Following The Flight of The Earls- The Gotthard Pass

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I finally got over the Gotthard Pass this afternoon. It was tough going in places, but I managed most of it.

Amazingly at one point I managed to pass three cars and a horse driven carriage!

I was going slightly faster than the carriage and the drivers were biding their time to make their move. As they waited I sneaked past them on the inside. They graciously left enough space for me. I think I was doing a speedy 8 or 9 kilometres per hour at the time.

When I was behind the coach I had to bide my time as well. I didn't think I could keep up a sustained enough burst of speed to pass on the outside. A few yards later I made my move when the road on the inside widened to a parking area outside the Caffe Chico D'Oro.

I gave the horses as much space as I could, but reckoned they were well used to traffic and shouldn't get startled. Worked a treat. Then I had to stop for a rest!

Turns out this was also a rest point for the horses. The carriage pulled up beside me and the passengers disembarked for a break whilst the horses were washed down, fed and watered.

I could see hairpins above me now and wondered how I'd manage them. The road engineeers did a good job. The gradients were very manageable.

A few kilometres from the Pass bikes are directed onto an old cobbled road. I wondered was this the original road the Earls would have traveled in their coaches.

It was a welcome break from the steady stream of cars, camper vans, motorbikes and sports cars. I walked a little here just to enjoy the views.

I found myself at the pass quicker than I expected. I'd overestimated the distance by 2km, so it was a pleasant surprise to arrive at the sign, Gotthard Pass 2106m.

The little village was busy with day trippers on a beautiful sunny day.

I snapped the usual collection of tourist pictures and visited the little chapel mentioned in the Flight of the Earls. I hung around about an hour before heading downhill on the cobbles.

Just before I set off the carriage arrived. It was great to see it. A little flashback 400 years in my mind anyway.

If the climb was spectacular the descent was fantastic. The first few kilometres took me longer than climbing the last few as I stopped so often.

The switchbacks were like a Scalectric set gone crazy. It was hypotnotic watching vehicles and cyclists winding their way around them. And it was hard to tell who was going up and who down from where I
was stopped.

A little lower down a couple of marmots popped out to say hello so I was delighted with that.

The last couple of days traversing the Alps has been really enjoyable. It really is interesting seeing first hand the landscapes described in the book.

I had great plans today to do at least 80km. But I wimped out. Gonna have to out in a few long days on the last leg to Rome now.

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