These are our top 10 Alpine trails in the overview map:
THE BOOK: 40 super trails
BIKE travel expert Gitta Beimfohr and photographer and freerider of the first hour Markus Greber have portrayed the 40 most beautiful trails in the Alps with all the information and GPS data.
Price: 29,90 €, published by Delius Klasing Verlag.
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1st France/Italy: Lago di Sette Colori
"This is the superstar among the Alpine trails!", says trail hunter Markus Greber confidently, "I've only ever experienced this much flow in Colorado!" This Western Alps trail does indeed undulate through a lovely landscape. It is dusty and sandy, but not at all rocky and rough like the Alps usually are. Pleasant: The lifts of the Montgenèrve bike park take you up. However, you soon leave the park trails behind you and ride through a secluded dream landscape. No wonder the flow-o-meter beeps like crazy! Because here you hardly have to brake or pedal; the momentum carries you through a natural rollercoaster that no park designer could have created better.
Length / altitude metres: 19.3 km / 1100 m elevation gain (half-day tour) | Difficulty: light | Favourite bike: Enduro
FLOW FACTOR 6 out of 6 stars
2. Les Arcs/France: La Varda
We have to warn you! The La Varda is not for the faint-hearted or wobbly. Here you need a keen eye for the ideal line and must be able to safely turn your rear wheel around corners to have fun. The Les Arcs bike park has a wild, lonely backside - this is where La Varda rattles through rock and scree. Thanks to the lifts, you only have to climb 200 metres uphill yourself, then it's all downhill at the Lurch lake. From now on, the trail throws one key section after another at you, with the risk of falling. Steep, narrow, stepped, slippery - these are the attributes of La Varda. There is hardly any time for the impressive views of the Grand Motte glacier tongue, because your eyes are glued to the trail. And if not, they should do so as soon as possible! Admittedly, La Varda is more appealing for its technical tests of courage than its easy flow.
Length / altitude metres: 18.2 km / 1849 m elevation gain (day tour) | Difficulty: very high | Favourite bike: Enduro
FLOW FACTOR 1 of 6 stars
3rd Verbier/France: Vertigo
The name says it all: Vertigo. This is the name given to the phenomenon when pilots no longer know which way is up and which way is down. In other words: the trail is steep, difficult and dizzying. Those who master it without dismounting have their bike under control. The Vertigo is a natural trail outside the Verbier bike park, so you take the same gondola, then branch off and end up at the bottom of the valley. The good news is that there are only a few places where there is a risk of falling, as it rarely leads directly along the abyss. The sandy soil typical of the Western Alps generates a lot of grip, making steep descents possible that would be impossible elsewhere, e.g. a 100-metre sand slide. Important: The hairpin bend technique should be perfect, because the Vertigo is always making hooks. The downside: the annoying return journey to Verbier.
Length / altitude metres: 15 km / 1576 m elevation gain (half-day tour) | Difficultyhigh Favourite bike: Enduro, Bigbike
FLOW FACTOR 3 out of 6 stars
4th Chalais, Valais/Switzerland: The Brazilian
Freeride godfather Wade Simmons was so enamoured by the rhythm of the bends that he christened this trail "The Brazilian". The star freerider thought that the 2000 metre descent had samba in its turns. The name stuck and attracted hundreds of gravity disciples over the years. Unfortunately, you can tell that from the Brazilian: He has become rougher and rockier. This also has to do with the two gondolas. They save you energy; you only have to push and carry yourself for 300 metres in altitude. Like many others, the trail begins as an alpine mountain path, but as soon as it dives into the forest, it dances off. Impressive: the first descent into the Cret du Midi with high moorland in an arena of mountains.
Length / altitude metres: 35.7 km / 2397 m elevation gain (day tour) | Difficulty: medium | Favourite bike: Trail bike, Enduro
FLOW FACTOR 3 out of 6 stars
5th Zermatt/Switzerland: Gornergrat Trail
We say: You have to see the most beautiful mountain in the world live once in your life: the Matterhorn! So why not ride this super trail right away? The railway shuttles you from Zermatt to the Gornergrat (unfortunately expensive; €50). Here the trail takes off with a dream panorama, occasionally bumps into boulders and then turns into a flow shower. Then the trail swings in hairpin bends and curves on coniferous soil through the Swiss stone pine forest all the way down to Zermatt. "So awesome! I can't get enough of this rollercoaster!" commented professional freerider Tibor Simai.
Length / altitude metres: 12.2 km / 1512 m elevation gain (half-day tour) | Difficulty: light | Favourite bike: Enduro
FLOW FACTOR 5 out of 6 stars
6th Vinschgau/Italy: Covelano Schartl
The Vinschgau Valley is a trail paradise. The most beautiful trail near Latsch is called Holy Hansen because it is not very bumpy, varied and smooth, peppered with bends, waves, small jumps - and yet easy. It is part of this day tour up the imposing mountain (2381 m) with the cute name Göflaner Schartl. The shuttle doesn't make it all the way up, so you have to pedal and push hard yourself to manage the remaining 1000 metres in altitude. At the top, the trail is steep, rocky and partly blocked, but then it starts to groove and becomes more flowy until it eventually turns into Holy Hansen. A transfer trail on the slope leads back to Latsch.
Length / altitude metres: 44.7 km / 2425 m elevation gain (day tour) | Difficulty: medium | Favourite bike: Trail bike, Enduro
FLOW FACTOR 5 out of 6 stars
7th Bormio/Italy: Trail from the Gavia Pass
Hello - is anyone here? On the trail from the Cavia Pass through the rocky valley down to Santa Catarina, you feel like the first human being: waterfalls, wild meadows, stone towers - civilisation? Not a thing. Super! You have the choice: take the shuttle to the pass straight away, or make a day trip out of it - then take the cable car to Cresta Sobretta and travel over Sunny Valley to the pass. The highlight of the tour is following the slope along the wild valley. Here you will find everything an enduro rider could wish for: steep descents, tricky boulders and speed passages.
Length / altitude metres: 17.8 km / 1443 m elevation gain (day tour) | Difficultyhigh Favourite bike: Enduro
FLOW FACTOR 4 out of 6 stars
8th Blausasc, Nice/France: Col du Savel
This trail is one of Fabien Barel's favourites - and you can imagine that the two-time downhill world champion and enduro expert sets the bar high when it comes to his favourite trails. Even though Fabien lives just round the corner, less than 20 minutes away. The best way up is by shuttle - even that is exciting, as the road winds its way up the mountain, narrow and exposed. The terrain is typically Mediterranean; you can literally smell the sea. Sandy ground, white limestone, pine trees and chestnut trees. At first, the trail rushes through deciduous forest with mossy boulders and earthy bends until it becomes faster and flowy. But be careful: there is a risk of falling from time to time!
Length / altitude metres: 14.5 km / 1000 m elevation gain (2-hour tour) | Difficulty: light | Favourite bike: Enduro
FLOW FACTOR 3 out of 6 stars
9th Aosta Valley/Italy: Banzai Trail
1400 metres uphill under your own steam - that scares many people and is both a curse and a blessing! But then there is adventure, solitude and the most beautiful Western Alps flow. Hence the peculiar name Banzai - the term refers to a Japanese call for good luck. And you can't help but rejoice when you see the gentle high valley after the uphill slog. Like another world! The trail flows alongside the mountain stream, winds through hilly terrain and bends downhill at just the right gradient. Okay, every now and then the trail is a little exposed, technical and narrow, but mostly the Banzai shows its gentle nature and rocks you into a cornering delirium. It inevitably makes the corners of your mouth turn upwards - great! We haven't even mentioned the breathtaking views of the Gran Paradiso and Grivola mountain giants from the Invergneux Pass!
Length / altitude metres: 37.7 km / 1673 m elevation gain (day tour) | Difficulty: medium | Favourite bike: Enduro
FLOW FACTOR 5 out of 6 stars
10th Lake Garda/Italy: Tremalzo
Shame on you if you don't know the Tremalzo! There is probably no trail that deserves to be called a "classic" as much as the 2000 metre descent on Lake Garda. It's crazy: where we have fun today, soldiers in the First World War humped grenades, barley soup and barbed wire over these rocky paths to the Alpine front. The first part up to Passo Guil with tunnels and gravel bends is more of a feast for the eyes than a trail pleasure, but then in the mountain forest the trail winds its way into the depths as if by magic with flow and excitement - and ends right by the lake. For some, this section (Sentiero 422) is the best trail on Lake Garda.
Length / altitude metres: 26.1 km / 2000 hm (day tour) | Difficulty: medium | Favourite bike: Trail bike, Enduro
FLOW FACTOR 2 out of 6 stars
