Colly Murray's Les Dix Alpes Diary: Como

On sat after much lugging of gear between 2 taxis, a bus and a train I finally made it to the hotel in Como. What greeted me in the Best Western Continental was like a scene out of Home and Away with the kackle of Aussie and Kiwi accents. We exchanged pleasantaries and I then set about rebuilding my bike. Thankfully nothing had been damaged in transit. I was keen to get out for a spin to ensure everything was in perfect working order but decided that Sunday might be a more favourable option given that I had been up since 5am. Also it was pissing rain outside as Ireland basked in Summer sunshine! Awake early on Sunday (with a bit of a head on me after some vino with my new Kiwi friends on sat night) I set off in the rain for the famous Museo del Cicliso high on the hills above Lake Como. It proved a painful enough ride with temperatures no greater than around 6 degrees and driving rain. Nice warmup for Les Dix Alpes on Monday!! It was well worth the spin however because after approx 30 hairpin bends myself and my co-lunatic doctor buddy Greg from Christchurch, NZ, reached the wonderful Museo del Ciclismo and chapel "Madonna del Ghisallo" with it's relics and Giro d'Italia winner signed jerseys. Probably not that intersting for non-cyclists but the views from Bellagio and higher up at Madonna del Ghisallo were breathtaking, in spite of the rain.

I felt really fresh on the steep gradients and my rothar was in good working order. The weather forcast for Monday was good so I was looking forward to seeing the Lake district in all it's glory on the relatively flat first stage from Como to Locarno in Switzerland.