Brusago another place you never heard of for your bucket list
Only a few more minutes, yes?
When we tell people at home that we are on our way to Italy, to go biking in the Pine Plateau and explore the area, we receive jealous looks from colleagues and friends. “Phew, sitting in the sun, wearing shorts and cruising the Italian trails, stopping for an espresso…” we hear them say. However, the sun does not always shine there either. It was just our luck when this trip came round, the forecast was 15 degrees and occasional showers.
Although the Pine Plateau is part of the UNESCO Dolomites, it looks a little different than you may be used to from the pictures. It is quite steep, but a lot greener here, the mountains are also lower in this range.
We meet our guide in the village where he lives, where he loads his bike into our bus and we continue to the start of the trail, further up the mountain. The top is relatively quiet, with a deserted mountain restaurant and some hikers who start their hike from the same place. Today the weather is not too bad, cloudy but dry, given the forecasts for the coming days we are very happy with that.
We crawled up the wide paths, past herds of sheep while the cloud cover provided a dramatic view of the valley. Our very fit Italian guide set a firm pace. He had a big loop planned for us, so we had to climb before we actually reached the top. We passed by Jesus, who gave us a thumbs up. It gave us some strength to tackle the last part. Now we hear you thinking 'and that calls themselves a cycling editor, they get tired just by climbing a bit'. However, we would like to add the footnote that earlier on this day we woke up at 4 am to take pictures at sunrise, and the day before was filled with a 12 hour drive to our destination. Who said the life of an IMB editor was a bed of roses?
Why are we still going up today, you may wonder? Firstly, because it is possible. And secondly, because we have two days here and today would be the only day without rain. In order to get enough material for the magazine we need to make the most of it. Although the guide is hopeful, tomorrow ok, no rain yes?
Once at the top, the trails started. Our guide wasted no time and immediately started descending the quite steep stairs with his XC short travel bike. In any case, we're off to a good start! The trails were basically continuous traverses along the mountain, pine needles and roots. The paths meandered from left to right, with several exposed parts turning up the excitement dial to 11 as the soil was moist and slippy from the rains the night before.
The trail flowed beautifully through the woods, but at some point it became very technical and our guide let us pass. By technical we mean, deeply dug tracks with steep drop-offs, large boulders and short bends. Doable, but for the less confident rider this may be a stretch to cover on foot. Fortunately, this is a relatively short section. Or unfortunately, depending on your approach. We secretly like a bit of impossible tech!
The trail continues, with some real Dolomite features in the mountain, mini avalanches of cobblestones and occasionally you look up the mountain at the steep rocks.
The traverse continues like this, there is actually no part where you really go straight down. Eventually we arrived in the village at our hotel. While we clear the local supermarket of chocolate and snacks, our guide and a friend hop in the car to pick up his van from the trailhead.
After 20 minutes they return, ready for lap number 2. But we have to be honest with him. We’re all out of juice, not even the supermarket chocolate raid could revive our energy levels today. It's getting dark and the alarm clock earlier in the day is playing tricks on us and our focus. We went to the hotel for a delicious meal and ended the day in the sauna. What better way to recharge our batteries for tomorrow?
The next morning the alarm goes off again way too early. A look outside shows us that our guide Efrim is a better bike handler than weather forecaster as it is raining cats and dogs. But hey, didn't we still have waterproof jackets, socks, pants, rain covers and a pressure washer to test? Every disadvantage has its advantage.
Because we are once again pressed for time, we skip the four-hour climb and join the hotel owner, who kindly takes us a long way to the top for the Pine route, which he really wants to show us. Our driver is piloting the Land Rover up the narrow mountain roads with ridiculous speed. We silently put our helmets on and say some hail mary’s!
The Land Rover drops us off three quarters of the way up the climb, we will have to do the rest ourselves because the car cannot get up much further. The fog that hangs there gives an unreal feeling, which will certainly benefit the photos. Here too, friend Efrim starts with a 'short climb Yes?’ Pro Tip - Never trust a guide wearing lycra. You’ll be certain his definition of a short climb does not match his, and he will pedal up the most ridiculous steep sections like it’s nothing. Hats off to this boss. Luckily we had camera bags with us, which are always a good excuse to complain.
After each change of terrain we were almost there, just a little further. Confidence was already decreasing. But after walking and cycling through the forest we suddenly left the tree line and reached the actual summit, where Efrim had set his sights on. Due to the dense fog there was little view to enjoy, but the beginning of the forest on the way back and the start of the trail was amazing. Enough visibility to see the trail, while the bright colors of mother nature provided a nice contrast.
The trail was also nice here, in the forest, out of the forest, dark and light, stones, roots, everything.Compared to the day before, it was certainly a more accessible trail, with few critical stones or rocks, even in the rain. A welcome change from day 1.
For us personally, playing in the rain was actually quite fun. Good clothing kept us warm and somewhat dry, and riding hard through the puddles remains fun, no matter where you are. But let’s be honest, it is slightly more fun playing in Italian puddles with the option to warm up in a sauna afterwards.
Although we just had two days in the area, Brusago remains on our ‘to visit again’ list for sure. Varied terrain, impressive scenery and, if you’re lucky, some great views. If you’d like to visit yourself, here are some useful links:
We stayed at Bio Hotel Brusago (www.hotelbrusago.it), with friendly and helpful service, a great spa in the basement and a breakfast with everything you could wish for. Other options nearby are Hotel Castel Pietra (www.hotelcastelpietra.it)
And Sport & Wellness Hotel Cristallo am Levicosee (www.hotelcristallotrentino.it). For more information about this area, visit https://www.dolomitilagoraibike.it
