Passo di Monte Bondone - Italy
As this is a long ride, managing the effort and settling into the ride is important. And just enjoy the ride!
Monte Bondone, just west of Trento, has long been shaped by the communities living on its slopes, where farming, grazing and forestry formed an important part of mountain life for centuries. From the 19th century onwards, improved roads and growing interest in the Alps gradually transformed the mountain into a destination for tourism and winter sports. Today, Monte Bondone is also deeply embedded in Italian cycling history, most famously through the legendary 1956 Giro d’Italia stage, when Charly Gaul won in heavy snow and freezing conditions. Cycling the Passo Monte Bondone is a classic, demanding Alpine climb with a quiet sense of history and scale.
Most riders start from Trento, where the road begins climbing almost immediately. The gradient settles into a steady, testing rhythm—rarely savage, but never generous. Early on, you wind through forest and small hamlets, the city dropping away quickly as the road carves upward in long, deliberate bends. Monte Bondone doesn’t rely on spectacle or extreme gradients. Its challenge lies in length, consistency, and the calm persistence it demands—an old-school climb that rewards steady effort and respect for the mountain.
I rode the mountain form western side, form Riva del Garda which is equally as wonderful.
Cycling Monte Bondone from Riva del Garda is a superb ride that combines a remarkable variety of mountain environments, beginning with the warmer landscape around Lake Garda before gradually climbing into the forests and high-alpine meadows of the Viote plateau. Although Monte Bondone is frequently used by the Giro d’Italia, the race usually approaches the mountain from the eastern side, while the route from Riva del Garda provides a longer and more varied experience.
The ride begins in Riva del Garda and climbs gradually towards Passo San Udalrico, at 595 metres. From here, the road descends into the Cavedine Valley before the real challenge begins on the SP85 towards Passo Monte Bondone. From Dro, the ascent covers around 34.4 kilometres and gains approximately 1,662 metres of elevation, while the complete ride from Riva del Garda is close to 50 kilometres.
The route naturally divides into four distinct sections. The opening climb from Riva provides a gradual introduction, leading to Passo San Udalrico before a short descent through the Cavedine Valley. The third section is where the serious climbing begins, as the SP85 steadily winds upwards through increasingly mountainous terrain. Finally, the road emerges onto the beautiful Viote plateau before continuing to Vason, the mountain resort at around 1,650 metres.
What makes this ride particularly rewarding is the constant change in scenery. The landscape evolves from the valley floor and its Mediterranean influence into dense mountain forests and, eventually, open alpine meadows. Each section feels different, giving the long ascent a sense of progression rather than becoming a monotonous climb.
Reaching Vason provides a wonderful conclusion to the effort, with the surrounding mountains and open landscape offering a very different atmosphere from the start of the ride beside Lake Garda. The descent provides an equally enjoyable reward, with fast, flowing sections allowing you to relax into the descent and enjoy the road after the long climb.
Monte Bondone is therefore much more than a famous cycling climb. It is a journey through the landscapes and history of Trentino, combining centuries of mountain life with the traditions of Alpine tourism and some of the most memorable moments in Italian cycling. For anyone riding in the Lake Garda and Trentino region, the route from Riva del Garda is a beautiful and great way to experience the mountain.
To Passo Udalrico
The first part of the ride takes you from Riva up to Passo Udalrico. This climb is around 7km long and covers 460m elevation gain. Coming from Riva, the climb starts after around 13km of riding.
It is early morning and the sun is illuminating the rock faces to my left in a yellow glow.
The pass is a gentle flow of hairpins and ramps and gets the legs moving.
It passes right by Castello di Drena, guarding over the valley.
Cavedine Valley
Onwards for small downhill through the Cavedine Valley. This might to some people be an unremarkable stretch of about 5km from Passo San Udelrico to the SP85 turnoff.
It is a lovely working valley though, there are vineyards, orchards, olive groves and it is guarded by two large castles on either side, Castello di Drena to the South and Castello Madruzzo to the north.
Up the SP85 to Vanson
Onto the main event and the SP85 all the way to the top. 22 at times gruelling km with an elevation gain of 1,200m. This is a super irregular climb with long, long and at times steep straights, very few hairpins and a couple of false flats.
Once you are at the SP85 road sign showing 23km (they count down from 39 at the start of the road), the pain in the legs stops and the road evens out towards the Viote plain. Lovely views over the local mountains and the Dolomites open up.
Last push and descending
Once the last km from Viote to the pass at Vason via an up and down road through the ski area have been negotiated, a super long descent awaits.
The road back is wide and mainly in good condition.
The lack of hairpins makes for a fast downhill on long ramps down the SP85, followed by a lovely flowing descent from Passo San Udelrico to Dro.
Super stuff.
Once you reach Viote your legs are likely to be seriously burning.
Monte Bondone from Dro
Length: 34.4km
Altitude gain: 1662 m
Max altitude: 1661 m
Average gradient: 4.8%
Max gradient: 13%
Route Tip: Apart for route outlined above, Passo Monte Bondone can be reached a number of ways. The route shown climbs from Riva del Garda via Dro past Lake Cavedine and then to the top. It descends through the Cavedine Valley and Passo Udalrico..
Other popular ascends are from Trento which is a 17.3km climb covering 1423m elevation gain (the road is on occasions also used as a race track).
Alternatively, you can climb monte Bondone from Aldeno which is a 23km climb cover 1452m altitude gain. This route has on occasions been used by the Giro, last in 2023 (at the time of writing).
