THE HILLS ARE ALIVE…

Touring in the Alps? Completed it mate Thats what many of us think But even the most hardened UK distance fans are likely to have stuck to our side of the wonderful European mountain range The western and southern side of the Alps – the French Swiss and Italian regions – are glorious and most of us have had a taste of them The Route Napoleon Col de la Bonette and the Great St Bernard Pass – all legendary Alpine riding routes and more than deserving of their plaudits

But theres much more to the Alps Look on Google Maps and you can see the enormous snow-capped peaks extend eastwards into Slovenia Lichtenstein Austria and just clip the bottom part of Germany Follow these longer routes and you can still get down into Italy if that s what you fancy But there are other options open afterwards too