I'm just back from a short trip to Ticino. We stayed at a fairly basic Airbnb in Ascona with a brilliant garden containing palm trees and a fig tree. The house was a great starting point for the bike rides, firstly because it was very close to the official cycle route and more importantly it was at the bottom of the hill, I always like cycling downhill on the way home!
My favourite bike ride was route 31 from Ascona to Cavergno through the Valle Maggia, the vast majority of which was on dedicated cycle paths away from the main roads. I'm not keen on cycling on main roads so this bike route was perfect for me. The route was a relatively gentle uphill ride to Cavergno through forests and picturesque villages, next to mountains and occasionally in tunnels through the mountain. One of the highlights was crossing the Ponte Brolla bridge. The photos I took don't do it justice but the views of the river really were spectacular.
Soon after Ponte Brolla I was astounded by a metal and stone sculpture. I knew that metal was strong but was still surprised that it could bear the weight of such a massive rock. At the other end of the ride, it was the waterfall in Bignasco that impressed me.
The reason that I like cycling is that you get to see so much more than if you travel by car. The slower pace gives you time to take in your surroundings and the cycle routes often follow the old roads which go through, rather than by-pass, the scenic villages. Every few minutes there is something that grabs your attention and forces you to stop and take a photo! This stage of cycle route 31 did all of those things. Thank you, Ticino for providing such excellent cycle paths.
Total distance: 69km
Elevation gain: 537m
Language tip
Which sentence did I use?
One of the highlight was...
One of the highlights was....
One of the highlight were
One of the highlights were
One is singular so we use the word 'was' not 'were'. However, it is one of a group so the word highlights (plural) is used. This is a pattern that often causes difficulty for students.