiful gravel road. Enjoy here! The descent was nice, but busy with motorcycles, cars and freight traffic. We are alone again on the gravel road.
My brakes are screaming
When we arrive in Mühlbachl, we have already covered almost 60 kilometers. Only 25 kilometers to go and then we are back where we started our adventure: Innsbruck. The fein is in the tail again today. From Mühlbachl we ascend over a distance of just a few kilometers from 1,000 to 1,220 meters in altitude. At the beginning of the climb we still cycle on asphalt. You might think that's nice, but here the asphalt goes vertically into the air. We can continue cycling, but we will have to wander up the road. Almost at the top the asphalt ends and the last few hundred meters we can enjoy an unpaved road again. To reach the top, Bob and I ignore a sign indicating that the top cannot be reached due to roadworks. We continue on, turning around and back is not an option. In the forest we indeed come across a large excavator. Fresh, tightened gravel behind the excavator. Our tires leave a mark in the newly renewed road surface. It doesn't seem to bother the road workers. The descent is steep and my brakes are screaming. Not from pleasure, the end of my brakes is near. Fortunately, they can still manage this descent. I don't really want to replace my brakes so close to Innsbruck. Just to be sure, I check my brakes. Remove my front wheel from the fork and briefly touch the brake disc. OUCH! It's hot! I should have known, of course. Fortunately, I see that the brake pads will last a while.
We made it!
It won't be long before we can say that we are the finisher of the South Tyrol Expedition! We continue our way in a descending line. The steep and long climb is behind us. On one of the small climbs just before Innsbruck we are overtaken by an older couple. They express their appreciation and respect for our fully loaded bicycles and apologize for their electric bicycles. We enter Innsbruck in full descent. Happy, tired and satisfied we cycle to Hotel Penz West. What a blissful feeling when I stand in the shower! A few hours later, Pascal, Rick and Klaas-Jan also arrive. The Brenner Grenzkamm was a killer climb and ditto descent. But they also enjoyed it. We made it!
• Read previously published reports about this day one, day two and day three.
Next year we will go on another expedition to South Tyrol. If you are enthusiastic about our adventures, register quickly for Expedition South Tyrol 2022. There is room for 6 participants. With two supervisors we will ensure that CYCLOsportive's journey runs smoothly!
