Monte Piper

The Monte Piper in Val Dogna is an alpine, epic MTB tour that has a lot to offer in terms of riding technique and requires alpine experience and surefootedness in the ridge crossing area.

Description

The route starts in the heart of Val Dogna at the small hamlet of Chiout. Idyllic and far away from any hustle and bustle and civilization, you pedal steadily inwards along an old military road, past positions from the First and Second World Wars, past the Spadovai plan, up the hairpin bends and finally steadily uphill at the junction of the carrying point. Up to this point, the tour was relatively relaxed and idyllic. However, this changes. You now push and carry your bike up a steep mountain path to Monte Piper. A whopping 700 meters in altitude have to be mastered in this manner and, especially in the summer months, a high temperature is to be expected due to the mountain pines. Passing countless military buildings, you finally almost reach the summit, but the last few meters are only relevant on foot and should definitely be taken in order to reach the summit. A magnificent mountain panorama in a class of its own is on offer.

The descent is also in a class of its own. Different levels of difficulty from S2 to S4 are to be mastered. At times, the tour is very alpine and exposed and requires some experience. In the lower section you come to the traverse towards Due Pizzi/ Cima Vildiver. This is relatively easy to manage, but in the intermediate section there is a section secured by ropes. Again, alpine experience is recommended here, as the section can be very washed out, especially after heavy rainfall and weather conditions. Finally, you end up below the crest of Due Pizzi/Cima Alta and follow a fantastic military trail from the First World War with difficulty levels S1 to S2 down to the Plan di Spadovai. Then take the old military road towards the gallery and turn left here. Here the route continues along World War I infrastructure, with two significant crossings at the start that can only be negotiated by pushing. Once in Pleziche, the route continues with a counter-climb to Chiout, thus completing the loop.

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