The classic (since the east side was not asphalted until recently) climb starts in Paularo (648m). The main road actually starts up another way, but I choose here to show the more direct and shortest way up. This climb is feared not so much for the average gradient, but for the varying steepness and a big descent on the way up and very steep road for a long stretch to the top. I did this on my first week long tour of the Alps and apart from Passo Sella, no other climb stayed in my memory as much as this one. This is a hard climb! Drainage gullies higher up are no problem, but it is wise to cross them a bit diagonally, which I forgot about on the way down the east gravel side and fell twice before I realised that the wheel actually got stuck in the gully despite that it looked as if the openings are too narrow and the road was so bad I thought I just had hit one of the bigger stones … (believe it or not).

I climbed the east side from Pontebba (572m) in 2011 and now the road was fine asphalt and nothing at all like what I remembered from my first visit, when I could not tell the road from the river next to it … . However, as I later discussed with two motorcyclists on top of Panoramica delle Vette who had also come over this road, I asked them what they thought about it as it had some problems that would be more tricky to dela with on a motorcycle than on a road bike. We decided it was a troublesome but interesting road. The thing is that the nice asphalt road has gotten “steps” in it at some points. There is no other road as prone to landslides in the entire Alps that I can think of either (rock falls are more likely on the Elva to Colle di Sampeyre road, but not really landslides). I must say it was a brave decision to try and asphalt this road as upon my previous visit there seemed to be no hope this road would stay good for long, seeing huge landslides on both sides of a house built on the side. Also landslides in 2011 had been brushed of the road surface here and there, so it was passable. It is flat for long, but the last section is actually steeper still than on the Paularo side and this side is close to as hard as that side!