Your mountain-bike holidays in the Dolomites

The mountain bike ride to the Talschlusshütte mountain hut takes you past bubbling streams and meadows full of multi-coloured flowers. The trail also passes right through the famous Sexten Meridian, running alongside mountain torrents on both paved and unmade roads.

Itinerary:
Departing from Toblach, the cycle trail passes through Innichen, continuing towards Sexten. It then climbs slightly uphill, taking you to the lower ski lift station for the Rotwand ski area. There is a short stretch here that is a bit more challenging, but the effort is easily outweighed by the beauty of the landscape. When you get to the Fischleinbodenhütte car park, continue on to the Talschlusshütte mountain hut. You can stop here to enjoy some excellent South Tyrolean food and to take in the breath-taking view.
You can go back the way you came, or else you can follow path number 1a, which starts at the end of the Fischleinboden car park and takes you back to Sexten through magnificent forests. When you arrive there, it is better to continue on the cycle path towards Innichen and so return to your starting point in Toblach.

A rather demanding ride of about 43 kilometres to the Plätzwiese plateau in the middle of the Prags Dolomites. This mountain bike trip gives you truly spectacular views of the Drei Zinnen, and so is well worth the effort and certainly very memorable.

Itinerary:
You leave from Toblach, following the route of the old Dolomite Railway (now closed for many years). You cycle comfortably along a wide, unmade road, climbing slightly uphill and riding across the delightful Höhlensteintal. Continuing on past Lake Toblach, you then ride on beyond the war cemetery. Shortly afterwards, you will get a wonderful view of the Drei Zinnen and arrive at the lovely Dürrensee, where you can take a refreshing dip in beautiful surroundings. Feeling thoroughly reinvigorated, you continue up an old military road to the wonderful Plätzwiese, finally reaching the wide plateau in the middle of the Prags Dolomites after a ride of about 6 kilometres and a 500-metre change in level. You can take a break here, relaxing in the meadow with a picnic, or enjoying local cooking in the mountain hut restaurant.
You have choice as to how to get back: you can either follow an exciting and varied trail or you can cycle quietly down to Prags on the paved road. Once you reach the bottom of the valley, it's a comfortable ride back to Toblach.

Ready for a bit of adventure? Keen to test your limits? Then the mountain bike trip to Mount Helm is made for you!
Not only does it involve a change in level of about 1,000 metres, but it is also guaranteed to make your pulse race. This is a very demanding excursion for cyclists with considerable stamina, but it does reward you with incredible scenic views all along the 36-kilometre route.

Itinerary:
The first section of the trip is along the cycle path towards Lienz, enabling you to warm up your muscles. Then the serious part begins at Vierschach: from then onward you're faced with the long climb to Mount Helm, involving some very steep sections.
Only the strongest will get to the finish - or rather up to the plateau with a spectacular view of the Dolomites. When you arrive, you can relax a bit and enjoy a tasty and well-deserved meal in a mountain restaurant.
After that, you have two options: if you still feel able and your legs can still bear it, the ride up another 200 metres to the Sillianerhütte mountain hut is really lovely. From here, there's the start of a steep but exciting single-track trail. Alternatively, you can also go straight downhill towards Sexten. From Sexten, you then return to Toblach and re-join the cycle path.

A real highlight of any holiday is the mountain bike ride to the Markinkele in the Upper Pustertal Valley. This 35-kilometre route takes you up to a height of 2,500 metres and involves a 1,300-metre change in level. Along the way, you get wonderful panoramic views of the Sexten Dolomites, the Drei Zinnen, and finally also the Ortler and the Großglockner. This is definitely a natural spectacle not to be missed.

Itinerary:
You start climbing right from the beginning; the first 18 km lead up to the Markinkele (Cornetto di Confine), at a height of about 1,300 metres. Some distance before the finish you are already up above the tree line, and so can enjoy wonderful views while pedalling towards the Markinkele - an extra push will be needed for the last few metres.
Following a well-deserved rest, you then have various options for your descent: you can either follow the same route back or choose an exciting and action-packed single-track trail. Alternatively, you could enjoy an easy ride towards Sillian while continuing to enjoy the amazing views.

Itinerary:
We enjoy a comfortable ride along the cycle path which goes gently downhill, with the occasional short uphill stretch, the dozen or so kilometres to Monguelfo. At Monguelfo we leave the main valley and head for the extensive Valle di Casies. We continue on delightful woodland roads and paths along the Rio di Casies.

After about a dozen kilometres is the most challenging part of our ride, a wide gravel road with a 350-metre difference in altitude. We then follow a short uphill part of the famous "Dolomiti Superbike". Before the fast descent to the main valley, we stop to savour the view of Dobbiaco and Valle di Landro from Monte Rota.

Itinerary:
This ride is challenging at first. From Dobbiaco is a long uphill stretch of about eight kilometres up to Malga San Silvestro. There are two fairly demanding sections, but for the rest it is a gentle climb along the rushing San Silvestro stream. After a short break at the original hut we can enjoy the silence of the alpine pasture with just the occasional melodious sound of the cowbells. We return to Dobbiaco going up and down through the woods and along paved roads. During the ride we will be treated to stunning views of the Dolomiti di Sesto and of Valle Pusteria.