That can't be true. Stunned, I stare at the cow's mouth, into which the last corner of my glove has just disappeared. Her jaws grind with relish in slow motion from left to right. The brown cow gazes at me innocently with her saucer eyes, while three of her accomplices lick devotedly at the saddle and handlebar grips of my bike with furry tongues. Salt lust? Bovine mania? I'm still pretty perplexed, standing there like a fool. But it doesn't matter now anyway, because the second glove is now also on its way into the digestive tract of this alpine monster. That's what you get as a photographer when you take your eyes off your equipment for five minutes to take a few spectacular pictures. What has got into these animals? Dozens of udders block our way to the Septimer Pass. A billowing mass of brown fur. Excessive bleating echoes through the air. We are surrounded.
But luckily there is a Swiss in our ranks, and members of this mountain tribe are known to know their way around cows from birth. "Well, they won't fancy winter in September either," jokes bike guide Stefan from Graubünden as he energetically makes his way through the stubborn animals. My conclusion from the eerie encounter of the mooing kind looks less funny: freshly sugared mountains all around, air temperature like in a fridge, plus wind that blows through your marrow and legs - and no spare long-fingered gloves. Luckily, Patricia from the group can help me out with a pair. Better too small gloves than frozen fingers.
Even though no one needs a late summer onset of winter, the touch of white gives the scenery a very special charm. Especially as the sun peeps through the clouds again in the morning after the low blow. When we arrive at the top of the Septimer pass, a chilly panorama awaits us. To the south, freshly snow-covered glaciers glisten in the sun, the black granite needles of the Bergell perforate the crystal-clear air. Behind the old stone house Tgesa da Sett, which has stood up here since the fifteenth century, we seek shelter from the piercing wind. Jackets are pulled out of our rucksacks, leg and arm warmers pulled on, balaclavas pulled under our helmets. "The temperature should rise with every metre of descent down into Val Bregaglia," Stefan shares his warm thoughts with us. But the mood in the group is good even without his perseverance slogans, especially as one of the most beautiful single trails in Switzerland is waiting for our knobbly tyres. In the Middle Ages, the 2310 metre high Septimer was one of the three most important trade routes over the main Alpine ridge, alongside the Brenner Pass and the Great St Bernard Pass. It was only when the roads over the neighbouring Julier and Maloja passes were built that the Septimer fell into disuse. In addition to the muleteers with their goods, whole armies of warriors travelled south over the pass. However, we are not interested in trade or war. Rather, the historic pass is the highlight and crux of the second stage of our three-day
Mini-Transalp through Graubünden. The idea is convincing: the basic recipe is a dream route through the rugged east of Switzerland, spiced up with numerous single trails. The other tasty ingredients make your mouth water even more. The perfect public transport network in Switzerland not only ensures a smooth return transfer at the end of the tour, but transfers can also be added at any time along the way. Even the main luggage can be transported to the daily destination station on request. All in all, this means a long weekend packed with maximum riding fun, even for bikers who don't feel like climbing thousands of metres in altitude every day.
It has long been clear to us that the descents on this route are of the finest quality. While the single trail over the Urdenfürggli down to Lenzerheide made our hearts beat faster on the first day, the mule track into Val Bregaglia does the same today. Again and again, long sections on the bumpy cobblestones of the old path offer deep glimpses into the past. What stories and dramas could these marvellous serpentines tell? In any case, fun probably played a subordinate role in an expedition back then.
The GPS data for the three tours in Graubünden can be downloaded below:
- Tour 1: Chur - Savognin (41 km, 1795 m elevation gain, travelling time 5:00 h)
- Tour 2: Savognin - Pntresina (55 km, 1720 m elevation gain, travelling time 6:30 h)
- Tour 3: Pontresina - Poschiavo (55 km, 1720 m elevation gain, travelling time 6:30 h)
You can read the complete article from BIKE 11/2014 in the BIKE app (iTunes and Google Play) or the issue in the DK shop reorder:
