Today was absolutely brutal! The Mortirolo was expected to be the toughest climb I would face this trip--averaging 11.8% over 7 miles. I didn't feel too bad during the climb, but my low back began feeling the intensity of the grade about half way up. I tried to vary my position on the bike as much as possible, but there's not much you can do when it pitches up to 18%. I climbed from the Mazzo Valletilina side, and I only saw 2 other cyclists.
The long, slow approach to the beginning of the Gavia took it's toll on me! Literally, you start climbing the moment you hit the bottom of the Mortirolo. But I think I pedaled a dozen miles and climbed over 1600 ft before officially starting the climb. And this climb was brutal--it was long, steep, narrow and the tarmac was horrendous. If you look at RWGPS' map, it shows a significant part of this is unpaved. Oh, it was paved originally--back in WWII!
When I hit the bottom, the sign said it was 13km to the top. This was the longest 13K ever! I thought I was just a couple of K from the top, and I saw an old, stone marker on the side of the road saying 7km to the summit! In France, on major climbs, they place markers every kilometer showing how far to the summit along with the gradient for the next kilometer. In Italy, they do mark the hairpin turns (ala Alpe d'Huez), so you can count down to the top. However, Gavia had neither of these, so I was using my RWGPS app to track my ever so slow progress. I prayed, contemplated, listened to music and thought about getting back to my hotel and getting in the whirlpool! I was also hearing the crack of thunder around me with dark skies and spitting rain, so I was trying to press forward as much as possible to avoid getting drenched.
In the end, I successfully completed the ride as planned, and I was out on the bike for almost 9 hours--6.5 of it actually moving. The other 2+ hours were stops for pictures, videos (tons), nutrition, searching for water, and a look around the gift shop on Gavia.