The happiness of 10,000 years

When I woke up early in the morning at Lago del Miserin, I was already excited. The first pass was ahead, the Fenetre de Champorcher. And then it would finally go downhill. I quickly packed my things and, passing a few deeply relaxed, probably also stunned by psychedelic jazz rock, cattle, I tackled the last 300 meters of altitude. These were quite strenuous again, with many steep and rocky sections, but then I made it and the view opened up to the Gran Paradiso. The southernmost 4000 meter peak in the Alps revealed itself to me in all its splendor.

Watched suspiciously by a herd of ibexes, I then plunged into the first descent of the tour. It went quite smoothly through not too tight hairpin bends until the next mountain pasture in the seemingly deserted upper Vallone dell Urtier. Only one more ascent separated me from the first major highlight of the tour - the Banzai Trail. A legend of the Western Alps, and therefore on my to-do list for a very long time. Since this one probably wouldn't allow itself to be conquered so easily, the last meters of altitude with the heavily loaded bike once again turned into a tough struggle against gravity. But somehow, against all expectations, I emerged as the winner against the seemingly overpowering opponent.

When I finally reached the top, there it was, the Banzai. A plush trail monster that meandered through a flat high valley and promised happiness for countless years. The descent on this gentle creature was a smooth ride that led endlessly through gentle curves in almost ideal gradient. A joy beyond compare. In the middle part it got a little bit bumpy and shook a bit, but calmed down quickly again and carried me down to a small café in the mountain village of Gimillan. This was the final destination. I convinced myself that I had well deserved the espresso and panini. The Banzai delivered even more than it had promised.

I leisurely continued rolling until Cogne and from there a few meters up to Valnontey in the head of the valley, dominated by the mighty cliffs and hanging glaciers of the Gran Paradiso Massif. A wonderfully relaxed campsite invited me to linger. Gratefully, I accepted and decided to stay here for the next two nights to let the joy and happiness of 10,000 years seep into me. Banzai, Banzai, Banzai!