The climb to Alpe di Trecciura on a technical single-track

The ascent to Alpe di Trecciura begins in Vira, following the cement road that goes towards Alpe di Neggia. After riding around many nice houses, you gradually enter the woods. The road is relatively steep up to Monti di Fosano, where an easier section will allow you to take breath. After a long transverse section you start climbing steeply again, but at 980 m above sea level (at the 3rd U-turn) you'll have to leave the cement road to follow the path that leads to Alpe di Trecciura (follow the yellow hiking signs). At first the path is pretty rough and only partly rideable, furthermore there are some dangerous sections on the edge of precipices, where you should rather walk to avoid falls. After crossing a few creeks you'll start climbing again, and the path will become more and more rideable up to Alpe di Trecciura.

View from Alpe di Trecciura on Locarno

Here begins the smooth descent to Monti di Vira. After the first technical section you'll enter the woods, and you'll put your wheels on a nice and fast single-track. After a few U-turns you'll get to another dangerous section where you'll have to take extreme care because the path is narrow and the mountain is steep. After this section you can speed up again, and in a few minutes you'll reach Monti di Vira.

A few cabins at Monti di Vira

The pastures of Monti di Vira are very wide, and the single-track gently winds through the cabins and the trees. Below the monti you'll get to a bifurcation. The path on the right leads to Monti di Vira di Sotto, a small natural terrace that is worth a visit. To go down to Magadino however you'll need to go on the left (follow the signs to Corognola).

Monti di Vira di Sotto

This single track is still relatively smooth, but it offers some interesting technical sections. After a few U-turns you'll get to another bifurcation, where you'll have to head right, towards Piodascia. At the following bifurcation go on the right again, always following the signs to Piodascia. This way you'll shortly get to a cement road, but after riding down a couple of U-turns on it, you'll run into sentiero di Molina (marked by a blue sign), a path that will take you down to the lake. Follow this path always straight down, ignoring the lateral bifurcations, and you'll get on a wide single-track covered with pebbles, that will take you down to the church of Magadino. From there on you can follow the small road that starts behind the church and will quickly bring you to the lake. Once you've reached the main road, you'll need just a few more turns of the pedals to go back to Vira.