Rose Pedals . . .: Il Gran Finale

Day 10 - Sunday, June 17
Pont Saint Martin Loop
48 Miles
5,100 feet of climbing

Alas, today is our last ride of the tour. Ten days goes by really fast in "bike" time - when essentially all you do is ride your bike, eat and sleep. It's a wonderfully simple existence. Today's ride was yet another velo extravaganza of challenging terrain, stunning scenery and great company. Our route today was a 47-mile loop ride north to the town of Gressoney-La-Trinité - a ski town with magnificent views of the Alps all the way. It was a long but nice 23+ mile climb. We rode through several quaint little towns. Because today is Sunday, we saw a number of hikers, walkers and other cyclists enjoying the beautiful and warm sunny day. We decided to do an extra little climb and continued through Gressoney-La Trinitè to Stelaf, where the road ended. We encountered a rather strong headwind on the way down, which caused us to really have to work for the descent (i.e., we actually had to pedal), which is fine with me because the slower you go on a descent, the more you get to see. Ended the day with another wonderful group dinner at the hotel.

Tomorrow we will leave the Italian Alps and, once again, become "flatlanders." I'm sure it will be an adjustment. I certainly will miss Italy - the great food, the bicycle-friendly roads, the gracious people and, of course, the great climbs and thrilling descents. Sure, there are a few things I maybe won't miss (such as the crazy electrical outlet situation, the phone-booth sized shower stalls and the conspicuous lack of peanut butter). By the same token, I'm sure there's a few things Italy won't miss about me, such as my horrendous pronunciation of the few Italian words I know. Nevertheless, biking in the Alps was both a challenge and a treat. As always, I loved getting on my bike everyday, and was further inspired by the views and the climbs. What a beautiful country. Arrivederci, Italy! Fino ad incontrare nuovamente . . .