On our rest day in Como the first action point was getting a Covid test around the corner in the pharmacy. This was quite easy. Afterwards we discovered the city starting with a walk to the Porta Torre which also is the entrance into the old town. There we walked through narrow streets till we came to the “Basilica di San Fedele”, which is a really massive and beautiful cathedral. Afterwards we walked along the shores of the famous “Lago di Como“ and stopped at a restaurant for a snack (which turned out to be more a big meal).

At last we took the ropeway to get on a nearby mountain and walked there to Faro Voltiano (Volta’s Lighthouse) to enjoy a stunning view above the lake. It was pretty exhausting with with a steep long way up there, but definitely worth it. A beautiful end of our sightseeing tour.

Arrivederci Italia – leaving Como

In the evening we made dinner at our room and watched some shows. The stage on the next day should lead us to our ninth country of the tour – Switzerland. So after breakfast we got the bicycles ready and started the stage. First we needed to cross the border to get to the first town in Switzerland called Chiasso. We didn’t took the direct road about a small mountain, so we could enjoy lake Como a bit longer. Crossing the border was quite unspectacular, because it was just a small checkpoint and we couldn’t even see a street sign that we crossed a border.

The Eurovelo 5 is called the “Nord-Süd Route” (percorso nord-sud on the italian signs) in Switzerland and will bring us from Chiasso to Basel. We had a little problem to find the route, but when we were finally on the track everything went well. After the city a little climbing passage started. We also recognized that it was a bit colder than the stages before. Cycling was good because there were cycling roads almost everywhere. A bit like a sudden paradise compared to the former cycling situations the last months. We passed some vineyardys and had beautiful views on the alps.

From “Lago di Como” to “Lago di Lugano”

After a downhill segment we came to the “Lago di Lugano”. Our path followed the shores of the lake for several kilometers. Also here we had beautiful views and the surrounding mountains gave us amazing panorama views. A really beautiful area with palms and mediterranean plants. When we left the lake we followed the small river Vedeggio and took the first chance for our lunch break at a bench and table. We followed the river a few more kilometers and had to deal with some road construction but it was easy and relaxing cycling.

One little mountain to master

A little later a long climbing segment was waiting for us. As long as we followed the river it wasn’t too steep but when we left the river we needed to fight some pretty steep ramps. We cycled through some towns mostly on minor road with a bicycle lane. There was a highway leading parallel to our street which we could hear constantly. Somewhen we came to the top and needed a break with some snacks.

Afterwards a very steep downhill path started. We had beautiful views into the valley where our goal of the day was located, Bellinzona. When we arrived in the valley surrounded by the beautiful mountains of the Alps is was again easy cycling. In this area you could see a lot of fields till we came to the suburbs of Bellinzona. We cycled through the city to the camping ground. The camping ground had a special Mongolian tent in which we were interested. So we booked it for two nights and after a shower we had a nice dinner in our very special cozy tent.

Route

The total distance can be viewed on the “Sabbatical 2021 – Europe” page.

Download file: Sabbatical2021_071_Como_to_Bellinzona.gpx