Monte Grappa by the Strada Cadorna: 25 km, a false flat, and a memorial at the top

Monte Grappa is the highest peak of its massif in the Venetian Pre-Alps, with Bassano del Grappa at its foot, and its summit carries a memorial to tens of thousands of soldiers. The Strada Cadorna, built in 1916 during the First World War, climbs to the top from Romano d'Ezzelino at the foot of the mountain. It is a long climb, close to 25 km from the plain, and nearly 1,500 m of climbing on our track. It is also a climb in two halves, with a flat section in the middle that changes how you should ride it. Here is how it is built, how to pace it, and what waits at the top.

The Strada Cadorna, in three parts

No tourist board or road authority publishes an official length or gradient for the Strada Cadorna, so the figures here are our track's: 26.0 km from Romano d'Ezzelino at 168 m to the Sacrario, with 1,630 m of climbing. The memorial at the summit stands at 1,776 m, according to the Italian Ministry of Defence; our track ends just below it at 1,764 m.

• Romano to the first plateau: the hard half. After a gentle first kilometre the road turns uphill and stays there. On our track kilometres 1 to 7 are all between 7% and 9%, with one kilometre at 12.2%, the steepest of the climb. By 12 km you have done well over half of the climbing, with only one easy kilometre to break it up.
• The false flat. Between about 12 and 16 km the road levels out and even drops slightly. On our track these four kilometres gain almost nothing. It is a real rest, and the right place to eat.
• The upper mountain. From about 16 km the road climbs again, now steadily at 5.5–7.3% for eight kilometres, before easing for the final stretch. After the steep lower slopes this part feels kinder, but it is long, and it is where tired legs pay for a fast start.

How to pace it

For most amateurs the Strada Cadorna is a climb of two hours or more. The steep part comes first, which is the opposite of what many long climbs do, and that changes the plan.

• Start below your target. The ramps at 8–12% come in the first hour, while you feel fresh. Ride them at an effort you could hold for well over an hour, and let the gradient set your speed. Our guide to pacing a climb with power explains why.
• Recover on the false flat. Four kilometres with almost no climbing is a gift. Ease off, drink and eat; fuelling long rides has the numbers.
• Ride the top half steady. At 6–7% the upper mountain suits a steady seated rhythm. If you have something left, use it in the last few kilometres.
• Gear for the lower slopes. The 12% kilometre and the long stretch at 8–9% early on are where you will want a low gear. See gearing for climbing.
• Read the profile before you go. A climb with its hardest part first and a flat middle is easy to misjudge. How to read a route profile helps.

Why it is the Grappa

The mountain's fame is not about cycling. After the Italian defeat at Caporetto, the Grappa became the place where the Italian line held, and it held there until the final victory in October 1918, according to the Veneto Region.

At the top stands the Sacrario Militare del Monte Grappa, built in 1935 to a design by the architect Giovanni Greppi and the sculptor Giannino Castiglioni. The Ministry of Defence records the remains of 12,615 Italian soldiers in its central structure, 10,332 of them unknown, and of 10,295 Austro-Hungarian soldiers in a separate section. Marshal Gaetano Giardino, who led the Fourth Army, remembered as the Army of the Grappa, asked to be buried there among his soldiers. A stone road, the Via Eroica, leads 250 m from the shrine to the Portale Roma, and an observation terrace above it looks out over the battlefields.

The Giro d'Italia knows the mountain too. On the penultimate day of the 2024 race the stage from Alpago to Bassano del Grappa climbed Monte Grappa twice, by a route the Giro described as over 18 km at 8%, and Tadej Pogačar won it.

Practical notes

• A place of remembrance. The Sacrario is a military cemetery. Leave your bike outside, keep your voice down, and take time to walk the Via Eroica.
• Pack a layer. You start on the plain and finish more than 1,500 m higher on an exposed summit. Carry a jacket for the descent, whatever the weather in Bassano.
• Start points. Romano d'Ezzelino is about 5 km from Bassano del Grappa, so the climb is easy to reach from the town. If you are planning a longer trip to the region, the Dolomites by bike covers the mountains to the north.

Ride it in Moveee Indoor

The route on this page is the real Strada Cadorna from Romano d'Ezzelino, with its height at every point. In Moveee Indoor your smart trainer reproduces that gradient as you ride: the steep first hour, the long rest in the middle and the steady climb to the top. The world around you is built from map data of the real place. It is the best way to learn how hard to ride the lower slopes before you find out on the mountain.

Ride it with a plan for the first 12 km and compare it with the top half in the saved power data. It runs in the browser or as the Mac and Windows app. Prefer your own device? Download the GPX above and load it into any app that rides GPX files.

The short version

About 25 km and 1,500 m by the Strada Cadorna, built in 1916, from Romano d'Ezzelino towards the summit memorial at 1,776 m. The hard part comes first, a false flat follows, and the upper mountain climbs steadily at 6–7%. Start gently, eat on the flat, and leave time at the top for the Sacrario.