How do you fancy a 116km ride with 2400m of climbing?

Well that is what I did for my Sunday run ..... Hard, tiring and rewarding!!!

I left Castelfiorito on a cool November day, running down from 989m in 8.5km to Roccafluvione, the black truffle centre of Italy, then to the lowest point of 213m at Mozzano, and then following the old Roma road to Aquasanta Terme, turning left onto the first climb of the day.

Castelfiorito is south facing with the Grand Sasso National Park to the south east and the Sibillini National Park to the south west. It is the Grand Sasso that I climb into, climbing to 823m in 10km through woodland of which most of the ride takes place.

The mountains of the Grand Sasso seem more claustrophobic than the Sibillini with steeper sides, but the gradients of the the roads are very similar.

The road plummets through  small hamlets , descending needs a  little care as if you did leave the road no one would find you in the woods. I chose to take the short cut to Valle Castellana taking out a loop of 15km.

As experience has shown it takes longer than than you would expect to go anywhere as  the roads are hardly straight. If it takes 1 hour in the UK it will take 1hour 30 minutes here, and looking at the map there is a lot more climbing to do.

At Castellana I chose  a secondary road climbing around the south of Monte Girella, where the ski resort seen from Castelfiorito lies. This is the hardest climb of the trip, as unlike previous climbs it does not have an even gradient. Climbing to 1023m in 8km to Lettera, the road stays at height for a few km although a little lumpy passing the ruins of Castel Manfrino.
 

Being above the tree line, the views are more open, and when the descent starts the sea is visible over the rolling countryside, descending down to Ascoli and passing Civitella del Tronto a place worth visiting, as it is perched on a ridge with the town walls protecting it ..... next Sunday perhaps .  

Ascoli Piceno is the nearest large town to Castelfiorito and has a very fine old quarter, where I bought some Olive Ascolana. These are stuffed olives in breadcrumbs and are delicious but useless as an energy supplement, and with no time for seconds.

The last two climbs...the first a mere 9km followed by a short descent to Roccafluvione, and the final climb to Castelfiorito, not an easy climb as it seems longer than its 8.5km passing several times within sight of Castelfiorito before turning past the local village church and the excellent Le Diga Restaurant .

Although I was very tired  after this ride I would happily retrace the route. It is an excellent day out as the contrast of the views is remarkable from the steep sided wooded mountains, rounder views above the tree line and then the rolling farm land heading to the sea.

Next time I would make sure to take some food with me, as there was little chance of finding a bar/cafe open, as it was on a Sunday in November. In the holiday season this would not be a problem .

 
My name is Roy Aitken, a member of the Cheshire Roads Club in the UK.

I would be happy to guide and help any fellow cyclists who would like to visit Le Marche and challenge the mountain passes, or tour the Le Marche historic towns.

There are also Gran Fondo's in the area, the Le Marche Marathon being the most popular.

Mountain Bikers are not left out, as Castelfiorito is surrounded by a maze of white roads/ tracks. You could explore all day on tracks that suit all levels of ability, and not lose sight of the apartments. Castelfiorito is often visited by the local clubs on days out. The Sibillini and Gran Sasso mountain national parks are within easy reach, and have Mountain Bike tracks for all abilities, many of which are way marked.

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