I wake early and take in the sunrise before riding down to Airolo. After a quick stop to shop for groceries, I start up to the Gotthard pass. The cobblestone surface starts eearly, but is soon replaced with tarmac, until about 6km from the top. From here on, the cobbles continue until the top. Apart from an idiotic German Porsche truck driver who gets stuck in a turn and blocks the road, the way up is fairly quiet. Most cars take the new road up to the pass. The way up feels surprisingly easy, and I’m not sure if it’s because I’m fresh in the morning, or because the gradient is less steep than the previous passes.
At the top, camping car hell waits, as nearly a hundred campers line up in the car park. I quickly continue down towards Andermatt, hoping to find a good spot for a break. I don’t and the village isn’t very appealing to me either, so I continue up to the next pass. Tow passes before breakfast aren’t bad. The Oberalpass is host to the source of the Rhine river and it’s hard to imagine that the small stream starting here will swell to one of Europe’s largest rivers.
Again, there is no good place to rest at the top and I ride down into the valley and along the Rhine until I find a good place for lunch by the river.
After a long break, I continue onwards on a rocky cycling path until 20 km before Chur. 103 km with 2400 m ascent are on the clock today.