Sasso del Ferro as seen from Mount Cargiago

The starting location of this tour is Laveno. Look for a hiking sign that reads "Vararo" in the northern part of town. This road gives out words of warning right away, climbing abruptly between the last houses of Laveno. And this is just a foreword: the rest of the way is all made with the same mould, with a gradient always around 20%. Here distances are measured in centimeters, and seconds last for hours. After one hundred and fifty thousand centimeters (more or less one and a half kilometers) the paved road will turn into a gravel road, but the slope won't get any gentler. After one other hellish kilometer you'll reach Casere (760 m), where a bifurcation finally gives you a good excuse to stop and drop exhausted.

Nice view over Laveno from Poggio S. Elsa

After taking breath, turn right into a tough fire road. The gradient is still the same as before, but now the flooring is made of big pebbles and rocks that emerge from the dirt. Some sections are a little less steep, allowing dim hopes of clemency, but then the road rears up even more than before, like it wanted to make up for the lost ground. Furthermore humidity and dead leaves on the road make up a poisonous cocktail that put in deep troubles even the most skilled bikers. Here pedaling means finding the perfect balance between traction and capsizing. In some places (or more than some, depending on your skills) you'll thus be compelled to dismount and walk.

Just under the summit there is a glade (Poggio S. Elsa) with an hotel, which also includes the upper station of the cableway. Both from Poggio S. Elsa and from the summit the view is nice, even if it's relatively limited by the woods.

To get back to Laveno you'll sadly have to ride down the same road you just climbed, as there isn't any interesting alternative. To be honest this descent isn't particularly interesting as well, but you'll have to go back one way or the other. In a few minutes the energy that you have patiently build up on the climb will be wasted to warm up the rims or the disc brakes, but still the awareness of having climbed a very tough road will remain.