Sometimes nothing can stop you, but sometimes there is really a barrier that prevents you from reaching the top.
Back in june 2014 I was effectively stopped by nature on 1,5km from the top of the unpaved Passi di Gola (Klammjoch), which connects Italy and Austria. By nature I mean SNOW blocking the road ! It was frustating because this climb had been a thrill so far. A short description of this climb that demands some severe labour on the pedals.
Starting in the village of Campo Tures the road immediately goes brutally up with passages up to 17%
But luckily you can enjoy some really nice views like this one:
About 1,5km after leaving the final village Riva di Tures the route becomes a dirtroad, starting from the parking where mostly hikers leave their car to walk further. The view becomes more and more spectacular and slowly the first snow is appearing
The climb on this dirtroad becomes more and more difficult with grades around 10%. Some people quit earlier then others haha:
And than the snow appeared for real. Suddenly it became clear to me that a 'clear passage' over the top was out of the question, I went further up, on my bike and on foot, but finally I was stuck ! So close so near to the top but alas.
Maybe in the future I will return to the Passo di Gola and finish it off properly !
Finally the grades of this climb:
km 1 8,0% / km 2 11,1% / km 3 6,8% / km 4 11,3% / km 5 13,9% / km 6 10,5% / km 7 10,2% / km 8 3,0% / km 9 1,0% / km 10 7,0% / km 11 7,5% / km 12 5,5% / km 13 (start of the ‘sterrata’ unpaved road) 7,6% / km 14 5,6% / km 15 7,7% / km 16 10,4% / km 17 12,6% / km 18 12,0% (here I had to stop) / km 19 12,6%
You can find the location of the climb here: 46.984043, 12.132348 (just copy/paste into google maps)
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