Trans-Altarezia Bike

The starting point of this bike tour is the municipality of Samnaun at 1800 m above sea level at the easternmost end of Switzerland. The first part of the tour is characterized by wild high valleys in the Austrian-Swiss border area. The Val Sinestra, which was voted Landscape of the Year in 2011, and the typical Engadine village of Sent are the highlights of the first stage. The further course on historic border and smugglers' paths through the Val d'Uina with the spectacular rock path leads first to Italy to the upper Vinschgau and back on Swiss soil to the Biosfera Val Müstair.

From Sta. Maria it goes over the Umbrail Pass to Italy, where the single trail to the Bocchetta di Forcola begins. In the rugged high mountain landscape, witnesses of the 1st World War can be found in the form of trenches, fortifications and remains of dwellings. A century of Swiss, Austrians and Italians faced each other here without ever any acts of war. The warpaths of that time have been transformed into attractive bike routes. From the Valle di Cancano to Arnoga, the testimonies of another era are visible: that of electricity production by hydropower.

With the ascent through the Italian Val Viola, you reach the border pass da Val Viola. On the other side are several mountain lakes of incomparable beauty. We continue through the Val da Camp down to Valposchiavo.

The last stage leads to San Romerio. The oldest part of the little church there dates back to the 11th century. The following descent down to the border village of Viano leads over gravel and asphalt roads. After the border crossing, you dive into the vineyards above Tirano. The landscape and the settlements leave no doubt that we have arrived here on the south side of the Alps.