Adventure by bike around BAM! – Discover Veneto region

Maybe you dream of Iceland. Or Patagonia. Or some remote road in the Balkans that you spotted in an Instagram photo at two in the morning. Fair enough.

It’s a bit like when, as teenagers, we dreamed of Simon Le Bon or Claudia Schiffer and then ended up falling in love with the person sitting next to us in class.

Because sometimes the most surprising things are much closer than we think.

For the past two years BAM! has taken place in Veneto and, perhaps because of that, we have realised something: this region is one of the most incredible places in Europe to explore by bicycle.

Because Veneto is a place where, within just a few days, you can ride through the Dolomites and reach the sea. Cross alpine valleys, follow the course of a river, sleep beside a Palladian villa, get lost among the embankments of the Po and end up in front of the Venice Lagoon.

Or wander through the forests of the Asiago Plateau as if you were somewhere in Canada.

So, by popular demand: five wrong roads to get to BAM!

Or maybe the right ones. It depends on your point of view.

Arriving by following the Brenta River

There are worse ways to cross Veneto than following a river.

The Brenta Cycle Route descends from the beautiful Valsugana towards the plains, passing through Bassano del Grappa, Venetian villas, riverbanks, fields and small villages where it sometimes feels as though time forgot to speed up. In some places you might even manage to go for a swim. And of course, you can arrive in Piazzola sul Brenta and its incredible Villa Contarini.

Take the Treviso-Ostiglia and stop looking at your watch

Old railways almost always have something poetic about them.

The Treviso-Ostiglia crosses Veneto at its own pace: long straight stretches, former stations, silence, countryside and that strange feeling of heading somewhere even when you are in no rush to arrive. Perfect for those who love slightly crooked journeys, full of unnecessary detours and very long breaks.

Pass through Vicenza and end up in the Berici Hills

Vicenza is one of those cities that people often pass through too quickly.

Mistake.

Because all it takes is getting lost in the city centre to start wanting to move there, beneath the shadow of extraordinary Palladian palaces. Then, just outside town, the roads of the Berici Hills completely change the rhythm and colours of the journey. Short climbs, gravel roads, vineyards, white roads, old trattorias and a gentle landscape that seems designed for riding without any real plan. A sort of Venetian Tuscany, but with fewer people posting stories.

Starting from the Dolomites without trying to be a hero

Sometimes in the Dolomites we forget that it’s possible to go slowly.

The Long Way of the Dolomites is one of those routes that reminds you that bicycles are not always about conquering something. Sometimes it is enough simply to pass through. Old railway tunnels, forests, enormous mountains and the rare privilege of riding through landscapes that usually exist only in calendars or computer wallpapers.

From Cortina to Dobbiaco you can ride one of the most beautiful roads in the world. In Val Zoldana you can experience the untouristy beauty of a magical area and, if you are brave enough to take a few steep detours, the houses, the asphalt and the noise disappear, leaving only your heartbeat.

Getting lost in Polesine

If you have never ridden along the embankments of the Po, perhaps the time has come.

Polesine is flat, windy, quiet and beautiful in a way that is difficult to explain. There are straight roads stretching for kilometres, herons, water everywhere and the feeling of being much farther from home than the map suggests. It is not a place that tries to impress you. And that is probably why it works so well.

Bonus track: arriving via Pellestrina

Pellestrina looks as if it was invented by someone who wanted to build a cycle path in the middle of the sea. A very thin strip of land between the lagoon and the Adriatic.

Boats. Silence. Colourful houses. Wind. Salt on your skin.

You ride with water in sight almost everywhere.

And at some point you start wondering why we keep looking for the other side of the world when places like this already exist right here.