PILGRIMS WAY
ENTRACQUE - TRINITÀ - COLLE DEL SABBIONE- PEYRAFIQUE - COLLE DI TENDA - LIMONE PIEMONTE
42 Km Suitable for experienced cyclists Elevation Gain: + 1.790 m - Total Descent: 1690 m - Maximum Altitude Reached: 2.500m
Reaching the Upper Salt Road from Gesso Valley is more challenging and should be done on foot. Mountain bikes may only be used by highly experienced athletes in top physical condition and is nonetheless prohibited on the French part of the trail. It is included here chiefly to complete the overview of itineraries. Some believe that at least part of this route was once trodden by wayfarers and pilgrims, and may have been protected by the Knights of the Holy Trinity. From Entracque, proceed to the hamlet of Trinità then to the Porcera bridge, which is the starting point of the itinerary. You can reach the Porcerca bridge from Entracque by mountain bike along a dirt track that leads to the Chapel of Cornaletto and the Sartaria bridge.
The same track continues through a rugged landscape until reaching the Souffet arched bridge that stands above the eponymous waterfall. It then continues smoothly on the opposite side, almost entirely in the beechwood, as far as Gias d’Ischietto, where the cart track narrows and bends left into the Vallone del Sabbione. At the end of the clearings of Gias della Valera, cross the river (wooden walkway) by a gnarled beech tree and continue along the path, which remains easy for a while further. A long stretch along the mountainside and several ramps lead to Gias della Culatta, before continuing, with a series of hairpin bends, to the grassy basin of Lago della Vacca (Vacca Lake).
For some time now, few people have been able to cycle here, and bikes are generally pushed or carried. A steep final stretch following the little Bivacco Speranza, leads to the western Colle del Sabbione, on the border between Italy and France, in the Mercantour National Park. It is prohibited to ride mountain bikes for the next 3 kilometres, so they must be carried. From the border an easy track cuts diagonally across the sloping meadows, dotted with barracks and fortresses, to the Bassa di Peyrafique, from where you can continue towards Colle di Tenda, crossing the path of the Ciclovia Alpi del Mediterraneo (Mediterranean Alps Cycle Route) (last part of itinerary 1).
