Passo San Marco was a revelation for me. 26.5 kms and 1740 metres vertical ascent. Gigantic. It starts far lower than most big climbs so its summit altitude can mislead one into thinking it’s not huge. See this table for example:
| Distance | Ascent | Summit | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Passo San Marco | 26.5 kms | 1740 metres | 1992 metres |
| Passo di Gavia (Bormio) | 25.6 kms | 1404 metres | 2621 metres |
| Passo dello Stelvio (Bormio) | 21.5 kms | 1533 metres | 2758 metres |
I had to get to Bormio to meet my old friend Barry. It’s a long drive, so I decided to stop along the way to explore something new. Passo San Marco starts from Morbegno, in Sondrio Province, roughly half way between Milan and Bormio.
It’s more long than steep, although there are some tough kilometres half way up. (see bottom of post for the profile of the steeper south side).
The 3D video of the route is a good one:
The climb begins climbing through a nice forest. The first 3/4 of the ride has views of mountain forests in every direction. This view is from perhaps halfway up:
I bumped into a herd of goats that were completely uninterested in me:
The climb really gets fun when it gets above the tree line.
The summit itself has a couple of monuments but is scarred by a bunch of power lines – there is a hydro-electric lake/dam just over the top of the pass.
I only descended a kilometre or two down the other side to have a look. It looks undeveloped and pretty. But I was tired and wanted to save my legs for Bormio. So I just descended back to the start (wimp).
But I absolutely loved this climb. Big, scenic, quiet. And the perfect break during a long drive.
3 Comments
Looks great. Most people break their journey at an autoroute services area – you do a 27km / 1700m climb!
Hi, do you think this climb would be start of November? Dan
Open? It’s quite possible. 60/40?