Monte Baldo (South side)
Distance: 36.74 km
Elevation Gain: 1657 m
Elevation Loss: 153 m
Difficulty:
1412 (Very Hard)
FIETS Index: 7.30 FIETS
Avg Grade: 4.16 %
Max cat climb: HC
Min elevation: 101 m
Max elevation: 1614 m
Ride Category:
Epic Climb
Monte Baldo is the long ridge between Lake Garda and the Adige valley in northern Italy. It is known as the ‘Garden of Europe’ for its flora, and the botanist Francesco Calzolari described the mountain as early as 1566. Its southern road climbs from the hills behind Lake Garda to the high ridge road, across the old border between Italy and Austria-Hungary.
This ride starts near Lazise and climbs through Caprino Veronese. Higher up, the road passes above the Madonna della Corona, a sanctuary built into the cliff over the Adige valley. From Ferrara di Monte Baldo, Alpini of the Verona battalion crossed the border into Austria-Hungary on the day Italy entered the First World War, in May 1915, and the village became a supply hub for the front. After the Novezzina botanical garden, devoted to the mountain’s native plants, the steepest part of the climb follows the supply road General Andrea Graziani had built for the front, up onto the ridge below Cima Valdritta.
