Driving around the Alps is quite an experience. You have not yet passed one corner or the next one is already coming up. While climbing from the valley, see the landscape change from wooded slopes with splashing waterfalls to alpine meadows where no trees can be found and asphalt roads that cut through the eternal snow. When you reach the top of the mountain, enjoy phenomenal views of the surrounding snow-capped peaks, as if you were standing on the roof of the world. For me that is pure enjoyment and that is why I rate this route with 5 stars.

The route starts at Hotel La Svolta in Chiuro, a town in the Sondrio Valley. A river, the Adda, also meanders through this valley. This river has its source on the Stelvio and finds its way through the valley towards Lake Como. The route follows this river to Lake Como.

Lake Como is a lake with an area of 146 km² and is the third largest of the Italian Alpine lakes. The lake is of glacial origin and is located at a height of 198 meters, the maximum depth is 425 meters. This makes Lake Como the deepest lake in Italy.
The largest water supply is the aforementioned river Adda, which enters the lake in the north at Colico and leaves it in the southeast at Lecco.
Along Lake Como you will find numerous small villages from which you have a beautiful view over the lake. In one of these villages, Gravedona, it is worthwhile to stop and enjoy the view over the water for a moment. On one side the quay with the restaurants and shops, on the other side the mountains that rise from the water.

A few kilometers further in the village of Dongo you will find a real Italian cafe, San Gottardo. The kind of cafe where the waitress is shouting to the kitchen what has been ordered with a quick Italian accent. Great to see and hear. On the other side of the street you see a small harbor with a few boats in it, always nice for a photo.

After coffee you continue the route along Lake Como. At Mennagio, Lake Como is left and you follow the SS340 towards Porlezza, a small town on the Italian side of Lake Lugano.

Lake Lugano is a lake in southeastern Switzerland, on the border between Switzerland and Italy. The lake bears the name of the largest city on its shores, Lugano, and is located between Lake Como and Lake Maggiore. The lake drains into Lake Maggiore via the Tresa. The deepest point, 288 meters, is just past Gandria in the Italian part of the lake. The area is 48.7 km².
In 1848 a dike was built over the lake, between Melide and Bissone, the Melidedijk. This made a direct connection between Lugano and Chiasso possible. The Gotthard railway and the A2 motorway now run across the dyke. The dike divides the lake into two basins, a 27.5 km² large northern basin and a 21.4 km² southern basin. A canal with bridges allows water flow and shipping.

An ice cream parlor is located in Porlezza, which has become famous in the region. The ice cream that is made there tastes the best in the whole area, according to insiders. It is of course best to test it yourself. While enjoying your ice cream you have a great view over Lake Lugano.
If you want to visit this ice cream parlor Visconti, do not turn left after RP6, but drive straight ahead and turn right at the roundabout. After 100m you will find 'Gelateria Visconti' on the right. It is hidden between the two adjacent buildings, but can be recognized by the colorful awnings in front of the windows with the inscription 'Gelateria' and 'Bar'.

After this cold break you continue the route through a beautiful winding road which after about 15 kilometers ends at a number of very short and sharp hairpin bends. Pay close attention to this, it can just happen that you meet a motorist on your side of the road.

While driving these tight hairpin bends you have also crossed the Italian-Swiss border. Switzerland is known for its high fines for speeding, so take it easy! At Maroggia the route again runs along Lake Lugano, now along the southern basin. The Melidedijk mentioned above also comes into the picture, the route runs over it.

At the end of this dike you will find Swiss Miniature on the left. You can compare this with Madurodam, but for Switzerland. Many typical features of Switzerland have been recreated in miniature in this park. Model train enthusiasts will love the G scale trains that run through the park. In the surrounding park you also have a beautiful view over the water.

From RP12, a few kilometers further along the route, you can enjoy Lake Lugano in all its glory. The clear water, the activity on the lake, the city built against the slopes, the imposing mountains around you. Great location to look around you in peace and quiet in what beautiful surroundings you have ended up.

In the city you will pass the exhibition 'Dal tam-tam alla radio digital', which shows 100 years of inventions in communication. The creators of the exhibition define it as a path. In fact, within a few meters of display, we trace more than 100 years of our history, through the presence of historic radio sets and various means of communication. Nice to visit and educational too!

In Gordola you can choose to turn right and visit the Verzasca dam. In addition to a great view over the water and the valley, there is the possibility to have an elastic band tied to your ankles, after which you are kindly requested to jump off a plank: Bungee Jumping!
James Bond connoisseurs may recognize this place. In the movie 'Golden Eye' the British Secret Agent jumped off a dam. Those recordings were made here. So if you want, you can experience what that feels like, just like James Bond. I skipped it and only enjoyed the great view ... :-)

The route passes Locarno. From RP18 in the route you have a great view of the third lake during this route: Lake Maggiore. The lake is 212 km², 60 km long, the widest point is 10 km and the maximum depth is 372 meters. In both Italy and Switzerland it is more in the Italian-speaking area. The lake, like the other large Italian alpine lakes, was carved out by a glacier in one of the ice ages.
Professional fishermen also live on the lake. About 150 tons of fish are caught per year, including a trout species that is found nowhere else in the world.
The lake has long been an important tourist attraction. In the 19th century, the European nobility settled en masse in luxury hotels or built their own villas, often with a botanical garden such as in Alpino, Baveno or Pallanza. Thus, an exotic plantation has developed along the shores of the entire lake, with mainly different types of palms.

Further along the route you will pass the Palagnedra lake. This is a lake that, unlike the previous lakes along which the route passes, was created artificially by building a dam in the river Melezza. Due to this dam, the river burst its banks for a few kilometers and the lake was created. Employment and regulation of the amount of water in the river behind were the main reasons for building this 72m high dam in 1952. You have a nice view over the dam at RP21.

10 kilometers further - now you are driving in Italy again - a basilica suddenly appears on the route, the 'Santuario della Madonna del Sangue', or the 'Sanctuary of the Madonna del Sangue'. This shrine is dedicated to the Virgin Mary and it was built on the site where a miracle took place in 1494: a small mural of the nursing Madonna was hit by a stone during a rally and began to bleed. That is why this sanctuary is the destination of many pilgrimages from the area.
A visit to the basilica is worthwhile. Impressive from the outside, inside a very beautiful modern church that has integrated the former older church, as it were.

The route meanders for another 20 kilometers along the Melezza to eventually turn northwest at Masera. Shortly afterwards, after crossing the border with Switzerland again, the only significant pass in this route is conquered, the Simplon Pass with a height of 2005 meters.
The Simplon Pass connects the Rhone Valley in the Swiss canton of Valais with the Val d'Ossola in the Italian province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola. The pass was first used extensively in the early Middle Ages as a trade route between Italy and France. Napoleon had the road completely renovated so that he could cross it with his artillery. The current Simplon Pass is one of the best constructed mountain passes in Europe, with an average road width of 6 meters. The pass remains open in winter.

The town of Brig, the final destination of this route, is reached via the Ganter Bridge. This is a reinforced concrete bridge with multiple spans. With a length of 678 meters, it is the second longest spanning bridge in Switzerland. The bridge, with a maximum height of 150 meters, is located across the valley of the Ganter River and along the Simplon Pass, which you have just crossed. Construction started in 1976 and was completed in 1980.

After leaving this bridge you reach the town of Brig a little further. Shortly in front of the hotel, the route passes a motorcycle shop, Bärenfaller Moto-Shop. If you need to, you can visit this shop, there are a few people at work who know what they are talking about.

Have fun on this route!